Going going GONE!

I may not have made many prints lately, but I have been involved in making quite a lot of money for a charity here called “AIDE ET ESPOIR AUX REFUGIES”, which supports syrian refugees in Greece.  Last Sunday (16 october) we arranged an auction of 30 works of art – including 2 of mine – and also lay on some fantastic “apéros garnis” for the 60 “punters” who came along and willingly parted with nearly 4000 euros of their hard earned cash – well, it WAS a good cause.  One of  my “Pelerinage” prints was bought by a friend who “loved the pink”, and another print set up a bit of a  bidding war and finally sold for double the guide price!

It’s a small figurative landscape of Dartmoor that I made years ago when visiting friends.  I  had forgotten all about it until I came across it this summer in my Somerset studio.  It might easily have been missed because we were in the midst of a frenzied attempt to clear the place out before selling up and moving out, but fortunately it came  back to France with us and…. voila!    I now have an order for another, so I hope I can find the plate!  So, the lesson for today is – don’t turn your back on old prints, they may still have a place in your life!

Weekend Report

So, the first weekend of my mini “Open Studio” event has just ended with a total of TEN VISITORS (including the mayor and his wife) and ONE sale.  The sale was a very bizarre affair involving what must have been a “coup de foudre” on behalf of the purchaser who also insisted that I write – “to my darling baker, with lots of love from Ros” on the back in french!  He IS actually one of the local bakers and runs a shop called “Pain et Chocolat” which always amuses me……..  can chocolate possibly ever be painful?  Ho ho…..

Below is the aforementioned sale – “Plat du Jour 2”.  Thank you Jêrome!

Let’s hope we have more visitors (and more sales) next weekend!

Plat du Jour 2

PORTES OUVERTES

The last few months have been pretty quiet for me, artistically speaking, so it’s time to get moving again and get back into the studio.  How about an OPEN STUDIO event to perk me up a bit – or scare me into action, perhaps!

Summer has arrived in Lauzerte and the village is awash with visitors.  Let’s  hope some of them are art lovers and that they will wander past  my studio and then wander INTO the studio.  They might even stand in the doorway, open mouthed with amazement, before buying at least six of my gorgeous colourful abstract prints!    PIGS MIGHT FLY …..  but a girl can dream can’t she?

Anyway, the studio address is RUE DE LA BRECHE, LAUZERTE  (Behind the old pharmacie, or, if you are a stranger to these parts ….  up the steps beside the Pizzeria).  Studio opening days and hours are: 6.7.13.14.August (3pm-6pm).  I will mainly be exhibiting my Australian prints, and the Plat du Jour series of prints, as well as making new prints AND cups as tea as well….  there’s multi-tasking for you.  There is still life in the old girl yet!

Plat du Jour 2

Plat du Jour 1

ACCOMPLISSEMENTS…….

Day Two of the show is about to start here in Lauzerte, and Day Two of the Mini Print workshop that Bron Bradshaw is running alongside it.  I am acting as the “Jolie Assistante” although most students are proving to be more than competent and once they saw the effects of the acid on their aluminium plates they were completely hooked.  As someone said – “C’est comme la magie”.  Check out Bron’s blog later for shots of amazing mini prints and grubby students!

The show is looking great as well, and includes 50 mini prints from “Dove Studios” in Somerset, plus etchings by Bron herself, plus prints by three french residents – me, Marjon Mudde (Lauzerte’s only other printmaker) and Dominique Médard.

More pictures later, but for now …….

“ACCOMPLISSEMENTS”

Just to keep you on your toes, I am publishing blogs in a VERY random manner today!  This event will be taking place in LAUZERTE during APRIL 2016 but will include some “formidable” british etching talent with which we hope to WOW french audiences.

