Fiona and I have had two great days of art, work on the block and general preparation for the open studio event. While I have been shaping metal into bowls, leaves and incense burners in the garage-studio; Fiona has been printing and making books in the 'new' shed studio (
601 MVR Studio).
But the preparation has not all been about the art work; no there is also the work on the block; including tidying the stash of timber and recycled metal. Both Saturday and Sunday were wonderful sunny blue sky winter's days. So I did about 4 hours of cutting back weeds on the wild parts of the block and the coffee plantation; and Fiona turned the Lilly Pillies bushes into a hedge at the shed. But the funniest thing was we decided to sort out the 'rust bank' (our rust pile). And some of the rust is glorious - such as the rusted bike gears in the photo below.
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| Barry Smith © Rusted gears |
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| Barry Smith © Rusted gears |
But we were both amused by how we were sorting the rusted stuff into categories; and then Fiona got sidetracked into building and inverted 'nest' out of rusted wire.
Bit of an update on the nest since I originally did this post: over the last couple of days Fiona and I have experimented with spray adhesive to see if the nest bits could be tacked together. Check out Fiona's post on her success as a rusted nest maker.
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| Barry Smith © Fiona's nest |
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| Barry Smith ©Inverted nest and other rust categories |
It is now time for us to store and use some of the stash below.
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| Barry Smith © Cogs and wheels |
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| Barry Smith © Nails |
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| Barry Smith © Chains |
I think think some people might think we have gone a little loopy if they saw us joyously sorting rust bits - hmmmm!!!
Absolutely glorious rust. Never mind about 'some people' - joyously sorting through the stash (no matter which material) is a wonderful activity.
ReplyDeleteI soooo want to try and turn that nest over! Have been pondering spray-gluing, tacking, stitching, pouring araldite all over it - laugh!
ReplyDeleteIt's what I do so WE must be normal... It's everyone else that's loopy :-)
ReplyDeleteLovely rust stash!
Guess I'm loopy too! As I scrolled down I was going . . .
ReplyDeleteooo . . . aaahhh . ... oh! How wonderful to have your partner share in your adventures!
Love those colours Barry. Amazing how the breaking down of any stuff can be quite beautiful The funghi of decaying matter, rust, peeling paint.
ReplyDeleteBarry,
ReplyDeleteExcellent photos! Wishing you lots of luck for the open studio event.
Enjoy,
Brian
Certainly a pile of lovely junk. Looks similar to my pile! We know that we can never go wrong in showing the beauty of rust!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad more people like this discarted stuff, what a pitty it would be if it enden up on the rubish tip. Fun for you for years to come.
ReplyDeletewhat great stuff..who could resist playing with such fabulous bits and stash!!
ReplyDeleteS, F, R, JG, JM, BS, SZQ, M & L - Ahhh!!! - now I feel normal again - always good to know that there are other people out there who think 'decaying' materials are beautiful; and who also think it is ok to have junk piles and rejoice in the sorting of them and finding 'treasures'. Go well and good hunting. B
ReplyDeleteTotally delicious! I'm with robyn on that one - everyone else are the loopy one's!
ReplyDeleteBarry, it never ceases to amaze me how these rusted bits can be transformed into art, given the right eye for their possibilities and the skilled hands to make it happen! It gives me such a good feeling, that perhaps everything has its purpose and destiny, even after it has been discarded or considered past its use. You do great work.
ReplyDeleteK- you are correct we are the normal ones.
ReplyDeleteTT - Thanks for compliment regarding my work. I also am of the view that all things have their purpose and the discarded are simply being and waiting to be re-created, made new in a new form. Sometimes it is a challenge to see the new form but it is always there. Go well. B
i like that spike tower, as well as fiona's nest!
ReplyDeleteV- the spiked tower is cool and gets better all the time - it's own creation, and yes Fiona's nest looks betterbeach day and she is looking for ways to enhance it. B
ReplyDeleteBarry ,,, my jaw just fell off ... and i dun think i can fix it back ... can Fiona lend me some of that spray adhesive?
ReplyDelete