Ros and Dave let us borrow their camera

... and it is an absolute beauty of a camera. I definitely thin that we will purchase it from them. The first time we used it, I didn't have a clue what was going on with all those dials. But after a couple of days I was beginning to get the hang of it. The macros are amazing. The continual shoot apparatus allows you to catch an insect in action or a bird or whatever. It's great to be then able to feel you haven't missed a thing. The Bokeh is surreal. I love it!

I love the way you can focus on the foreground or focus more on the background. Very clever. Makes me look clever... (But it is really the camera). Bryce has hardly had a go of the camera. Mainly because he has been driving a car or a golf club. But I was able to capture a lot of our weekend away. I am imagining all the wonderful things I will be able to do, once I open the instruction book. I guess I'm becoming more like the family in general. I like to fiddle with things. Get my confidence up by doing rather than following instructions. Must be my midlife rebellion streak.

Morning time in the garden

So nice this morning. Woke up. Got a few chores attended to (washing, make beds etc) and then took half an hour's break for a coffee on the deck. We can now sit out in the garden without the feeling that "the guttering needs replacing". That job has been done this week. Woo hoo! We started out just B and me. Then Grace joined us. And Sweep followed. They looked so cute playing together (Grace and Sweep) that I had to capture it on film. Gem was coming home this weekend (from her country life in Orange) but decided she needed R&R so stayed put at her new home. Laura feels the effect of a long cold winter in Japan (sniffle, sniffle) and needs her Berocca. I have had an up and down week at work and need to be very creative so I can mentally switch off and escape into another world. Some sketching definitely. Perhaps a trip to a local garden somewhere.

A drought followed by a flourish...

I cannot find the balance between my working life, my home life and my creative life. Can I share with you a few passions I have. I know myself to be a "good nurse", but to my employers, I am just a number (an eight digit number to be exact). I think working in my current employment has kick started my need to express myself. I guess I can thank their suppression of my creativity for helping me to produce my latest works of art. I have this feeling that life will pass me by and I will never achieve all that I want to achieve unless I DO IT NOW!!!. The opportunity to do a poster to celebrate breastfeeding (in 2010) was awarded with getting the front cover of the 2011 calendar (NSW HEALTH). I guess the calendar says that Louise Cowper (a corporate high flyer) picked it to be the front cover out of all the 39 entries. It's not my best work. I don't know what is, butthis poster's simplicity has broad appeal.

I LOVE to draw and to paint. It gives me pleasure. So much pleasure. I'd love to be a well known painter.

But I also love to photograph. I'd love to produce a famous photograph.

And I love to play the piano. I never read music. I find it hard to read music. But I play by ear. I can pick a tune. And I can replicate a tune. My music gives me pleasure. I'd love to play a piece of music and it be famous. I'd love to play the theme music to a wonderful film or TV show. I'd love my music to be recognised. And those tunes I play not to be buried with me but to live on in the hearts of others.

I'd like to be applauded for my creativity. Not it be a closet hobby.

Nursing rewards those nurses who are allowed to shine. The culture in my organisation subscribes to the Tall Poppy Syndrome. Unless you are a "favourite" one.

Lots of exciting ideas through the SSC

The Sydney Sketch Club was introduced to me through a friend, Alissa, who I met through Life Drawing Classes at the AGNSW. The SSC is a gathering of artists and creative people and people who enjoy to draw. The membership is up around the 250 mark though most meetups have less that 20 people turn up. The group gathers at places all over Sydney to sketch/ paint/ photograph together. But although there is art activities on most weekends, there is a balance to be maintained in all of life. Not ALL art or ALL photography or ALL creative pursuits. However, I would have to say that artistic pursuits do add some degree of calm and also satisfaction and enjoyment in life. There are so many ideas for the first few months of 2011, of which I will be joining in. This group contains some pretty amazing artists. They definitely inspire. Some of them work at a very advanced level. I just stand back and admire. WOW!

January almost over... and great plans ahead

How quickly does a month go. I feel that 2010 went so quickly and when I reflect back onto growth, I guess I could say that I conquered a lot of fears about my drawing ability. I got Julia Cameron's book "The Artists Way" but after reading the second chapter about Road Blocks OR People who sabbotage your creative ability, I decided that the only sabboteurs or blocks were those within my own head. So I worked pretty zealously sketching, painting and planning. I filled about 8 sketch books, and displayed many of the better works on my flickr site. One thing I realised was that whilst I am working full time, and take on the second nursing job teaching antenatal classes, I rob myself of time. Art is squeezed into a very small window of time. If it takes up that entire window, then other things have to go. One daughter described my artistic commitment as "obsessive". I guess in many ways it has been. Frantically trying to make up for lost crewative time. I know a pay cheque pays the bills, but it also robs you of time. Some days, I really have just gone to work and not really enjoyed myself there. I did a job and fitted so much into that 8 hours, or even worked overtime (never paid) to complete tasks. I felt a lot of the time that nursing in maternal and early childhood is not valued, particularly by manageent. That angers me. I guess I feel that it's such important work, and it gets taken for granted. Which then emphasises the fact that art does give pleasure. Art gets noticed. Art can win prizes. It can earn notoriety. It can place some in the history books. Art is such a personal expression that cannot be ignored. My nursing career will hardly be anymore than a means to paying the bills (although I hope in some little way that my interactions with health clients can have a degree of positive impact on their lives). I really hope that my art (though left til later in life) will have an IMPACT.
I haven't done much art since New Year as I was trying to fill those other roles in my life... mother and wife. Here's a little watercolour of my baby doll.

2011 is well underway

What a nice beginning to the new year with "time". Time off work and time for me to reflect on how I would like this year to flow. So far, in one week I have seen 3 movies and had numerous meals out. I have walked every day trying to get above the 10,000 steps and have so far succeeded.
The movies this year have been:
1/ Sarah's Key
2/ The Heart Breaker
3/ Day Break.
The meals out have been either at a restaurant or picnic style. We have discovered the backstreets of Cremorne and Neutral Bay in Sydney, and have been amazed at how many eateries this area houses. There are some creative fit-outs, some amazing fitouts, and some quieter gems. Of the latter catagory, we found a little Greek restaurant that ticked all the health boxes for us in Cremorne. In the "creative" catagory, we ate at a combined cafe/childrens wear shop in Beecroft. We had seafood at a cute Asian cafe in Neutral Bay. And numerous coffees.
It's been a great start to the new year. It's been a combination of health plus inspiration from "deep and meaningful" chats.
It's been great and a week seems a long time when spent this way.

And onto 2011...

Well, now I have spent the last year exploring sketching and photography. Some people felt that I might have been a bit obsessive with all my art (I filled many, many sketch books) but putting that aside, I had a lot of drawing time to catch up to. I don't feel I'll ever really get to where I want to be. Like many things, it will be a compromise effort. But I'll really try my utmost to reach a standard that I am content with. Since getting involved with Flickr and joining many online groups, I have been very encouraged to keep sticking at it (art and photography) and encouraged even further to move to the next level. (Woa!) So I'm trying to understand watercolour. I cannot really afford formal classes. Just an occasional class. I am learning by looking at others' work, and if I want to know more about their work - going to the source and emailing them. Thank God for the internet!
I am trying my watercolour technique with both portrait painting and also with some stylised floral arrangements. When I was in Japan in 2009, I bought a second hand book from "Bookoff" about watercolour painting of flowers. Written in Japanese! However, it is a style of art that I like, and the book has taught me a lot (without words). I was very productive yesterday and today and worked at a series of works. The rest you can see on my Flicker site - So I'll sign off now as I've got some more painting to do.