Sunday, March 29, 2015

Glass fragments in Canberra

On our recent work trip south Fiona and I were fortunate to be able to fit in a couple of quick visits to favourite galleries including Canberra Glassworks.


They had a public and free exhibition called Diplomacy: translations in glass. Some details on the screen shot below.

I loved the detail of many of the works; and so I thought i would share a few of my photos below.














The old iPhone 5 stills produces some good images.

Friday, March 27, 2015

Friday trio

Today has been quite full with social gatherings with friends and family - but a little art was squeezed in this afternoon.
©2015 Barry Smith - Detail from a leaf form pendant
I thought with the limited time available I would finish a few pendants I started more than a month ago.

I did get this brass and solid silver negative space leaf pendant with rivets done.

©2015 Barry Smith - A leaf form pendant - about 50mmX50mm
And this solid .925 silver negative and positive space leaf pendant.

©2015 Barry Smith - Solid silver leaf pendant - about 60mm long and 30mm wide and 1mm thick
And another long slender hammered silver-plated EPNS with rivets.

©2015 Barry Smith - Hammered and rivet pendant - 60mm long and 12mm wide
©2015 Barry Smith - Hammered and rivet pendant - 60mm long and 12mm wide
I always find a degree of satisfaction in completing works and getting them off the work bench. The work bench is out of control - tidying will be a job for next week. I can hear bubbles calling.


Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Immersing oneself in night light

Fiona and I have been off the mountain for almost a week for work-work and art work - back home this afternoon. One of our stops was Canberra. One night Fiona was catching up with her friend Sue - I went for a night walk after dinner.

©2015 Barry Smith - Detail of the droplet
I was intrigued by this sculpture - I have seen to by day; but much prefer it by night when it is lit from with; and contrasts beautifully with the darkened sky. As I walked towards it I was more and more intrigued by the colour, patterns, light and detail.

©2015 Barry Smith - Beautiful reflections 
©2015 Barry Smith - Glistening, reflecting emerging
©2015 Barry Smith - Beautiful form
©2015 Barry Smith - Merging with the dark sky
©2015 Barry Smith - Drawn upwards
Sadly the work is very large - about 4 or more meters high - it is too crowded by the urban bits and pieces - I would love to see it in an empty park. Anyway I thought I would just share a few photos captured with the trusty iPhone.

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Foible for a friend

©2015 Barry Smith -  Crystal to catch the light.
I have started the process of spreading stuff out and selecting bits for a series of Steampunk Lamps - two of which are to be used in our house. But as you can see from the photo above I got sidetracked - I decided to make a small Light Catcher for a friend. You can see a couple of the bits in the photo below that suggested I make the Light Catcher.

©2015 Barry Smith - Stuff on the bench
Getting a few of the pieces ready for assemblage.

©2015 Barry Smith - Pieces drilled and threaded ready for assemblage
And a few photos of the piece as it turned out.

©2015 Barry Smith - Light Catcher on the anvil
©2015 Barry Smith - Light Cather - quirky
©2015 Barry Smith - Looking down on the Light Catcher
I'm hoping it will bring a bit of joy. The base is from a heavy brass building sign, the uprights are silver-plated hexagonal rods from fine candle holders, the long crystal drop was bought in a flea market in NY, and the round balls etc are from an old clock. Lot of polishing was required.

Friday, March 20, 2015

Fragments for peace

Fiona and I have been part of the Flags for Peace blog group since MJ started it in 2012. Each year we have kept the more robust "flags" and we have hung them, and a set of flags Jennifer Q sent us, on the bell deck on the southern side of the house. Some of Fiona's flags have been made of paper - and sadly, but beautifully in a ephemeral sense, are a little less resilient.

©2015 Barry Smith - Japanese Peace Bell - silent peace sentry on the block
The flags continue to age, flap and get slightly shredded by the wind. I think of it as the flags continuing to send out their peace messages. A few days ago I was doing work on the wall below the bell deck and just loved the beauty of the fragments of peace flags that continued to offer their message. Some images of these fragments - though you may have seen earlier versions of these before.

