I have been back from the Melbourne trip a busy few days. We had the opening of the Dickerson Exhibition, I had Freda Lane and Angilyiya Mitchell with me. I think it went well, we certainly had some lovely work there.

I was able to take the beautiful spinifex miniatures in to Chapman and Bailey for mounting, ready for the Melbourne Art Market as well as a good collection of smaller artworks for stretching.

It is always a bit testing travelling with artists, they find the environment strange and frightening, the main desire for the women is to go shopping and eat. We stayed at a lovely little apartment, close to many facilities and I was able to supply both the shopping expedition and plenty of tucka.

I took the women to the Aquarium, angilyiya in particular was stunned by the big sharks swimming above her head .... it was a joy to participate in this expidition.

The ladies back on the plane to Ayers Rock, I headed to Adelaide. I had the weekend in relative leisure with my daughter and grandson, then a frantic two days getting things ready for the Melbourne Art Market. I had arranged for paintings to be sent to my house in Adelaide so I could sort them and get the paperwork ready for the Melbourne market.

Back to Melbourne and in to meet Mike Stitfold from Kayili for our stall set up. A bigger job than either Mike or I expected but satisfying. I had gambled on presenting the miniature paper works in a more expensive setting, putting some of the name artists tiny works up against the major canvas artists. I really wanted to see how they would compete. I have to say in that market they competed very well indeed. I was thrilled to see the little Angilyiya Mitchell and Jean Lane works go to good homes. It was also fun at the market to meet with people who were loving the Blackstone work, buying from galleries and who I had never met.

After packing up I headed back to the rock on Tuesday, a big drive back to Blackstone on Wednesday and exhausted I was back in my ATCO donga at Blackstone.

Now it is on to the Blackstone Festival, a big party really, followed by the Blackstone Walk ....!!!!

A pretty happening place this Blackstone.

Pukurlpa-la Lurrtjurriwa Papulankutjala

Come and join in all the fun at Blackstone.

Tuesday 6th May to Saturdayth May 2008

This year dance will be the focus of the festival, funded by ARTBACK NT in collaboration with Ngaanyatjarra Council, Desart and Papulankutja Artists. Thisbe Purich is coordinating the event and calling all dancers from surrounding communities to come to Blackstone.

Artists come, bring your swag and spend a few days with us at Blackstone।

• On Tuesday we will open the evening with a community BBQ followed by an after dinner film night held with assistance from the Blackstone Youth worker।
• There will be the usual fun with art and craft, Glass jewellery making with Gerry and Tarn from Margaret River complementing the spinifex fibre jewellery making with the paper worker team। T-Shirt printing fun with Jodie. Tjanpi Jo will workshop with spinifex atists and buy finished work. Jo is also bringing renowned fibre artists Maria Fernanda Cardoso who is seeking inspiration and creating work for a major fibre installation.
• Encore appearance of the very popular beauty salon, this year run by Liz Bredemeyer and her team of Land Rover Club members।
• Art centre business with Desart on Thursday 8th May।
• Fantastic dance concert on Thursday which will be a culmination of dance workshops held in Blackstone and surrounding communities over a period of 4 weeks।
• Friday night special Festival Bumper Disco।
• Continuing over the weekend with intercommunity youth sports activities coordinated by Brett of the Ngaanyatjarraku Shire youth team।
• By special request, Thisbe will once again host the famous or infamous Bingo Night …. Woohoo!!!!
  
  Further information and bookings for workshops from Dianna at the Art Centre.
  Phone: 08 8956 7586 or email artists.papulankutja@bigpond.com

http://www.dickersongallery.com.au/artists/Blackstone/Blackstone%202008%20Online%20Gallery.htm

Cliff Reid,Wati Design, Acrylic on Linen 124 x 86 cm

BLACKSTONE ART

Papulankutja Artists

2a Waltham St Rrichmond VIC 3121

T: 03 9429 1569 F: 03 94299415

• 
  Exhibition dates 9 April - 4 May, 2008
  Opening night Wednesday 9 April, 6 - 8pm
  Gallery hours Tuesday - Saturday 11 - 6pm
  Sunday 12 - 5pm
• 
  

Jimmy Donegan, Pukara, acrylic on linen 71 x 101 कम

Andrew Mitchell, Walu, acrylic on canvas 76.8 x 101.6 cm

A hell of a weight off my shoulders!




