Studio Insights - May 2024
Welcome to my first official monthly update for my blog Studio Insights!
To kick things off I’m introducing a format which I have developed to give a unique insight into my practice and keep each month clear, concise and consistent.
Each blog post will be split into 4 sections:
CREATE: What I’ve created/done & what I’m working on.
INSPIRE: What art has inspired me.
LEARN: What I’m learning to develop my practice.
PLAN: What I’m planning next.
CREATE: NZ Art Show
May was all about my biggest art show of the year - The NZ Art Show, hosted at TSB Area (+ Shed 6 this year!)
I was kept busy prepping, setting up and attending the weekend long show. It was great to see a host of new developments to the running this year with the inclusion of Shed 6 next door and a collaboration with Radioactive. I was honoured to be selected for a radio interview in the lead-up to the show!
With a record attendance it was an overwhelmingly exhausting but immensely fulfilling weekend. My new run of prints for ‘Ethereal Moss’ was a massive success - I sold out of the stock I had prepared as prints were flying out the door. If you are still looking to pick up a copy - get in contact as I’ve had more printed since.
This year I experimented with displaying two large (A1) framed prints, as the market is less favourable towards expensive originals currently. It worked well as they both sold! Keep an eye out as I’ll definitely be getting some more done in the future - including everyone’s favourite ‘Ethereal Moss’. Thank you to the talented Jo Williams for her framing work.
So many lovely people came past my space - Friends, family, past collectors, new admirers and other amazing creatives. Thank you to everyone who came by, your support means everything no matter how small or large.
Photography by Andrew Morris
INSPIRE: Jugs in New Zealand Painting
The Dowse: Paul Maseyk - Jugs in New Zealand Painting
My visits to the Dowse are always a treat and this exhibition was no exception. Ceramic artist Maseyk has put together a collection of beautiful pottery, referencing from famous NZ paintings that contain jugs as the subject.
I’ll admit I don’t usually have much of an interest in pottery. I admire the mastery of technique that is required, but it’s a little too practical and ‘normal’ for my taste. However, this exhibition captivated me. It was presented beautifully, and encouraged a uniquely engaged viewing experience that I haven’t experienced before. Walking around was like a fun game of Where’s Wally, attempting to piece together how each piece is portrayed in the corresponding painting. Some were obvious, others hidden and abstract. Maseyks jugs were anything but bland and practical, sometimes bordering on bizarre and whimsical as they faithfully celebrated each artists’ style. I gained a new appreciation for both for pottery and for elegant exhibition design.
LEARN: Time Blocking
This month I’ve been trying out a time management system called ‘Time Blocking’ which I’ve learnt about from the writer Cal Newport. This method has you pre-plan and block out every hour of your day into chunks, based on how long each task/commitment should take. Cal doesn’t believe in to-do lists. Instead, he takes each task and assigns it a block of time.
As an artist my work-week is incredibly self-guided, and this can be quite overwhelming. I’ve found that I get very anxious arriving at the studio without a clear plan of what I’m going to achieve that day. This wasn’t much of a problem when all I had to do was paint, the objective was simple and clear. But as the prep for my show ramped up, I found myself needing to complete a range of different little tasks throughout the day. My use of time became unclear and sporadic - I needed a better system.
I first tried using a whiteboard on my wall in the studio. I found this always visible aspect great, but I couldn’t see/adjust my schedule when out. So I adjusted to a combination using my Google Calendar and transfering to the whiteboard. It takes a bit of adjusting and figuring out, and I’m still getting the hang of it. But I’ve found it quite valuable so far.
Who knew not having a boss telling you what to do with your time could be so stressful?
PLAN: Gallery representation
The world of galleries is something I’ve yet to properly delve into. I’ve been wanting to dip my toe in and give it a try for a while, but the big art shows have taken up so much of my time and required a lot of work. Now that the NZ Art Show is over and I have built up a body of work, I’m exploring representation to see if it works for me.
I have some exciting plans to work with Quirky Fox gallery up in Hawera, starting (hopefully) next month. Stay tuned for more details!