Maja Wolnik

Happy New Year + January Taste of Poland Recipe: Salatka Jarzynowa (Vegetable Salad)

2012-01-04T00:37:00.005+11:00

Dear Friends!

Wishing you all a very happy and amazing 2012! I have a feeling it is going to be a good one! Because of all the festivities, I'm slightly late posting the very first recipe from my Taste of Poland calendar which I launched last November at the Polish Festival at Federation Square. My apologies, here we go:

3 carrots, boiled
3 potatoes, boiled
3 eggs, boiled
3 apples
1 onion
3 pickles
1 can of peas
1/2 jar of good quality mayonnaise
salt and pepper
extra egg and vegetables for decoration

The proportions here are just an estimate - depends how much salad you want to make! Boil the carrots, potatoes and eggs (separately) and set aside to cool. You can prepare these a day earlier if you don't want to wait around for them to cool down. Once cool, dice the carrots, potatoes, eggs, apples, pickles and onion into cubes. I prefer mine quite small, but they should be less than 1cm. Drain the peas and place all ingredients in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and mix everything to gether. Lastly, add the mayonnaise until it covers the ingredients when mixed together. In my family we like to use S&W Whole Egg Mayonnaise. But I have to confess... I hate mayonnaise, and my lovely mum always has put aside a small bowl just for me...with no mayo! It tastes just as delicious, I think :) Lastly, place the salad in a nice glass bowl and decorate the top with egg halves, capsicum and/or pickles.

Enjoy! And PS. If you still want to purchase a Taste of Poland 2012 Calendar, please email me, as I have a small number of limited edition copies left!

Maja

A Taste of Poland 2012 Calendar

2011-11-20T00:07:00.000+11:00

I can't believe it but it's almost the end of the year! I've always wanted to design and create a calendar, so this year I actually got myself organised and put together the 'Taste of Poland 2012 Calendar'

It was a mammoth task in a VERY tight time frame but I'm very proud to present 12 illustrations of some of Poland's most famous and favourite dishes - one for each month!
The months, days of the week as well as the names of the Polish dishes are listed both in Polish and English - the perfect way to learn some cool new Polish words. Watch this blog each month next year to follow the recipes of delicious dishes such as Paczki (Doughnuts), Pierogi (Dumplings) and Ogorki (Pickles).

Please join me this Sunday November 20th at Federation Square, Melbourne for the annual Polish Festival where my gorgeous Calendar will be launched and available for purchase. It's a really fun day out and you can taste some of the Polish Dishes featured in the Calendar.

My stall is positioned right off Swanston Street at Fed Square, just opposite the Visitor Centre. Please come and say hello and pick up a few Taste of Poland 2012 Calendars - perfect as Christmas gifts!

Wishing you all an amazing year next year.

Maja

Secret Project!

2011-07-05T22:35:00.000+10:00

I'm working on a secret project. I'm really excited, because this project has dragged me out of a creative rut and re-inspired me in so many ways! I can't reveal exactly what it is just yet, but it does involve wrapping new wheels in my illustrations. I've got two separate designs going at the moment, each is quite different from the other, but I just wanted to share this one sketch with you. This sleek peacock pyramid came to mind when I recently had cocktails with my girlfriends at the Emerald Peacock Lounge on Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. Such a gorgeous, glamorous place, I drew a connection with this feeling, the peacock and the project I'm working on. But more on that later... enjoy!

Illustration Friday - Launch

2011-06-21T22:21:00.000+10:00

Frog Illustration by Maja Wolnik

I've been hiding under a rock. For a long time. Kind of like a frog, waiting for something to happen. I'm not sure why, maybe it was the empty well in my brain after my very successful solo exhibition, maybe its been a bunch of life things I've had going on or maybe I've just been too lazy or scared to create... but I've definitely been very blocked! I'm not sure if I'm out of the woods yet, but new illustrations that I've been doing for a new client have gotten me VERY inspired... all things kiddy and cute. So, very fittingly for this week's Illustration Friday theme, I'm LAUNCHING myself into creativity once again, with a giant leap of faith! So watch out world:)

Exhibition Euphoria @ Off the Kerb Gallery

2011-03-15T15:04:00.000+11:00

Over a week ago (oh how the time flies!) I was back at Off the Kerb Gallery to pack up my Echoes of Nature exhibition. To my delight, I found the gallery covered with red dots, and almost half of my work SOLD!!!

It was a huge leap from humble beginnings on opening night, the evening of February 4th, when Melbourne decided to descend into humid and wet chaos, with flash flooding turning our roads into rivers. Seriously! I could not have picked a worse night for an exhibition opening. But, those who love art, family and friends (who love me) braved the weather Gods and made it in time for refreshing (and very affordable) drinks, beautiful artwork (if I do say so myself) and interesting chats with the artists.

I could not be happier with the final outcome of this exhibition. The grin on my face could not be wiped for days.

I will miss my little babies... I'm kind of sad that all those months of hard work and preparation are over, there is a feeling of emptiness after the euphoria, but knowing that other people are enjoying my art in their homes and offices is absolutely priceless.

Creatively yours,

Maja Wolnik

Illustration Friday - Reverse

2011-02-08T09:47:00.000+11:00

This week's IF topic is Reverse... so I had to take this opportunity to showcase a piece of mine that is currently on show at Off the Kerb Gallery. Titled Mysterious, it is an ink illustration that has been inverted by using a photocopier. This way, the colours and the image have come out in reverse. It is one of the main techniques that I have used in this body of work.

Mysterious by Maja Wolnik, mixed media print, 2010

Please see my blog posts below for further information about this work and show.

Enjoy!

Maja

Exhibition Fever!

2011-02-03T13:15:00.001+11:00

For the last week, especially in the last two days I've had Exhibition Fever. I've been so busy stressing about my upcoming show at Off the Kerb Gallery on Friday that I can hardly sleep or eat, let alone do any other tasks that need attention like grocery shopping or the laundry.

But I love it! Part of the Exhibition Fever involved the local media who came by my studio last week to take happy snaps of me and my work. I'm thrilled to be featured in the Maribyrnong Leader and the Maribyrnong Weekly. Check out the articles here and here.

Now, I've also spent a very long day at the Gallery setting up. Being an artist doesn't prepare you for the amount of mathematics you need to know to work out how to hang your work evenly! Not to mention special balancing skills required for the ladder to hammer nails in the wall.

Lucky for me the lovely Shini (founder/director) was there to curate and help with her extensive gallery experience. She saved my life with a strong cup of freshly brewed coffee, and we spent the whole day together chatting about all things art related (whilst measuring, hanging, re-measuring, re-hanging).