Well at long last, the audit report came through and we were able to get the management report signed off and hold our AGM. The paperwork for OATSIS is completed and on it's way.

I trawled the community for attendees and enticed with a hot sausage breakfast. We have been pretty devastated with the many funerals and sorry camps, it has been a difficult few months. The sorry camp will move to Blackstone again after Easter and one of the Mitchell family, a man who has been ill for a long time and on dialysis in Alice Springs, has died and his funeral will be here soon.

It has been difficult to get the numbers for anything of late, even the trip to Warakurna for the recent Governance training only had two Blackstone ladies attend.

I was non the less delighted with the turn out for our AGM and the new executive committee appointed, some new hands went up, we have retained some experienced members and gained some new blood. A good result all round. Peter Shepherd our stalwart Governance Consultant convened the meeting, hence the timely reporting and shipping of the necessary paper work.

I faxed down the audit report and management letter to ICC Kalgoorlie, time will see what feed back we get from that. 19/03/08 Well it seems that I did not send the management letter, it seems I sent a letter with the wrong title. I sent an Auditor's comment listing the findings from the audit ... I should have sent an auditors management letter which listed the findings from the audit.

One more try .... had to have a go at getting this one up, my grandson busy at work at the Womad Stall! He turned out to be a good little salesman.



well if that worked I will try another one .....

One of the Womad visitors showing her little daughter how to pull the paper.





More visitor paper makers ... this activity was a great success!



Amy, my daughter joins the team for a well earned rest on the grass in the cooler night time air.




I guess you really had to be there!

Happy snaps

Getting ready for the big event.


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We are pretty happy with the way things are going!










Visitors have a go at making paper!

I am having trouble getting the pictures up for some reason, so this is as far as I can go. The workers are on the Ghan now, steaming their way to Alice Springs, from there they board the Centre Bush Bus and I will collect them from Uluru and bring them back to Blackstone. There will be some wonderful story telling for the weeks and days to come.

Focus for me now moves to our Melbourne Exhibition at Dickerson Gallery, when I can I will post the details from the inviation on the Blog. Michael Stittfold from Patjarr, Kayili Artists and Papulankutja will be holding a stall at the Melbourne Art Fair on the 18,19th and 20th April as well. So busy busy busy ...

40 c' in Adelaide today.

The team enjoy a break under the trees in Botanic Park.

A huge day yesterday, an exhausted and very hot group rest a little this morning at Keswick.

Jodie and Jacqui have headed in to set up and regroup after a big day. The ladies are resting in the aircon. preparing themselves for the busy night ahead. Vicki my sister-in-law will take them into Womad mid afternoon for the big finale to the event. Hopefully the heat will have dissipated a little and the ladies will not be melting with their paint over the work they are doing.

The Indigenous Community Volunteer guys will he off this afternoon after being a great help and hopefully getting some good pictures and stories for their magazine.

Amy, my daughter is headed back in with Harlan, my grandson, this afternoon. The worst heat of the day over, they will enjoy the last of womad and be ready to help get the tired workers home. Wow! what an event and who would ever have believed it would be soooooo hot.

Last night, the music show with Andrew Ford on ABC radio national, broadcast live from Womad, it was almost as good as being there. I will take the opportunity to stream this again.

Today I have my letter for the minister to finalize and my funding application for the outreach project art worker to complete.

I taped "The Great Race" yesterday, I am hoping to get some time to watch it, one of my favourites!

A big wind today, baby sitting two extra dogs, hoping the art centre troupie will return home, and getting ready for a giant week of governance training, traveling and the art centre AGM.



One of the chunky, funky pieces of jewellery made from hand moulded and hand painted spinifex pulp beads with local seeds. Each piece of jewellery is quite individual and they are proving to be a very successful addition to the craft activities for our enterprise.