©2015 Barry Smith - Barry's Rainbow Umbrella flags - shredded to beautiful tatters
©2015 Barry Smith - Jennifer's flags quietly hanging in there since 2012
©2015 Barry Smith - Fiona's Rainbow Peace Flags with Cranes - faded but holding true 
©2015 Barry Smith - Fiona's Peace Cranes on wash clothes - beautiful fragile symbols of peace
©2015 Barry Smith - Iron Peace dove - rusting but strong
And the fragments of shaped rusted metal also continue to offer up peace.

©2015 Barry Smith - Seek peace - a lasting message
I love it when things you have put in place continue to work for peace even without one's active involvement.

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Transitional beauty

On this blog I periodically post on rust and the gradual transition of timber and books. A few days ago I was down the back cutting weeds. I noticed that the organ that sits between our mango trees has really started to breakdown in a beautiful way - a quiet transition. I thought I'd share a few photos.

©2015 Barry Smith -  Veneer peeling - lovely wave of wood
©2015 Barry Smith - Fungal discolouration
©2015 Barry Smith - Layers
©2015 Barry Smith - Leaves finding their way in
©2015 Barry Smith - A new home?
©2015 Barry Smith - Gradual transition

©2015 Barry Smith - Organ in the landscape
And of course on the block there is always rust to be appreciated. Recent rain has speed up the rusting process of a bunch of circular saw blades that I'm keeping to turn into a portal doorway.

©2015 Barry Smith - Just rusting quietly
©2015 Barry Smith - Unusual colours of rust
©2015 Barry Smith - Unusual colours of rust
Nature provides the beauty even as it works to return the timber and iron to the earth.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

The stone carvers


©2015 Barry Smith - One of Judy's spirals
Over the last couple of weeks a number of artists have volunteered their time to continue to develop their peace and environment inspired stone monoliths for the Peace in the Trees installation.

A big thank you to the Sunshine Coast Council for providing funds to pay for sculptor Wayne Markwort to supervise the 4 days of volunteer sculptural work.

It was hard and dirty work but a lot of satisfaction when we saw where we got to given none of us are stone carvers. The stone is very hard Helidon sandstone with ironstone inclusions. We have deliberately left much of the raw stone for contrast; and also the drill holes Craig Medson used to hand split the stone.

Some of the carvers and their work follow:

©2015 Barry Smith - Kim with her piece Solace
©2015 Barry Smith - Detail from Solace
©2015 Barry Smith - Emma chipping away
©2015 Barry Smith - And the goanna emerges
©2015 Barry Smith - Michael added to his design
©2015 Barry Smith - Katie adding to almost every face of her large block of stone
©2015 Barry Smith -  Peace in many languages
©2015 Barry Smith - Rose quartz in the bowl on top of Katie's stone
©2015 Barry Smith - Our sculpting instructor Wayne Markwort put a bit of emphasis around  Carolyn's Heartfelt piece.
©2015 Barry Smith - James' piece was given some finishing touches
©2015 Barry Smith - Cathy and Wayne added to Cathy's Platypus
©2015 Barry Smith - Judy getting down and dirty
©2015 Barry Smith - Intricate spirals on Judy's stone
©2015 Barry Smith - I added Imagine and a leaf on this face.
©2015 Barry Smith - Now was added to this face and a leaf and definition to the front.
©2015 Barry Smith - Couple of leaves on the back with natural hard ironstone showing through
©2015 Barry Smith - Viv carefully carving her leaf forms
©2015 Barry Smith - Earth mother and leaves emerge
Some of the artists will continue to work on their stone now and then over the next month. And in a couple of months we hope to move the pieces and install them along a public walk. We are working with the Sunshine Coast Council on the relocation and installation of the works.