Marcel Proust

"Only through art can we emerge from ourselves and know what another person sees."

Quartetthaus.

I have just managed to squeeze in two last events before the Melbourne Arts Festival concluded.

Provocateur: The Rebellious Text. The final in a series of rehearsed readings of radical and politically inspired modern playwrights. The '7 Stages of Grieving' featuring Wesley Enngoch, presented an Indigenous woman's experience of grief, lose and "that feeling of... of nothing... just nothing".

Then Quartetthaus.

For the benign passer by, the Quartetthaus venue situated outside the Malthouse, Chunky Moves and ACCA courtyard in Southbank looked like a contemporary art installation. Or simply a featureless wooden crate. Inside, however the atmosphere was instantly captivating, intriguing and suspenseful. As black theatrical curtains slowly shifted, the audience eagerly entered the arena and sat in an intimate circle around a slowly moving central stage, inches away from the string quartet.The whole experience created an engaging rapport with the three memorable ensembles and the students from the Australian National Academy of Music. The most heart stirring piece for me was Jean Sibelius (1865 - 1957): String Quartet in D minor, op. 56 "Voces intimae".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oA5dl88BM30

Interviews with the musicians from Quartetthaus.
http://vimeo.com/29761921
http://vimeo.com/29994035

Forecast of 30 degrees

It's mid October and already the temperature is scheduled to soar to 30 degrees. I can't believe it! I'm so excited and so ready for summer' sun kissed bliss and alfresco play-time....

New beginnings

... through the lens of the Intensive Care Unit.

Site Unseen

Tonight I participated in the Melbourne Arts Festival "Site Unseen" project.

As the glorious sun set over the beach of St Kilda and people gathered to bathe in the sunshine and evening delight, I joined a group of thespians and humanitarians on a journey into the lives of homeless people. A moving and thought provoking experience.
Site Unseen

http://www.siteunseen.com.au/ 

Journeys of love and more love

Created by motiroti

Writer, director, videographer & performer Ali Zaidi

For the Melbourne Arts Festival "Journeys of love and more love", we entered the Art House in North Melbourne and took our seats at an elegant dinner table adajecent to a large video screen illustrating kaleidoscopic frangipani. The ambience created made participants feel as though they were a guest at a close friends wedding.

Then Journeys of Love's creator Ali Zaidi (''Indian by birth, Pakistani by migration and British by chance'') welcomes us and begins to walk about the room telling us his story. His journey from Bombay to Lahore to London is interlaced with vivid and emotional evocations of people and accompanyed by documentary footage, family photos and interviews with international histroians, philopshers who discuss their views on food, love, migration and cultural identity.

The evening was presented in three parts; growing up as the middle child in India, acting in his director-father's movies in Pakistan, and his ''coming out'' after moving to London.

During the interludes Zaidi invites us to sample some of cu.sines from his history and experiences. Delicious selections of oriental food, exquisitely prepared, aromatically nuanced and beautifully shaped. Most signifantly, the sharing of food weaved a special magic and by the end of the evening, we started conversing with fellow companions at our table about our experiences and personal journeys.

Clarity unfolds

Sometimes, we need to be careful what we wish for.

Vipassana Meditation

A chance to examine, purify and realign body, mind and soul.
http://www.aloka.dhamma.org/

Art Spring Clean

I attended an innovative premier event at Forty Five Downstairs tonight. Art Spring Clean is a Masters student project, involving twelve Melbourne based artists and a selected number of community members (including myself). Within the gallery pace each participant approached an artist and engaged in a collaborative exchange of ideas and to muse about creative pursuits.

An inspiring, wonderful and enjoyable experience.

Happy Birthday Aspect Jones

Courage and flow. Follow your heart and believe.

Love you.

Cup of love and joy

Taken at my Birthday lunch at Taxi, Melbourne with Suz and Lee.

Happy Birthday Jules

May the horizon open wide and all my heart's desires come true.

Manuale D'Amore 3

In Manuale D'Amore 3, Director Giovanni Veronesi has created three stories to illustrate three phases of love in life - youth, maturity and beyond...

In a tender scene, the stunningly sophisticated and sensual Viola (Monica Bellucci) asks Adrian (Robert De Niro)...

"What a makes a woman of my age happy?"
"A job that she loves? I hate my job. A child? I do not have children. A man who loves her?..."
With exasperation she throws her arms into the air and sighs.
"..Ahhh".

Lavanzza Italian Film Festival

Seven Italian films in eight days.. a feast for the heart and soul.

Oscar Wilde

"I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being."

Unexpected magic

I was walking along the foreshore towards home tonight, after a swim at the St Kilda Seabaths when I had to stop to trace the origin of the cinematic music that was weaving through the night air.


On deeper exploration I found that the music was coming from the St Kilda Surf Life Saving Club where a live band had gathered to rehearse.
It was such an unexpected treasure, that I decided to sit outside the club to listen to the melodic tunes from the saxphones and french horns, whilst admiring the sea view and a hot take away coffee.