The project is actually in two parts, the first part  being an artists’ books exhibition and a series of workshops for children.  The second part ( “Accomplissements”  13 – 25 April ) will include an exhibition of etchings from BRON BRADSHAW, ROS MARCHANT, MARJON MUDDE AND DOMINIQUE MEDARD.  In addition there will be about 50 mini-prints on tour from the Dove Workshops in the UK.  The mini-print exhibition is part of an Arts Council funded project called “Amazing Space ” organised by Bron Bradshaw to celebrate the 40th anniversary of artistic activity at the Dove Workshops in Somerset.

On top of that, Bron Bradshaw will be running a two day aluminium etching workshop here in Lauzerte on 13/14 April, closely followed by an artists’ book workshop which will be run by Marjon Mudde (16/17 April).

ALL ACTIVITIES WILL TAKE PLACE AT L’ESPACE ART POINTS DE VUE IN LAUZERTE. Contact Marjon for more information : ass.adpic@wanadoo.fr

Below are a selection of images that may be in the “Accomplissements” exhibition.

 

 

sisters……

….  are doing it for themselves. 

Not many of you will know this but I am the eldest of FOUR sisters and all of us make art of some sort.  So this year, for the first time ever – and probably the last time ever – and mainly because we will all be in the UK for a few days, we have decided to have a “pop up” exhibition together!  It will make our Mum very happy as well!

The SISTERS exhibition will take place on SATURDAY 20th & SUNDAY 21st AUGUST (10am – 6pm).  The venue will be MOAT FARM GALLERY,  LEIGHTON RD, STOKE HAMMOND, MILTON KEYNES MK17 9DD.

THERE WILL ALSO BE A PRIVATE VIEW on FRIDAY 19th AUGUST, 6-8pm,  so if you are in the Milton Keynes area  you can drop in then or over the weekend and see us all and our work.  Several birds, one stone….. For more information, ring 07764 849287

Now lets play “guess the sister”……….  Louise Wooldridge and Vickie Marchant are painters, Sarah Marchant is a ceramicist and I make etchings……

…… TOUJOURS AUSTRALIE!

Cette nouvelle collection de gravures a été inspirée par le voyage que j’ai fait avec Chris Collister (mon mari) en Australie l’année dernière – plus précisément, dans un desert “camp de l’art” environ 300 km d’Alice Springs.  Nous avons passé une semaine dans le “outback”, dans un endroit très isolé nommé “Ruby Gap”, pour dormir sous les étoiles, manger autour d’un petit feu et se baigner dans les trous d’eau.  Le lieu était sauvage, vide, chaud et fortement rouge;  les croquis que je faisais de la terre rouge et les roches rouges et robustes y ont formé la base de cette exposition.

BIENVENUE EN AUSTRALIE !!

Source: BIENVENUE EN AUSTRALIE !!

BIENVENUE EN AUSTRALIE !!

Tonight is the night when Chris and I expose ourselves to the world yet again, because tonight is the Private View of “Australie” here in our little corner of south west France.  We have shipped in Australian wines, and will be wearing our Australian hats and hope these little touches, plus, of course the ART will give everyone a tiny taste of Australia!

I have a total of 12 etchings on show, and Chris has 14 photographs…. and 2 of them are even in COLOUR.   The predominant colour is, predictably, RED and various shades and  hues of red, orange, gold and pink.

The show runs from 18-30 September at the Mediatheque in Lauzerte.  Venez nombreux!

Here are some of the stars of the “Australie” show:

RED RED RED

At last, I have made 12 prints inspired by the australian “outback” and all of them will feature in my show “Australie” in September at the Mediatheque in Lauzerte.  And those prints are all red – or mostly red – of course!     No need for dark glasses, though, because their effect will be somewhat counteracted by a number of photos in BLACK & WHITE by Chris Collister,  which were also inspired by the same australian landscape.  Bizarre but true!

I do wonder why it’s taken nearly a year to produce these prints.  I have had the sketches in front of me since we got back from Australia last October and was only able to work on them as the dates for the planned “Australie” show grew closer.  Does this mean we are motivated mainly by FEAR to produce art?

Anyway, here is a taster of the pieces that will be on show during “Australie”  (18 – 30 September.)  Here is Ruby Gap 1 and Ruby Gap 4.