Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

  Current Workshops  Offerings  Thinking of a workshop for your group in  2022?    Art Doll Workshops : -  Garden Thread Dolls  (one day workshop   -  WoW -(Woman of Wisdom)    - embellished stump doll with either cloth head or clay head.  This is an a rt doll workshop .... either offered as a series of workshops or  2 full days  days!   -  Message/Story  Stick doll  - doll made with found objects and upcycled cloth.  ( one day)    -  Elemental totems  - stick doll variation , with sculpture  ( one or two days, depending on surface decoration of fabric)  TEXTILE AND MIXED MEDIA WORKSHOPS    Temari - embroidered wrapped balls in traditional style.    - Dipping Into Tea  - tea and embroidery on canvas with photo transfer on fabric.  ( two days)  work by Judith Bee, workshop participant.  - Tea Bag sculpture : ...

Some of the fabric tiles with the small drawing of Elsie Randall's design for the entire mosaic.  Newcastle’s Timeless Textiles Gallery will mark International Women’s Day on 8  March with an innovative and collaborative exhibition – Letting Go – which will include the placement of a large-scale art installation outside the Lock-up Gallery and Curve Gallery, Hunter Street , Newcastle East.  The installation, a 72-square metre fabric mosaic designed by local Aboriginal elder and artist Elsie Randal, will be placed on the footpath outside the historical gaol to symbolise the need for Australians, and people from other nations, to cleanse and heal historical pain. The Letting Go installation is inspired by a community ritual held in a small Italian village each year, where townsfolk colour bark chips and scatter them in the square. A respected community elder  then leads a walk through the chips, scattering them as a symbol of cleansing and letting go of old ...

While our holidays have provided me with many blog posts yet to come, this week's "arty place" is at home, literally. Yesterday, once again our family room was transformed into a workshop area  for a Precious Metal Clay workshop for beginners . The photo shows some of the work, beautiful pendants - really fantastic, I think for beginners! Recently most of the workshops here have been art dolls and this year many creations have been born here, during Wise Women workshops ....  and Message Stick art doll workshops ...  Even at family gatherings, there is always time for a workshop or two at Empress Wu Designs . Today we made polymer clay power rings and learnt to make swirl beads with scraps of polymer clay.  If you are interested in any of these workshops please check the workshop page or contact me directly. 

I have been really busy preparing for the Wise Women Exhibition - I wish I didn't leave things until the last minute.... The opening is on 8 March with set up on 6 March and still so  much to do... To encourage myself, I am giving you a sneak preview of some of the works in progress. Reviewing what I have done helps me to refocus on completing some more of my many works in progress. This  mixed media piece is almost  completed... digital prints of some of my photos - the face on  organza and the other strips are on cotton with wrapped threads and clay embellishment. And here is head ( which by the way is attached to a body), and  hopefully with some hair and some costuming will turn into a wise woman - at least a young wise woman.? I was happy with the head, so hope now I can finish it off into a completed art doll. I still have one more Wise Woman workshop before the exhibition - please book here at Timeless Textiles. This last week I also finishe...

Tranquil surroundings, creative and talented participants and good organization are ingredients for a great event. The Contemporary Craft Retreat was not just a great event – it was an exciting and inspirational learning experience. Congratulations must go to Lex Sorrentino, the coordinator of the retreat, who seemed to think of everything anyone might need, right down to extra cakes of soap and lolly bags for the tutors! I was very fortunate to have had the opportunity to lead two workshops. One was  the Bio Bowl – a wet felted vessel inspired by biological beauty. The second was Message Sticks and Spirit Art Dolls with many beautiful imaginative and creative interpretations of my wrapped message stick art doll. I’m not sure anyone used  the collected wise sayings as messages,  but the dolls were inspirational on their own.     We were also privileged to see some amazing “show and tell”. This beautiful art doll by Janice Laurent was created with a bo...