Exhibition Countdown 16 - New exhibition space

Yesterday, I went to the new location of Timeless Textiles Gallery to have a look at the exhibition space.The New Timeless Textiles will be located in the eastern side of the The Lock-Up Cultural Centre I think I can fill the two exhibition rooms. I loved the fireplace mantles - perfect for a couple of my pieces. The area is still being renovated, but I can see that it will be beautiful. Gallery Owner, Anne Kempton has been working extremely hard to get the new venue ready as well as continuing to keep Timeless Textiles current exhibition still open in Islington.

Here is a bit more about the exhibition venue...

Located in the heart of Newcastle's heritage precinct, The Lock-Up combines an art gallery, Artist in Residence program and museum to create a unique destination with a range of cultural activity not offered anywhere else in the Hunter Valley.

The Lock-Up was Newcastle's Police Station from 1861 until its closure in 1982. In that time the cells, now heritage listed, held offenders involved in iconic highlights of Newcastle's history including the Coal Strike of 1909, the Clara Street Eviction riots during the Great Depression and the 1979 Star Hotel riot.The Lock-Up is constructed in Sydney sandstone and is one in a row of four significant buildings on Hunter Street that reflect the prosperity of early Newcastle. It is believed to be the only example in NSW that includes the work of three of the State's important early architects; Alexander Dawson, Mortimer Lewis Jnr. and Walter Vernon.
Sympathetically restored, The Lock-Up now supports contemporary creative practices with a varied exhibition schedule that showcases the work of visiting Artist in Residence (who live in a self-contained apartment on the first floor for up to three weeks at a time), as well as curated exhibitions by Lock-Up staff and local artists that are as idiosyncratic as the city they reside in.

Directions: The Lock-Up is one block from the Newcastle train station, in the Newcastle CBD. Head south along Watt Street and turn right at the first intersection, Hunter Street. The Lock-Up is the second building on the right.OPENING HOURS Wednesday to Sunday 10am-4pm
CONTACT info@thelockup.org.au / www.thelockup.org.au

"Temari Or Not Temari?" Tutorial

Background Information: Temari (literally translated “hand ball”) is a Japanese folk craft that is alleged to have originated in China and was introduced to Japan five or six hundred years ago. Traditionally, the balls were constructed from wrapped kimono fabric remnants and silk threads. They were made by mothers and grandmothers for children to play with. Nowadays, decorative embroidered temari represent a highly valued and cherished gift symbolizing friendship and loyalty. Recently I've wondered if your don't use traditional techniques whether you should call what you create "temari". That is an ongoing debate but today I share what I do to make a "non-traditional temari".... 1.I start with a polystrene ball ( traditionally the balls were wound silk scraps or other organic materials) and begin to wrap with approx 4 ply wool, turning the ball as I wrap. 2. I then wrap another layer of wool in a similar fashion , this time a 3 or 2 ...

Bilby Infatuation

Wrapped wire and fabric bilby sculpture : Wilma Simmons 2016 Over the years I have been fascinated with the plight of the bilby and it has inspired quite a few of my cloth creations... With long pinkish-coloured ears and silky, blue-grey fur, the Bilby has become Australia’s version of the Easter Bunny. Unlike the rabbit, bilby numbers are falling rapidly. There were originally two species but the Greater Bilby is now commonly referred to simply as ‘the Bilby’ as the Lesser Bilby (Macrotis leucura) is thought to have become extinct in the early 1950s... Bilbies are nocturnal, emerging after dark to forage for food. Using their long snouts, they dig out bulbs, tubers, spiders, termites, witchetty grubs and fungi. They use their tongues to lick up grass seeds. Bilbies have poor sight and rely on good hearing and a keen sense of smell. To minimise threats from predators they’ll mostly stay within 250m of their burrows, but sometimes roam further afield depending on the food...

Countdown to Christmas 20 - Fruitcake song!

There are many songs about fruit cakes - not all of them referring to the Christmas cake we know and love.It is really surprising to learn via Google that there are 89 listed songs with references to Christmas cake or fruit cake - not all of them complimentary. Probably one of the most famous folk songs about Christmas cake is Miss Fogarty's Christmas Cake (a favourite sung by The Irish Rovers). This first recorded comical Christmas song was written by C Frank Horn in 1883 in Pennsylania, as a variation of an Irish folk song, 'Miss Mulligan's Christmas Cake' . The chorus might give you the hint that Miss Fogarty's cake was not for the faint hearted or those who suffered from a weak stomach. Chorus : There were plums and prunes and cherries, There were citrons and raisins and cinnamon, too There was nutmeg, cloves and berries And a crust that was nailed on with glue There were caraway seeds in abundance Such that...

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

Search This Blog