Pure and unexpected magic.

Pina

PINA is a film for Pina Bausch by Wim Wenders.

PINA is a feature-length dance film in 3D with the ensemble of the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, featuring the unique and inspiring art of the great German choreographer, who died in the summer of 2009.

In Pina, Wim Wenders takes the audience on a sensual, visually stunning journey of discovery into a new dimension: straight onto the stage with the legendary Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch ensemble, as the movie follows the dancers out of the theatre into the city and the surrounding areas of Wuppertal.

Mesmerising and beautiful poetry in motion. A sensual and deeply inspiring experience.

GLS Breakfast

After attending the Genazzano College, Loreto Mandeville Hall and Sacre Coeur annual breakfast at the MCC, I have shared the wisdom and grace of the speakers Dr Jane Maree Maher, Tenna Croker and Kristan Dwyer who beautifully articulated the theme "Mentoring, Nurturing Women" with the women who nurture me in my life.

The morning reaffirmed the values instilled in me by Genazzano College (FCJ) (1988) and which continue to guide me in my personal and professional life.

Sophia Loren

"Its better to explore life and make mistakes than to play it safe. Mistakes are part of the dues one pay for a full life."

Reflective links

Shackles caused by expectations.

Eternal enthusiasm for life and living.

For me, the horizon broadens as I move through life.

Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre; a romantic drama filled with hauntingly beautiful and captivating scenes. This exquisite adaptation is competing strongly for the sentiments and affection I have only ever reserved for "The Piano" which was directed by Jane Champion.

Cathy Fukunaga has directed a visually captivating film, particularly the scenes of Jane walking through the moors which are barren except for the wind, twisted trees and misty haze. Other memorable features of the film: the locations included London, Derbyshire, the Chatsworths and Sheffield; the musical score was composed by Dario Marianelli; and Michael O'Connor designed the costumes.

Other memorable scenes...

Edward Fairfax Rochester said to Jane Eyre as they stood in the middle of the vast landscape tinted with autumnal leaves. "It is as if a thread connects my rib to your rib. And I fear that if you move away that thread will break and I will bleed internally to death." 

Jane is seated alone in her cottage at night, when her gaze into the fire is disrupted by a forceful knock at the door. She slowly opens the door to see Rochester before her, frozen by the snow and cold night air but fueled with a deep burning passion to see and touch her. 



Ranjani Shettar

Ranjani Shettar is best known for her large scale sculptural installations. She uses modern and traditional crafts to sculpt natural and industrial materials to create multidimensional works that bring forth the metaphysical characteristics of existing within a constantly changing physical environment.

In 2009, Shettar created a group of smaller sculptural works. Bird Song [4] is created from muslin and steel with curving, lyrical lines suggesting feathers and flight. The Bird Song sculptures hang like floating musical notes of a melody and resonate with an transient beauty found in nature. In another work, muslin cloths textured like weather worn skin are stretched into five organic forms, each seemingly compliant to a pull that makes known its delicateness with a gentle opening. Waiting for June is composed of small bake terracotta shells that reveal tender cracks that are suggestive of parched earth, poignant yet beautiful.

In Shettar's sculptures and installations, she creates environments that combine the two realms, man and nature, together with graceful and dynamic forms and textures.

http://www.moma.org/explore/multimedia/videos/131/821

Link

Definition of link
1. One of the rings or loops forming a chain.

2. a. A unit in a connected series of units: one link in a molecular chain.
    b. A unit in a transportation or communications system.
    c. A connecting element; a tie or bond: grandparents, our link with the past.

3. a. An association; a relationship:   
    b. A causal, parallel, or reciprocal relationship; a correlation:

4. A cuff link.

5. Abbr. li A unit of length used in surveying, .

6. A rod or lever transmitting motion in a machine.

7. Computer Science A segment of text or a graphical item that serves as a cross-reference between parts of a hypertext document or between files or hypertext documents. Also called hotlink, hyperlink.

8. Time for positive change.

I left my shoes on warm concrete

I left my shoes on warm concrete and stood in the rain is inspired by the beauty, power and complexity of the world in which we live. Through motion the work expresses and reinforces the exhilaration for life that exists in every individual. The performance illustrated through dance and music how ‘struggle’ is an inherent quality of being human. That struggles are both deeply personal and universal, timeless and indiscriminate…

Memorable quotes:
"I thought of my life over and over a billion times - and then it was over."
"Walking till my feet were blooded and I was unable to stand."

Adjustment

I want to know what inspires and nurtures you? Where your dreams lie and what fills your heart with hope and joy.

I know what my heart desires. I feel like that Olympic runner who squats into position at the starting post waiting for the gun to mark the beginning of the "real race". After much physical training and mental preparation I am ready to run the race of my life and succeed.

Have I adjusted or am I imply readjusting my dreams to fit my reality?