We also had the pleasure of her two gorgeous cats keeping us company during our breaks in the cute gallery courtyard.

Exhibition Fever is taking its toll on me but I can't wait to see it all come together! I'm looking forward to the opening night, where I will also get to see the work of Elodie Silberstein in the back gallery and Monika Jean Dziewialtkowski-Gintowt in the upstairs gallery. It's going to be a fun night!
Join me on Friday February 4th, 6pm-9pm at Off the Kerb Gallery, 66B Johnston Street, Collingwood.

Echoes of Nature: Solo Exhibition at Off the Kerb Gallery : Friday Feb 4th 6pm-9pm

2011-01-13T23:50:00.000+11:00

Please join me at Off the Kerb Gallery, 66B Johnston St, Collingwood. Opening night Friday February 4th from 6-9pm. Exhibition runs from Feb 4-25. Gallery opening hours are Thurs & Fri 12:30pm-6pm, Sat & Sun 12-5pm.

Echoes of nature is a collection of playful, intricate works inspired by the patterns created in nature. This body of work stemmed from drawings I made during a month long stay at the Julia & David White Artists’ Colony in Costa Rica in 2009. Crumpled, dying leaves captured my attention and then my imagination to re-create something original.

I like to use ink to draw my illustrations: I can make distinct, solid lines yet still create a sense of flow and movement.

I’m fascinated with repetition: I love making copies, and copies of copies…they’re never really quite identical. The photocopier is an important element of my creative process – it allows me to make quick copies of my work, but also to enlarge, reduce, crop, reverse and modify my images in countless ways.

Collage then takes me back to that childhood feeling of joy and playfulness: I cut things up, add bits, take away, move things around, stick them down and then add even more ink. Guided by intuition, this method allows me to re-construct the natural forms to create new, yet similar images that echo each other.

As I explore the endless possibilities of creation, I hope to evoke a feeling, a memory or reaction and inspire you to stop, reflect and appreciate. The final arrangement allows the eyes to play.

Please join me at Off the Kerb Gallery, 66B Johnston St, Collingwood for the opening night on Friday February 4th from 6-9pm.

Linden Postcard Show : Saturday February 5th 1pm-5pm

2011-01-13T21:34:00.000+11:00

Linden Postcard Show, Linden Centre for Contemporary Arts, 26 Acland Street, St Kilda. Opening day Saturday February 5th 1pm. Exhibition open from Feb 5th to March 26th. Gallery hours 1pm - 5pm Tuesday - Friday, 11am-5pm Sat & Sun.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Linden Postcard Show, but I've made 2011 my first ever entry!

Featuring small scale works in all mediums from thousands of artists, the annual Linden Postcard Show is the wealthiest open entry competition in Australia. With a plethora of prizes such as the $5000 Linden Award, $2,000 Palais Theatre Management Artist Support Award , $1,000 Yarra Trams Award, $1,000 St Kilda Art Supplies Award and the chance for 6 Postcard winners to each receive $250 and have their work reproduced as Linden Postcards, I couldn't let this amazing opportunity slip by. I've entered three of my most recent monoprints for judging.

Opening celebrations start from 1pm on Saturday 5th February with bar and live music. Please join me at the Linden Centre and wish me luck!

Wishing you a happy, healthy, creative New Year!

2011-01-11T22:19:00.000+11:00

Just a quick hello to wish everyone a Happy New Year! To kick off 2011, I've been very busy in the studio working towards preparing for my very first solo exhibition, which will be happening in February at Off the Kerb Gallery - but more on that later! Here is my new studio helper, Zuzia, the ragdoll cat, adding her thoughts (and fur) to a new collage composition. I'm really excited about 2011 - lots of fun and creative things coming up in this Melbourne town and I'm ready to get my hands dirty. Watch out for my newsletter coming to your inbox soon! Creatively, Maja

What's your neighbourhood like?

2010-11-22T14:26:00.000+11:00

Last Thursday night my partner Marc and I decided to get out-and-about and we headed towards funky Collingwood, where the Design Files together with Lamington Drive Editions were launching their Neighbourhoods Calendar.

It was great to see some creative people about and gorgeous illustrations of some of Melbourne's neighbourhoods by talented illustrators Kat Macleod, Kat Chadwick, Beci Orpin, James Gulliver Hancock, Good Wives and Warriors, Pauline Matthewman, Rik Lee, Jane Reiseger, Marcela Restrepo, Madeleine Stamer, Neryl Walker and Webuyyourkids.

One gallery wall featured a beautiful illustration by Kat Chadwick of Melbourne and its surrounding suburbs. The gallery visitors were asked to decorate a flag and spike it on the map, pointing out which 'hood they belong to.

I also spotted limited edition prints by Kat Macleod, who's work I truly admire. Her beautiful illustrations captured my heart many years ago.

I think the calendar is a great idea, and it even includes a cute illustration of our new hood- Yarraville- by Jane Reiseger, so I had to buy one for myself of course! What a wonderful way to (re)discover Melbourne in 2011.

Reflections after the VCA Graduate Certificate Exhibition

2010-11-18T11:11:00.000+11:00

So, just over two weeks ago in the midst of moving house and collecting large shipments of my stuff from Canada at Melbourne docks, I somehow managed to finish up at VCA and graduate!

This is how it all began - painstakingly blowing up my mini illustrations through a projector into large-scale ink drawings.

I simply have to express my excitement and the thrill of actually creating these works! I absolutely love the whole process and am extremely happy with the outcome. And I'm not done yet!

Four of my pieces, which I have called Repetitive Nature made it to the prominent spot of the Graduate Exhibition, upon entry. They are mixed media collages of my drawings combined with ink on paper. I'm very proud of the work I have accomplished this semester, sad and excited simultaneously to finish up. I will miss the dirty corridors (smeared with creativity) of the VCA, but am grateful for the experience and invaluable things I have learned. Especially, that the art must go on - and constraints only make it better!

Below are some photos from the highly successful exhibition, which was opened by Kate Daw and Jon Cattapan and curated by our lecturers Tony Garifalakis, John Meade and Nadine Christensen. The exhibition featured the work of all the post grad students who graduated with me: Maria Simonelli, Michael Fromhotlz, Carolyn Mc Lennan, Mary Baker, Judith Firkin, Garry Norish, Michelle Payne, Michelle Collivas, Alison Kennedy, Catherine Dale, Jeff Kosew, Chui Lee Yap, Namaryta Muss, Jenni Parsons, Claire Welsh, Annie Enez, Stella, Minh Phan, Carol Swain, Traicee Evison-Griffith and Katarina Widderington-Oliver.

