Rustnstuff: 02/14

Friday, February 28, 2014

A few bowls on Friday

Sometime ago I was asked by Gary Myers (artist and owner of Maleny Art Gallery) if I would be interested in selling some of my 3D work through the gallery. I procrastinated a bit but decided to show, and hopefully sell, some of my raised bowls.

Over the last couple of days I have worked pretty hard to create a few new bowls to exhibit in one of the glass display cabinets. I made a few more of what I'm now calling my Starburst bowls. These are about 10-11cm in diameter and about 5-6cm deep.

A couple of small egg shaped Pods. I have left most of the fire colour on these small Pods as it gives them an aged look.

And I made another small conical bowl. I love the texture and colour of this bowl (about 6-7cm long and the same in diameter).

None of the bowls are meant to be functional in that they all lie on their sides - no flat bottoms. But if folk want to use them to hold things I can provide a Perspex or wooden curtain ring in which they can rest upright. All are made from recycled metal. Photos were taken with the trusty iPhone.

Maleny Art Gallery is to be officially opened tomorrow night - Fiona and I will be there for the party.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

A slightly different request

As I have said in other posts, I sell my ladles and leaf-spoons through our local excellent gift and homewards store - Maleny Additions. The stock of ladles and leaf-spoons have sold out so I'm in the process of making another batch.

Below is a photo of the beginnings of lots of pieces - from left to right: Daily Word bowl blanks; Leaf Letter Opener blanks - partly marked up; Leaf-spoon blanks - marked up; formed rough bowls for ladles; and a couple of triangles of metal for a new request - Cake Lifters!!!

The Cake Lifter request has a bit of urgency about as I think it could be a wedding gift or for use a a wedding - so I got to finish that today. The photos below show the components in the rough; and then assembled (riveted) and polished.

And of course I made two to give the person a choice. Both blades of the lifters are cut from a very heavy patterned silver plate over copper circular serving tray - very old. The blades are 10-12 cm long - lift a good sized piece of cake. The silver handle was formerly the handle of a cake tray - cut down and bent this way and that. The copper handle is very heavy gauge copper wire - twisted in the vice and flattened on the anvil. As my first Cake Lifters they have turned out well. Off to Maleny Additions tomorrow or Friday.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Hoard makes it home

The trip home from Hobart was somewhat chaotic. It all started with a plane with a faulty cockpit screen. After being classified as "disrupted passengers" we were put on later flights and travelled home via Sydney rather than Melbourne. We were not convinced our luggage, including 23kg of silver plated EPNS, would arrive in Brisbane at the same time as ourselves. We were right - it missed two flights out of Hobart - but the airline ensured it was delivered about 9pm Friday night in the dark and rain - ok for us not so ok for the delivery person.

Anyway the good news is my small-medium $3 op-shop suitcase with its hoard of silver plate arrived safely home.

Unpacking it was like delving into a Tardis. I bought a 1 kg bag of clean recycled cloth to pack around the pieces - on top you can see the bolt cutters used for removing handles; and a couple of secondhand Japanese hammers I managed to buy cheaply.

The pieces just kept coming out of the suitcase. In all there were: 8 smal-medium oval trays; 10 long thin trays; 7 rectangular trays; 6 small-medium circular trays; 8 large circular trays; 9 goblets; and 12 tray handles.

Some beautiful detailed pieces will become Traveller's Shrines.

All the bits were packed into my metal storage bins.

Whilst I was away and at the Pop-Up Gallery's 1 year birthday party Friday night, I was given the pieces below by Edith-Ann, Kim and an unknown person (pieces left in our letter box).

I have plenty of metal to keep me occupied.

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Travel fragments

One thing I notice about photos that Fiona and I take on our travels is that rarely do they include people; and often they are photos of fragments or the texture of things.

I still need to sort my photos from our trip to the US in Nov-Dec last year; but because it is Wednesday I thought I might share a few of the fragments taken with the iPhone.

Sometimes it is the line that catches the eye; or weathered texture; or the contrasts; or the quirky nature of an assemblage; the play of light; a shadow ……..

Maleny Printmakers are to hold the group's next exhibition over Easter - the theme is journeys - I still have not worked out what I would contribute - maybe some of the fragments could morph into prints!!!!

Sunday, February 16, 2014

A little more production

As some may be aware I delivered my 50 Leaf Letter Openers to the company that commissioned them.

The company was very pleased with the delivery; and ordered another 50. I said I could do that; but preferred to do them in batches of 10 over the next few months. I have completed my first batch of 10 as you can see from the photos below.

I took the opportunity to complete a few brass and copper leaves I started some months ago.

I will be on the look out for more flat silver plated EPNS and copper to complete the other 40 Leaf Letter Openers.

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