Between the Lines

Last night we launched the eighth COMA exhibition - Maleny Image 8 : between the lines - at Rosetta Books at 43 Maple Street - Maleny.

35 artists have contributed works - based on a theme from a book they have read. The artists were also required to list the book that inspired them and write a brief statement to accompany the artwork.

All the works are priced at $85.00 ( some great bargains to be had there folks ... ) and the exhibition runs for a fortnight until 12 June.

contributing artists Jo Murray and Robyn Graham

Exhibition at Noosa

I am currently exhibiting in a joint exhibition at Carrington's Gallery in Noosa Junction. The show opened on Monday night - with a jolly crowd of "gallery-opening-professionals" - and will continue for the next six weeks. My works represent a series of assemblages of rescued materials - wood, metal and hand-made paper. It's great to be out-and-about in another gallery at last - and thank-you to Julie for inviting me up to Noosa.

The Gallery - with my work on the end wall ...

FOI with Nested on wall above ...

The group of four - Bolted, Doctored, Engineered and Pegged ...

Drawn ...

FOI ...

Chain Mail shortlisted ...

I'm a very excited artist tonight because my three artworks - Chain Mail #1 #2 and #3 - have put me up there as a finalist in the Noosa Regional Gallery Travelling Scholarship 2011.

There are 39 other finalists from across the country, and we will be competing for a prize of several ks that is be to used for the purpose of undertaking travel and study to support career development.

It's a great honour and an enormous thrill just to be shortlisted - as this alone will include me in an exhibition with the other finalists in July to September at the Noosa Regional Gallery.

It is also telling me that I'm on the right track with this genre of work. I have also had a similar piece accepted for the Moreton Bay Regional Art Awards in May and I am in a joint exhibition with three other artists ( including Kim Schoenberger ... ) at Carringtons Gallery in Noosa also in May ... so it's quite an exciting time right now ...

You can view all my current work at www.kenmunsie.com ... I hope you enjoy ...

Chain Mail

Just finished three pieces of assemblage - Chain Mail #1 #2 and #3. These three sculptures are part of a series of 17 recently completed small and medium sized sculptures - the series is titled Evolution.

Here I use a combination of timber, rusted metal and hand-made paper.

All materials have had a previous life, have been discarded, found and rescued and then re-worked to create individual and unique works. The works reflect my on-going fascination with life, death and rebirth and my interest in the traces of past existences. I start with a pile of un-related materials and slowly work them into an artwork that can be read with imagination.

The idea of evolution runs frequently through my work as I explore the craft of the Artist's Book and paper-making.

I have been making paper from plant fiber and recycled paper for the past 11 years and use it extensively in my assemblage sculptures and also by mixing it with clay in my ceramic practice. In this instance the paper I use has been made from recycled office paper that has been shredded and reconstituted and molded into sheets.

The paper represents love letters, final notices for outstanding accounts and the many ideas and inspirations flowing through the artist's head. Each sheet has an invisible story to tell.

The full series can be viewed on my website http://www.kenmunsie.com/

The full series can be viewed on my website http://www.kenmunsie.com/

Scent Bottles

Here are some cute little scent bottles I have rolled out this week ... they are quite tiny only 70mm in hight - and they are created by "slip-casting" ... this is - I pour liquid clay into plaster moulds ( just like commercial ware is created ...) - then once dried apply some simple brush work with under-glaze and finally a super gloss glaze - fired to 1080 degrees ... all presented in a carboard box ...

more on ... < http://www.kenmunsie.com/ >

new ceramic works

The last few weeks have been particularly busy in my pottery studio - and here are a few samples of what is coming out of the kiln ... with more on the way ...
I use an homogeneous mixture of paper pulp made from shredded office paper and recycled clay to create the paperclay - I then add crushed house brick to the mixture - and compose sculptures inspired by two elemental forms – a closed shape derived from vessels for storage & an open bowls shape derived from vessels for presentation.
My studio/gallery is slowly filling up with new works - and I am planning to open my doors to the public on week-ends as from 19 March ... not long to go - but heaps of work to do over the next week ...
























































































to see all my current works go to my web site < www.kenmunsie.com >

Magic at Dusk

Yesterday here in Maleny it was a hellishly hot one - with the mercury hitting well into the thirties and humidity way up there also ... it was such a relief to finally say good night to sister sun and welcome a stir of cool air in through the open windows as darkness floated in ...
Right on dusk the Calliandra blossoms burst open with their iridescent pink and brilliant white lighting up my garden for the night critters to find their way to the sweet pollen ... twenty four hours later after a day of heavy rain, alas the garden is in darkness again ...