Well done and good luck to everyone!

- Maja Wolnik
art : illustration : design

Photos courtesy of Kasia Wolnik and Michael Fromhotlz.

Printmaking update

2010-09-29T13:31:00.000+10:00

Sorry I've been VERY slack with my blog lately, but ironically, this is a good sign because I have been actually VERY productive making art (and not documenting it).

Life at VCA is keeping me very busy... tonight I am presenting my body of work to the class so I'm excited to hear their feedback and reactions. But more on that later.

Today, I'll give you an update on what's been happening in my Printmaking Elective. It appears that I've gone abstract, and have been using my copper plates to create mono prints instead of etchings and aquatints.

But, I'm loving my happy accidents and experiments. Here are two examples of the kind of images I've been producing: I'm actually using a very small plate (5cm x 15cm) to create my images, adding or removing ink as I see fit. In the first image I inked up the whole plate with a roller and then used an old phone book to smudge the ink and remove some sections. I really like the tones that I'm getting from this effect.

The second image was created similarly, but this time I used a spatula (normally reserved for tradesmen who fix up holes in walls) to spread the ink around and create this ribbon effect.

I'm having a problem with the ink smudging onto the paper beyond the plate - you can see it at the bottom or top where the print is supposed to end. I think this is because the plate is so small, when I place the heavy press blanket onto the paper, the slightest movement can sometimes affect. It's very frustrating because these are mono prints - one offs! I can't just go and re-print another one, each is unique and original. So what to do? Well, in the next few weeks I think I will try to move to a bigger plate and see what happens. It will be a bit easier to work with anyway.

That's it from me for now. Please let me know what you think of the prints?

Creatively yours,
Maja

Back into the thick of it...

2010-08-15T13:53:00.001+10:00

So.... where do I begin? For starters, I'm back in Australia, in the marvelous city of Melbourne. I've thrown myself into the thick of it straight away, by going back to university to finish my postgraduate studies, almost the moment I got back.

I am attending the Victorian College of the Arts and Music and am having a wonderful time! Critical and theoretical (art history) class is keeping me busy writing essays, but I'm having the most fun in my printmaking elective as well as developing my work in my Contemporary Art Practice tutorial. Luckily, I have one lecturer, Tony, who was teaching me three years ago and he remembers my previous work... it was so great to show him how far I've come in the last few years!
As an example, here is some of the work I was doing in 2007... I found these in my old 'studio' - my parents house which is a bit of a storage right now!

I created maybe 7 of these repetitive black and white paintings... I'm still reflecting on them, but I guess i was trying to express the idea that there is no black & white in this world, just shades of gray, and I was trying to create some sort of order out of this.

It was pointed out to me that there is a comparison between these to the work I did in Costa Rica with the leaf forms. Here is a new one I have just completed. What do you think? There is definitely that repetition and black and white streak happening...

I'm going to keep going with these and see where they take me. I'm loving the abstract forms in them, and hope to develop this further through collage and print making. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

In other news, I'm inspired by the buzz of Melbourne - I've only been back for three weeks and I was able to attend the huge Melbourne Art Fair at the beautiful Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton. My head was spinning as my lovely mum and I got to trawl through two levels of art with over 900 artists represented by 80 national and international galleries.

Later in the week I was summoned by my friend Kat, amazing designer of Live Like Kat boutique jewellery, who was showcasing at the Life In Style exhibition at Flemington Racecourse. This boutique trade event featured over 300 selected exhibitors featuring homeware, giftware, lifestyle and kids products. I could not believe the talent and energy in the rooms, such amazing creations in one hub - I was so inspired by everything that I was madly jotting my own ideas when I got home!

And now, I'm off to do more ink drawings and essay writing. I wonder what Melbourne will bring me next - hopefully less rain!

Please note my etsy shop will be down until some time in October as I wait for all my belongings and art to arrive by ship from Vancouver. Thanks for waiting!

Creatively yours,

Maja
www.majawolnik.com

Red Hot Red Dot - The Cheaper Show No 9

2010-06-28T14:13:00.000+10:00

Oh what a night!

Last night, Cheaper Show No 9 was a huge blast!! When I arrived not long after 6pm, there was a line up outside West Cordova Street all the way down the block... I just couldn't believe it!

Inside, hundreds of people were rushing to buy art at the very affordable price tag of $200 - there were red dots everywhere. I'm really proud to say that I got a red dot too! Thank-you, whoever you are, for purchasing Aging Gracefully 2.

It was simply an incredible night, loaded with energy and so many people coming out to look at the amazing artwork that was on display. All the art showcased was so different and interesting, my friends and I spent hours going over and over again all the pieces.

I'm so thrilled to have been a part of something so huge and to be able to gain such exposure.

Thank-you to all the people who made the Cheaper Show 9 happen, thank-you to my boyfriend Marc-Andre for his continued support, and my friends Sarah, Alex and Leo who came along and cheered me on. And thank-you to all the people of Vancouver who came out to support artists and especially those who purchased the art.

I wish I could do it all again... it was such a fun night!! Here are some more photos from the evening.

Follow my heART!
Maja
majawolnik.esty.com

Exhibition Photos

2010-06-09T14:54:00.000+10:00

So, the rain Gods decided to be fickle on Sunday at Arts Off Main, where I was exhibiting my work.

Unfortunately it was a dark, grey and miserable sort of day, with rain spitting ever so often. Because it was outside, I had to keep taking my artwork down so it wouldn't get ruined and putting it up again when the rain disappeared.

Luckily, my wonderful boyfriend Marc-Andre was on hand to help me out and keep my spirits up! He was working hard to get the crowds (if only!) to walk down the boulevard and take a look at my work.

All in all, it was worth a try, we had fun and I got two leads from it!

Exhibiting this Sunday @ Arts off Main - Boulverd Days

2010-06-05T09:51:00.000+10:00

Sorry for the last minute notice, but the rain gods were not on my side all month!

But finally, the sun has poked its pretty face onto Vancouver which allows me to exhibit my work this Sunday at a cute little gallery called Arts off Main. They've developed a program called Boulevard Days, where rotating local artists show off their work on the boulevard leading up to the gallery - outdoors! There is a lot of space to hang art on the outside wall so I'm looking forward to having all the quirky people of Main Street stop by and check out my work. I hope to clear some old favourites from my studio - time to move onto new projects!

