Progress on Flowers for Oberon - new work...

Making great progress this week on this new work!

All that glimmers is not gossamer ( for the impossible love of the Weaver) 2016.

I had to get some photos taken of work so far for my Castlemaine State Festival Open studios/exhibition form last week.

Here's an overview in 75 words of the premise for the exhibition...
"I love flowers for their treachery
their fragile bodies grace my imagination’s avenues
without their presence my mind would be an unmarked grave"- Etel Adan.
Oberon was my Burmese cat, my muse.
He died from renal failure after ingesting lilies given to me at the opening
of my first exhibition.
Positioned between adornment, object and the performative, my new work explores this story: memories of love and death; beauty and betrayal;foolishness and folly.

The neckpiece pictured above , All that glimmers is not gossamer ( for the impossible love of the Weaver) 2016 is made from handwoven hemp paper thread, linen thread and fine copper wire and silkmoth cocoons. The piece is inspired by the folly of impossible  ( not to mention poison/drug induced)  "love" in A Midsummer Night's Dream- between Titania and Nick Bottom the Weaver.  Thus the references in the photograph.

Below is a piece we've spoken about before, a brooch , Titania's folly ( her flower , his poison) 2016 constructed from crocheted, nylon coated wire, handmade wool felt, silkmoth cocoon, glass vial and flower stamens.

And the eye mask- which will also feature in one of the performance videos... made from handmade wool felt, silkmoth cocoon and satin ribbon- is titled Heartease ( you have but slumbered here) - and yes is another reference to A Midsummer Night's Dream and the Heartease or Johnny Jump up flower. This is the flower that Oberon uses to make his magic sleeping and love potion for Titania. When Titania awakes from this slumber she falls in love with the first thing she sees which happens to be the character Nick Bottom , the weaver, doning an asses head for a play that he and fellow players are rehearsing in the woods.- foolishness , folly and love...

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Heartease ( you have but slumbered here) 2016

Have also been recording and collecting audio recordings of friends reading poems/singing songs about love/flowers/death. I intend to use these as soundtracks for some video performance pieces.

Thank you so so much to Kathryn Dalton who shared her beautiful reading of a poem ( Anon)  - that was a clipping out of a newspaper that her grandmother had cut and kept with instructions it was to be read at he funeral, Kathryn recorded herself reading the poem with the music is Faure's Pavane Opus50 by the Sydney Philharmonia Orchestra and the Sydney Philharmonia Symphonic Choir in the background for her grandmother's funeral. I fee very l priveleged and honoured that Kathryn has shared this with me and allowed me to use it in my work. Many thanks again for sharing your story, beautiful woman!