Please join me or spread the word: Sunday June 6th, 216 East 28th Avenue, Vancouver. I'll be there from 12 to 4pm so stop by for a chat and perhaps some nice art for your wall? It should be a sunny 17 degrees - unless Vancouver reverts to its usual demeanour.

Hope to see you there!
Maja

Illustration Friday - Slither

2010-06-01T14:37:00.001+10:00

This week, I started my illustration classes at Emily Carr University - how exciting! I thought I would combine my homework for the class with this week's IF challenge - slither.

I once had a dream that I had a pet snake, which would wrap itself around my arm. It was during a time in my life when I was going through a lot of personal change and realizations... The black silvery snake represents that very dark side of me, that even I hate. I guess I was subconsciously coming to terms with it, letting the snake become my friend and stayed wrapped around my wrist, to remind me that I can be poisonous, but I can tame that. I later learned through a dream dictionary that snakes represent transformation - funny that!

This image was created using pencil, and I used ovals instead of normal shading to give my composition form. I think it adds something unique to this image, very fitting for snake like textures.

Enjoy!

Ilustration Friday - Early

2010-05-25T04:51:00.001+10:00

This week's creative challenge for Illustration Friday is "early". I went blank for a minute with this one until my boyfriend suggested I draw a clock. Then my imagination went wild as it brought back memories of a funny old alarm clock I used to own as a child. It looked almost identical to the one that I have drawn, but I think it was pink. It used to have a life of its own... It would start ringing at the early hours of the morning, even though I set it for a more decent time!

I created this drawing by hand in my sketch book, scanned it and converted to vector, and then coloured it in Illustrator. I am really enjoying this process of drawing-scanning-colouring. Makes the work look hand drawn but professionally finished at the same time. I love Illustration Friday!

Journals - Vancouver Series

2010-05-24T13:59:00.001+10:00

Do you love a good journal? I do, especially one with a really cute cover on it, that motivates me to pick it up, start writing and share my most intimate thoughts.

I love how a beautiful journal can make you feel, so I've taken on a little personal project, to create some of my very own journal designs.

I am working on a collection of these, inspired by the one and only city of Vancouver... and all its little quirks... like the relentless rain... Here is a sneak peek of the first two designs:

I illustrated the images by hand, scanned them and converted them to vectors, then applied colour using Illustrator. I'm having SO much FUN creating this series!

Would you pick up one of these in a store? Please let me know what you think? I would love to hear your feedback!

Maja

Illustration Friday - Equipment

2010-05-21T16:02:00.001+10:00

This week's topic for illustration Friday is " Equipment".

In my case, I am surrounded by my boyfriends music equipment. I'm fascinated by all the buttons, turn dials, knobs, figures and cables.

He is recording his new album and I can't wait to hear it.

This sketch is of ...well, I'm not sure, but I think one of them is a pre-amp. I did this on the fly and then coloured it in illustrator.

Here's to pre-amplifiers and other high tech music equipment...

In my sketchbook - life drawing

2010-04-26T05:07:00.001+10:00

It's been probably about a year since I last went to a life drawing class! I received a wonderful book for Christmas from my parents titled Mastering The Art of Drawing & Painting the Human Figure by Sarah Hoggett and Vincent Milne.

I thought I'd take some of the tricks I learned from the book and put them in practice at a local life drawing class at Blim. Here's a few of the better sketches from the session.

The model had a beautiful figure and I really like the strength of the poses she made, but I had the most trouble drawing the hands and head...I will definitely need to go back and practice some more!
Eventually, I'm planning on creating a painting, or a series of paintings with the nude figure stylized, on a light coloured background - here is my first go at it on a 10x10 canvas board. Not quite there yet!

Accepted: the Cheaper Show No 9!

2010-04-24T05:31:00.000+10:00

I'm very proud to announce that I have been accepted to be one of 200 artists to participate in The Cheaper Show No.9. They had 950 submissions so I am really excited that I made the cut!

Happening on June 26th, the Cheaper Show is one giant art exhibition featuring 200 artists with 400 pieces of artwork, at $200 each. I think its an amazing concept that allows emerging and established artists to showcase their work side by side, and introduces art to a public that might not know much about buying art, at an affordable price.

According to their website, last year they had an incredible 5,000 people attending the massive warehouse in Gastown, Vancouver - I'm thrilled for the possible exposure and opportunities, and I can't wait to see all the other talent. Save the date and join me!

I'm so happy and grateful to be a part of something so fun and so big :) thecheapershow.com

Recently published illustrations

2010-04-10T04:00:00.001+10:00

I've come to realise that I have not shared some of my successes of recent times: a number of my illustrations have been published!

Here is a sketch I did for a Summer Haircare article in the Summer Issue of alive Australia, followed by the final illustration done in Illustrator.

I also had the opportunity to illustrate some exercises, which was a bit tricky, but fun!

And lastly, I was thrilled to do 8 original illustrations for the Autumn Issue of alive Australia for a fantastic article about bush foods. I love drawing flowers and plants so this one was an absolute joy to create and they looked wonderful once printed!

I'm in the studio today working on some Vancouver inspired illustrations - I'll reveal them soon!

Maja

Illustration Friday - Dip

2010-04-06T13:43:00.001+10:00

"Wiggly worm saw a dip in the road..."
I did a quick sketch in my notebook for this week's Illustration Friday topic - dip.

Messed up studio!

2010-03-21T09:29:00.001+11:00

I've spent the last three days trying to spring clean my studio, and I'm almost there. My man found a free desk that we've dragged into the studio, which is great because I get a NEW desk to put more artsy stuff everywhere, but not so great because sadly for me this means even more room to spread the mess... This brings the studio total to 3 desks!

Before launching my new etsy shop, I spent a lot of time trying new designs on lino and softer type squares to print onto greeting cards. Unfortunately, there are days where things just don't work - my prints just wouldn't turn out. I tried using a professional baron, which didn't work, then I tried a marble rolling pin, nothing, a wooden spoon which was probably the most effective method. I even tried the piano and kitchen stools to press the lino onto my paper! The ink would not come off evenly. A very frustrating and exhausting process.

So while I look into new printmaking equipment, I spent this week being inspired by the gorgeous cherry trees in and around Vancouver. They are so pretty, with their pink flowers bunching up on branches like popcorn or fairly floss, the soft petals blowing through the wind. Spring is here! So to celebrate, I created 4 greeting cards which I am selling on etsy. Here is the whole collection on my new desk. I created the illustrations using diluted ink.

Stay tuned to hear more about the printing dilemma.

Visit my etsy shop! www.majawolnik.etsy.com

2010-03-13T07:09:00.000+11:00

Hello,

I'm sooooooooo excited to launch my etsy shop! After what seems like an eternity, with lots of photo taking, image editing, description writing and shipping profile developing, my online store is finally up and running.

Now, instead of just gazing at my wonderful art on screen, you can use your clever little mouse to click away, order online and pay through PayPal to receive my unique creations in your hot little hands - all within a few days! Easy.

I love etsy and so should you - so follow me and start owning some of my original artwork... majawolnik.etsy.com.

- Maja

Tree again again!

2010-02-17T16:33:00.000+11:00

It's been a while since I blogged, mainly because I was off gallivanting around Melbourne, Australia visiting my family and meeting my gorgeous niece Ela.

But I'm back in Vancouver with the Olympics party in full swing. As soon as I got back I became re-captivated by those bare trees - again!

I know I should be drawing the athletes, the crazy crowds downtown or the snow-less slopes but all I can look at is those gorgeous dwindling branches... I just want to hug them! They must be anxious for spring to come (which by the way looks like its almost here).

So, here's another, well, tree, this time on a great big new sketch pad using conte and charcoal. Done on the studio floor.

Illustration Friday - Wilderness

2010-01-22T18:34:00.000+11:00

It's been a while since I drew something for Illustration Friday, but this week's topic of wilderness coincides with some illustrations I'm working on for an article about wild Australian bush food.

For now I am just experimenting with the style and materials - I have chosen pencil, water-soluble pencils and ink to create this drawing of a wild lime, also known as desert lime.

Mmmmm.

On the cover!

2009-12-10T15:30:00.000+11:00

This month I'm very excited to see the new December issue of Alive come out - a logo that I designed for the Alive Awards has been published on the front cover!

When designing the logo I tried to think of the word "alive" and the products that the awards are for - natural health products. So this is how I came up with the concept of 'being alive' - I wanted to capture that feeling of joy and vibrancy of good health. The idea of a figure leaping with confidence and excitement came into my head.

I sourced a number of reference images and then sketched a silhouette. After scanning my sketches, I used Adobe Illustrator to trace the outlines and simplify the image. There was a number of revisions - maybe three to four pages with 10 concepts per page, before we settled on the final design, above.

The Alive Awards spread also features 17 illustrations that I created for each category! It is very exciting to see them all in print, in stores, in people's hands. Grab a copy this month for a very good read.

Relentless Rain

2009-11-22T11:43:00.000+11:00

It's been raining what seems like forever in Vancouver - 10 days, 12 days? I don't know anymore.

It's been very dark, wet and depressing and I'm trying really hard not to let this weather bring me down so recently I began imagining what it would be like if the rain was rainbow coloured!

Here is an illustration I created today showing multicoloured raindrops - so much fun :) Not sure if I'm finished with this yet, I might add more drops or a background hue. What colour would the clouds be? What would the windows look like? Would the drains be filled with rainbow water? I used water-soluble pencils for the blurry, watery effect.

What would our world be without imagination and art? I hope this picture inspires you to walk down the street with your brolly (umbrella) and see what I see - glorious colours.

Enjoy!
Maja

Tree again!

2009-11-21T08:02:00.000+11:00

Today I'm stretching and priming a 30x30" piece of canvas... not sure what I'll paint on it yet but I feel like getting my hands dirty and I wanted to use some materials I have left over from Costa Rica.

So, while I wait for the first coat to dry I thought I'd share another tree I drew a couple of weeks ago. This one is an actual tree that is on the corner of my street. I used shellac based black ink on some left over printmaking paper - probably not the best surface to use inks on as it is quite thick and sucked up all my ink instantly so was a little hard to have a nice flow.

Anyway, here it is. I'm really enjoying looking at and sketching trees (when it stops raining in Vancouver) so I think I'm going to continue and start a little tree collection.

Back to priming!

In my sketchbook

2009-11-14T08:18:00.001+11:00

Hey its Friday and I'm stretching canvas in my studio, getting a bit distracted...

Lately I've been sketching all sorts of things in my sketchbook, so I'd thought I'd share some of them here.

I'm still fascinated by trees and their bare branches... here is one sketch i did recently. Instead of solid colour I used crosshatching lines to fill it in. I did this randomly but I think next time I will try to follow the texture of the tree.

I've seen a lot of bird illustrations around, I think they're really cute so I had to have a go at one myself. It took me a number of versions to get to this simplified form of an Australian Blue bird (that's me missing the constant chirp of birds and parrots that is prominent all over Australia.) After a few sketches I created a final colour version with my shellac based inks and brush on paper (this time just plain white drawing paper).

I'm also working on creating some Christmas illustrations. Instead of buying cards I thought I'd make them myself this year for family and friends, and that way I will build up a portfolio of images for this season, to submit to greeting card publishers for next year. This one is inspired by my boyfriend Marc-Andre who is an elf this Christmas!

Gotta go and get back into it now - enjoy!

Rave review..."Particularly stunning"

2009-11-07T05:29:00.000+11:00

I recently discovered that my name and artwork had been reviewed by Opus Framing, supplier of fine artists materials.

Read this article by Eleanor Hannan http://www.opusframing.com/community-news/drift-2009 which is discussing the Drift Festvial. The article was written on October 1st - just a few days prior to the Drift.

I was so excited to stumble upon this I jumped up and down - its a tiny mention but a really positive one! Ahh the Scraps Collection - maybe I should do another round again? It's inspiring to know that someone took the time to look through my website and found something worth mentioning :)

My prints have a new home!

2009-11-07T05:06:00.001+11:00

Following the Drift festival, my gorgeous lino prints from Costa Rica were in search of a new home - I didn't want them to just collect dust in my house while I hunt down potential buyers.

Cambie Village Massage Clinic (Suite 203 - 3256 Cambie Street Vancouver) was looking for some new artwork for their premises, and when I sent them a photo of the prints, they immediately contacted me!

I'm really excited to see them hanging proudly again, gaining exposure to the public, and a clientele who is apparently appreciative of art. I think they suit the surroundings quite well - bringing out that peaceful vibe. I have three hanging in the main foyer hallway and three in one of the massage rooms.

Thank-you to Stephanie, Coleen, Nimira and Isaac for supporting local art and artists. I might have to return the favour and book in for a massage...

My butterfly collection and a couple of other paintings that were exhibited during the Drift are still on display at Balance Acupuncture & Massage Clinic at 4338 Main Street - two places at once!

Fall

2009-10-28T15:22:00.000+11:00

It's been a strange week for me, and the up and down weather has been dictating my mood.

I came home today feeling frazzled and the only thing that I felt like doing was drawing. I recently bought a new brush to use with my shellac based inks, it's wide and flat with a sharp point - so versatile! I decided to use this brush to create a tree with fallen leaves.

This tree was inspired by a tree on the corner of my street - the colours of the leaves are absolutely stunning, and it was simply amazing how in just a matter of days all the leaves were gone, the tree branches bare.

I was really enjoying myself painting this today, but my boyfriend said it's pretty drastic, especially with the single leaf...

I guess unconciously I needed to express the drastic temperature drop (currently 6*C!) and the fact that we're clearly in the midst of fall. In Australia we call this season Autumn, but what would we know? Fall, it is...

Published!

2009-10-17T06:07:00.000+11:00

Wow! Yesterday I got my hands on the November issue of Canada's alive magazine - some of my illustrations and designs are finally published! What started off as a short term contract has now turned into a permanent part-time role and I'm very excited to be a part of the alive publishing team.

Below is my most proud illustration for an article about eco labelling on coffee.

And here are a couple of more pages that I designed and illustrated. Alive is Canada's natural health and wellness magazine and is distributed to health food retailers nationally - 190,000 copies per month. That's a lot of eyes falling in love with my designs :)

It's a really great read so get your free copy in stores now!

Drift report

2009-10-08T14:23:00.000+11:00

Oh, what a great weekend it was...the Drift festival along Main Street was a huge success!

The sun was shining, the weather was crisp but nice (even for a warm blooded Aussie) and scores of people were out on the streets drifting in and out of stores, cafe's, businesses, and studios enjoying the art and the artists - Main Street was abuzz!

I was having a great time at Balance Acupuncture & Massage, meeting and greeting the 60 or so Drifters who came in pairs or groups to view the work.

It was so exciting to be a part of it and meet so many interested and enthusiastic people. I received a lot of good feedback about my art, and had many people signing up to my mailing list. It was a great feeling to share my art with the community. I had a couple of bites but nothing sold as yet, hopefully, this will happen in the next few weeks as I've seen lots of traffic to my website following the Drift.

And, the best news is that Kirk and lovely Shinobu from Balance Acupuncture were delighted with the weekend and have agreed to keep my artwork up for longer - as long as I like! I'm extremely happy that my work will continue to get exposure to the public and won't be sitting in my studio in storage. I have a feeling something good will come of this :)

Here are some photos from my little corner of the Drift and me enjoying the sunshine with the lovely flower my boyfriend got for me.

Thank-you so much to everyone who came to check out my art! I must say I'm a little bit proud!

Butterflies Explained

2009-10-03T07:32:00.000+10:00

On the eve of the very exciting Drift Festival which starts tomorrow, I thought I'd take the opportunity to discuss a series of paintings I will be showcasing - The Butterfly Collection.

In fact, these paintings are not really just paintings, but they are also prints! The inspiration came from these gorgeous colorful creatures that I saw flying around Costa Rica in May. I wanted to capture their vibrant colours and their beauty, but I didn't want to just paint them as I saw them, I wanted to mimic their behaviour - the folding and flapping of their wings.

What resulted was quite an experiment...I used raw (unprimed) 13oz cotton duck canvas, which I measured out and cut into 18 x 30 and 30 x 30 pieces. After making some sketches in a notebook, I mixed my paint and used multiple paint brushes to apply my design on the left side of the canvas - I only painted one half of the butterfly.

It was extremely hot and humid in the middle of the day in Costa Rica, so I had to work quickly in order for the paint to remain wet. Then, I folded the canvas over in half, and pressed down firmly all over the place with my hands - printing the wet half of the butterfly on the other blank side of the canvas. That's how my paint-print came about.

Peeling the canvas apart was the most exciting part! I never knew exactly how it was going to turn out. The more detailed the butterfly was, the longer it took to paint and the faster the paint dried. I was extremely happy with the result - the right side of the butterfly reveals some of the last brushstrokes I made, and is like a slightly distorted mirror image of the left side.

What I like is that on first instance you just see a big butterfly, but your head takes a double take to notice the two similar, but different halves of the insect. The folding of the canvas was like the folding of the butterflies' wings.
Let me know your thoughts? I look forward to the Drift tomorrow and see what the public thinks too.

Please visit my website to view others in the collection.

My Art on Main Street

2009-09-19T10:05:00.000+10:00

I'm very excited that in two weeks my art is going to be on display to the public during the amazing Drift Festival on Main Street, Vancouver!!

October 3 & 4th will see over 100 artists, 35 Artists’ Working Studios & 80 Main Street Shops, Cafes & Galleries team up to host this free 2-day art party! The idea is for the public to meet and interact with artists in their studios and purchase unique works.

I'm busy preparing everything for the drift - I just picked up my prints from the studio, I need to see the framer and I'm making sure all my canvases have strings in place so I can hang them on the walls.

I've also created a promotional postcard, as seen above, which features my artwork and a map of where my artwork will be displayed during the festival.

I'm nervous, but very excited!!! So come drift with me on October 3 & 4th - I will be at Balance Acupuncture and Massage, 104 - 4338 Main Street!! Hope to see you all there!

Printing at Malaspina Printmakers' Studio

2009-09-15T17:45:00.000+10:00

Last week (or was it two weeks ago already?!) I booked some time in at Malaspina Printmakers to print the series of lino squares I created whilst at the artists colony in Costa Rica.

I was extremely excited to get in there and get going - after all I have had these prints lying about since May!

Here are some step by step pics of the process...

Firstly I mixed some black ink (I've used water-soluble block printing ink) with a little bit of retarder to slow the ink drying time. I have used a heavy duty roller (brayer) to spread the ink out onto a glass surface. When it has a distinct peeling sound it means the ink is ready. I then began rolling the ink onto the linoleum square.
Once the ink was evenly applied onto the lino sqaure, I carefully placed it facing up onto a backing sheet on the press bed. The backing sheet is measured out exactly to indicate placement of the lino - it is the same size as the printmaking paper.

After placing down a sheet of printmaking paper, I gently lowered the felt blankets on the paper and lino square. This keep the plate and paper in place, and stops the printing press from ripping the paper. I tested the height of the press prior, by rolling an uninked lino through the press and adjusted the height accrodingly - checking the pressure each time.

Rolling, rolling, rolling - once the blankets are down and the pressure is set, its time to grab a hold of the wheel and turn it clockwise until the press bed rolls underneath the press all the way through to the end. It should feel quite tight, and is great for building up those upper arm muscles!

Once the press bed was on the other side, I lifted the blankets and gently peeled the paper off the lino square - a perfect image was imprinted. Ahhh, my gorgeous yukka print is drying patiently on the rack!

I'll be back in the studio again this Friday, finishing off the prints and some colour variations I'm working on(fun!). I can't wait to have these ready for the Drift coming up extremely soon!

Printing at home in the studio

2009-08-23T04:08:00.000+10:00

Last week I decided to try to print some of the gorgeous lino squares I carved in Costa Rica.
I bought some black watersoluble block printing ink, some BFK paper and a baren. I already had a hard roller and smooth surface to roll out the ink.

Here is a picture of a bamboo inspired lino square (with some residue ink already on it) and my workstation in my home studio (which also happens to be my bedroom !)

This was the first time I have tried printing at home, and it has been a challenge! It seems that no matter how much ink I put on or how hard I press down with the barren, the image the gets imprinted is not a solid block of colour, with paper still coming through. I even tried using a marble rolling pin!

I either need to hit the gym and work on building some muscle strength in my arms or I'm thinking I should try an oil based ink? I just don't know what I'm doing wrong...

So, I've decided to rent the printmaking studio at Malaspina Printmakers for all of next week and give it a go with the giant printing presses there...

I'm off to the store to stock up on different coloured inks, more paper and anything else that might catch my eye! I'll spend today preparing myself for the studio - cutting down the paper to the correct size, having a plan of action etc, so I'm ready to rock and roll when I get in.

I can't wait to get in there! I'll keep you posted next week on new developments....

SOLD!!

2009-08-13T11:28:00.001+10:00

Last Friday I sold two paintings!! Wooooooooo hoooooo!

It's so exciting, its the best feeling in the world - it's so nice to earn money doing what you love! I couldn't be happier.

What's even more exciting is that someone is going to be enjoying my artwork in their living room or office, every day. Hopefully they will get lots of positive comments about my art from other people and those people will want to buy more of my art.

The two pieces sold are the ones which I created whilst at the artists' colony in Costa Rica. They were very labour intensive but I guess all that hard work has paid off!!

I have given the paintings the latin names of the actual plants.

Anthurium, acrylic paint on canvas, 18" x 30", May 2009

Alpinia Purpurata, acrylic paint on canvas, 30"x30", May 2009

I'm also getting ready for the Drift festival coming up very soon in October, so I will keep you posted on further developments!

Starving artist - what's that?

Two new illustrations

2009-07-12T02:38:00.000+10:00

I think I'm getting better! This blog is really starting to pay off. Here are two new illustrations that I recently created.

The first illustration Beaded is of one of my favourite bracelets, a colourful creation that I bought in the balmy seaside town of Montezuma, on my recent trip to Costa Rica. I took a photo of myself wearing the bracelet in my favourite purple dress.

The second illustration, titled Sandals is a reflection of all the gladiator sandals I'm seeing on the streets of Vancouver this summer. I have fallen victim to fashion too and bought myself a funky black pair similar to the style featured on the left.

In both of these styles I have tried to move away from using black as outline - I think it has a more natural and realistic feel this way. I'm using Derwent watercolour pencils.

www.majawolnik.com is now online!

2009-07-05T10:02:00.000+10:00

I'm very excited to invite you to view my new website focusing on

art : illustration : design!

It took me quite a few months to get it all together, but here it is, loud and proud: majawolnik.com!

It's a great way to showcase my artwork and includes 6 galleries full of the exciting new work I created in Costa Rica as well as other works that have never been revealed before.

You can also browse through information about me and my work, link to interesting sites and find out about my upcoming events and exhibitions.

Click onto majawolnik.com now and buy my art!

Hot Off The Press

2009-06-19T04:13:00.000+10:00

Malaspina Printmakers is having their annual summer fundraiser with a huge exhibition of all the member's artwork! I have the following three pieces on display and for sale at $100 each:

"Dzidzia" is an aquatint inspired by the ultrasound of my sister's tiny baby while still in the belly. "Dzidzia" literally translates to baby.

"Plaige" is a photopolymer print created from a copying exercise - I drew a picture and made photocopies, and copies of the photocopies, and copies of copies until this image was formed, and then trasferred onto acetate before going through the photo-sensitive printing process.

"Microphone Inspiration" was inspired by my boyfriend Marc-Andre, who is a very talented musician and is obsessed with recording sound. He is always describing and showing me new microphones and I was drawn to their metallic forms.

Please join me tonight, June 18th at Malaspina for the opening reception, from 6 to 9pm. It's down on Granville Island, 1555 Duranleau Street. Otherwise, the exhibition is running until August 30th.

It's a great way to meet people, have a few drinks, view and purchase original artists' prints. Hope to see you there!

Banking on it

2009-06-04T07:45:00.000+10:00

I'm back from a glorious month in Costa Rica and into the thick of things - my parents are visiting from Australia, we're touring Vancouver and heading out to the Rockies in a few days... crazy times.

Julia and David White Artists' Colon y was THE MOST amazing experience ever!! I'm sorry I was slack in updating the blog, but I didn't make any promises...I was so busy creating I didn't want to stop! It was extremely rewarding with over 20 pieces created and a privilege to meet a dynamic group of talented artists from around the world.

More about my experiences in Costa Rica later... but for now, I wanted to show two pieces that I created there - Wild Flower and Leaf. The first one is 30" x 30" while Leaf is 18" x 30". They are both acrylic paint of canvas. I used 13oz cotton duck and two layers of gesso.

I am extremely excited to present these two pieces at G&F Financial Group - a bank located at 1-2949 Main Street, Vancouver. If you're in the area, please go in and check out my work. As part of the Drift Festival, G&F Financial is supporting local artists by showcasing their work in the bank throughout the year - I'm the lucky artist who's work will be on display for June and July.

Let me know what you think, and don't forget they're on sale so please contact me if you're interested.

Surprise Inspiration

2009-05-07T13:01:00.000+10:00

So, here I am finally!! After 3 days of travel delays, I'm living the artists' way in Costa Rica! Upon my arrival to the Julia and David White Artists Colony, I was jet lagged, exhausted and overwhelmed with my surroundings.

As I got to explore my new home (large studio, big kitchen, creepy crawlies everywhere, cold shower, lots of natural light, bed not so comfy) I took a walk around the large grounds of the colony. There was so much green, so much bright light that my eyes and my brain were struggling to digest all the colourful information. The one thing that stood out for me among the lucious tropical plants were these gorgeous, greying, ageing leaves, slowly disintegrating into the ground.

I'm not sure which plant they come from, I have to investigate, but I'm slightly surprised that these grey creatures captured my inspiration first. I just love the formations that they make as they curl inside themselves: ageing gracefully.

So here's my first illustration from Costa Rica, done on watercolour paper with ink. I'm off to see a volcano tomorrow - I'm doing more of these too but I'm sure the colour will come to me soon.

Costa Rica Countdown – For Julia and David White Artists’ Colony

2009-04-21T14:35:00.000+10:00

In less than ten days I will embrace the artist life in beautiful Costa Rica!

I have been accepted to do a month long fellowship at the Julia and David White Artists’ Colony in Costa Rica. It is an artists' retreat in the town of Ciudad Colon, surrounded by nature, volcanoes, rainforests, hiking trails, wild life…

Here’s a drawing I did over two months ago which I hung high above my desk - it served as a goal to visualize and now finally realize my dreams.

I can't wait to get into my own private studio and start creating – no day job, no errands and no distractions: just the luxurious gift of time to focus on me and my art.

I’ll do my best to keep the blog updated whilst on my adventure, but it might be hard to get me away from my paints, pastels, pencils, inks, scissors, brushes, carving tools, charcoal…

Illustration Friday - Legendary

2009-03-17T18:24:00.000+11:00

So this week's topic for Illustration Friday is 'Legendary' and I must admit I'm cheating a little with this post - it's not a new creation, but an illustration I did about two weeks ago as part of my new portfolio. I love this little frog and am happy to announce I've finally found my Prince!

Illustration Friday - Intricate

2009-03-10T16:55:00.000+11:00

Here's my entry for this weeks illustration challenge at Illustration Friday. This weeks topic is "Intricate". I went crazy with the scissors to create a paper stencil for my elaborate design. The background image is all swirls and curls created using watercolour pencils. The intricate details of the stencil were filled with black drawing ink and a small sable brush. What do you see?

Drawing, drawing, drawn!

2009-03-08T17:10:00.000+11:00

I have been very productive in the last couple of weeks. I went out and got some good quality, thick, watercolour drawing paper and some black pens with different nib widths. I’ve opened up my tin of pencils and began building up my portfolio of illustrations.

At the moment I’m focusing on enjoying myself and drawing things that I like, things that I feel like drawing, and things that are crawling my mind but I also have a whole list of specific items/subjects I’d like to draw pending on the markets I’d like to get into. I’m using black permanent marker pen as outline, and then I render with water-soluble coloured pencils which I blend with water and a tiny sable brush – the colour really jumps out from the page.

I’ve got at least 10 pieces so far - here’s a sneak peek of my favourite three!

Illustration Friday - Breezy

2009-03-04T13:43:00.000+11:00

I found this great website called Illustration Friday - its a weekly illustration challenge. A topic is posted every Friday and then artists and illustrators from anywhere have all week to come up with their own interpretation.

This week's topic was Breezy so here's my little drawing of a dandelion blowing in the breeze... I think its a great way to build up a body of work on the side.

Drift with me...

2009-02-10T14:59:00.000+11:00

It’s all happening at my end of town in October! This year, I will be one of the participating artists at the Drift on Main Street Festival.

The Drift is an inclusive community event where local artists and businesses have teamed up to display art in cafes, restaurants, boutiques and galleries to celebrate art in the Main Street community.

I'm really proud to be a part of it and am impressed with the way the City of Vancouver supports local artists and communities.

For now, you can check out http://www.thedrift.ca/ to find out more about the festival and to see some great artwork featured on the profiles pages – I’ve just posted some of my most recent pieces.

So keep October 3 & 4th free and come and drift with me down Main Street!

Scraps

2009-01-18T12:18:00.000+11:00

On Wednesday I was livid, I hadn't done anything creative in a while and after a particularly bad day in day-job hell, I was in NEED of some creative output.

Lately I’ve been procrastinating about art blaming it on lack of funds to buy plates or canvas, so I decided to make do with what I’ve got – scraps!

I used all the little bits of paper, envelopes, advertisements, notes etc. that I found in my recycling box as surface for my creations. Limiting myself to yellow and black, I had an episode of creative vomit.

17 mini pieces later, I feel relieved. I’m strangely attached and proud of my little creations made using paint, watercolour pencil, greylead and ink. Having a stack makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something.

Stay tuned for Scraps Part 2…

I'm officially an Artist - Vancouver Art Box Show

2009-01-18T11:07:00.000+11:00

Hello!

Welcome to my first blog entry. This blog is about my art, or more specifically, about the process and what happens when I get my hands dirty. I started this blog because I recently decided that I am officially, an ARTIST!

I read somewhere online (see links & other blogs) that all artists should have an art blog. After reading a few I realized this could actually help me be more of an artist. My work is no longer going to be hiding in visual diaries, folders and on my floor! My ideas and thoughts are going to be posted here, for everyone to see and comment. Watch-out world! I’ve unleashed my creativity!

Through this process, I hope to become more productive in my practice and therefore, better at my craft.

So to kick-off, here are some pictures of three pieces that I did for the Vancouver Art Box Show which was held at the Autumn Brook Gallery in Vancouver on December 30th, 2008.

The task was to collect some 12x12inch wooden boxes and create! The space was already booked, Christmas and the Silly Season was in full swing, Vancouver was having a snow storm of the century and we artists had only two weeks to lament over the box and come up with something interesting for the show. Two weeks became only three days for me.

I’ve been fascinated by snowflakes for a while now, so I decided to follow the folding and cutting technique learnt in kindergarten to create my shapes. Tracing them onto the ‘canvas’, they served as a template for my woodcut designs.

Having never done a woodcut before, I felt it was the perfect time to try, given I had three pieces of wood in front of me and the necessary tools that had never been used.

Creating a woodcut was surprisingly easy, quick and enjoyable. Apart from the tricky bits, the wood just peeled away as I carved and my images materialized.

I was going to create two wood cuts, and use them to print a merged image onto the third art box. However, this my friends didn’t work. The paint wouldn’t stick to the surface and nothing was imprinted. Oh no! With only an hour to deadline, I settled for a third woodcut, in a much simpler form.

Being part of the show was amazing! It was a huge turnout, and I was proud to have my work on display for the first time, for the public to see. It was so fascinating to see the 200 other pieces, and how each artist had interpreted the assignment.

I didn’t sell but I’m glad because I wasn’t satisfied, my last half-finished snowflake stood out, like a sore thumb. I went back and carved away, until I was happy with the final result.

Now they hang proudly in my flat, a reminder of lessons learned and my first public group exhibition…