A lover's discourse

A lover’s discourse is a participatory art love project designed by Malcolm Whittaker, in which strangers around the globe are conversing in hand-written love letters.

It’s about the thrill of receiving a personal handwritten letter in the mail from a stranger who somehow knows and loves you. It’s about the place of language and intimacy in a culture caught up in compulsive modernity. It’s about our ever-evolving world and how the Earth can alternately feel too large and too small a place, and sometimes… just right.

These strangers have been paired together as lovers, with the result of uniting in curiously intimate exchanges.

The Art House production was intriguing and made me consider that a lovers' love is often a reflection of how one they view themselves.

The scent of lavender

As I entered my apartment tonight, I inhaled the fresh scent of lavender and wandered where it was from? Then I realised that I had left my lingerie out to dry in my living room before departing for work and the fragrance was because I had hand washed and then rinsed them in lavender water. What a simply but delightful pleasure.

In thyme rosemary too shall grow

In recent years, I've missed walking into my garden, selecting fresh herbs and adding them to my Master Chef experiments, so today I planted ginger mint, sage, corriander, rosemary and chinese mint in a beautiful large terracotta pot. The vision of these treasures in my courtyard amongst the white wicker chairs fills my delight.

Who's the Best?

Italian Jazz

Italian Jazz Maestro Mirko Guerrini, Professor of saxophone at the Guiseppe Verdi School of Music at Prato is currently an artist in residence at the School of Music at Monash University Melbourne. Tonight he played Dave Beck (drums) James Sherlock (guitar) and Nick Haywood (bass) at the Italian Institute of Culture in South Yarra.

There sublime music and his Florentine accent, transported me to Italy.

Christine Sullivan

tonight Jamilla, Suz and I went to the Melbourne Recital Centre to see Christine Sullivan present her new album "Away".

It has been over 20 years since we have seen Christine perform. As young, vibrant University students we would frequent the local jazz clubs in Richmond to hear her ephemeral singing with our then beaus.

As they say "they were the good old days"

I lay beneath your feet my dreams. So be gentle when you walk, as you may tread upon my dreams.

Christine Sullivan

http://www.birdland.com.au/catalogue/category634/p59468

Vulnerability

Being vulnerable is about going to the outer limbs of the tree. And being seen. Then allowing the other person the honor of catching you when you tumble into uncertainty. Otherwise you're just hiding in the foliage.

Sarah Wilson

Rubellite: A Winters' Feast

Tonight I attended one of the Designer Food Events "Rubellite: A Winter's Feast". An intimate evening that unified Melbourne designers and artists around a banquet of fine cuisine by ex head chef from Vue de Monde. The dinner was accompanied by beautiful wines, live music, a moving stage of models who showcased contemporary fashion and platters of unique jewellery.

Every aspect of the evening was captivating and artistically executed.

As the only non-practicing and recognised artist initially I felt out of my league, but the shared sensory experiences created a forum which allowed conversations and ideas to be easily exchanged.

I had forgotten how much I love these experiences - an inspiring and beautiful evening.

Creative beings...

... discover that there is a problem and suggest an innovative solution.

Tour de France

Tour de France Stage 21

Créteil - Paris Champs-Élysées

The essence of dreams.

Thank you Cadel Evans for filling my soul with joy and pride in your passion for cycling and for representigng Australia and this international and historical event.

Eating flowers inspires

Thank you Barbara (alla Bellabiker) for allowing me to visit Firenze through your words, images and sentiments. Scents, emotions and memories flooded my senses when I read your joyous entry "Over the Rainbow in Florence".

I knew before I even finished writing my last blog post that nothing in the world could ever draw me away from Florence. Neither a big job, fortune, recognition......nothing. But I had to explore the opportunity, if only to revel in the knowledge that I do have choices.

For a brief moment in time, I revisited a part of my life that made me what I am. That was good for then. But this is now. This is where life was bringing me all along.

Nederlands Dans Theatre

Fifty things I'm thankful for

1. Living in close proximity to the beach. 2. Curly hair. 3. Blue expressive eyes. 4. A ready smile. 5. Inspiring and nurturing conversations with my Mum. 6. Intimate, honest and loving relationships with friends. 7. To work alongside colleagues with egalitarian and humanistic values. 8. The ability to cycle with the wind in my hair. 8. Winter’s sun on my pale complexion. 9. Rainy days and nights. 10. Seeing the mist across the bay, (that day was reminiscent of Wuthering Heights). 11. Recent walks along the beach as Antarctic winds blow a gale. 12. Ability to think creativity, analytically and laterally. 13. Compassion and honesty. 14. Hope. 15. Courage. 16. Trust in myself, those I love and true love. 17. My Italian heritage. 18. The time I’ve spent living, loving and working in Firenze. 19. Insights gathered through travelling internationally. 20. Gnocchi. 21. Oven baked Salmon with Asian greens. 22. Sweet German Rieslings, Moscato and Chianti. 23. Roaring fires. 24. Jazz. 25. Foreign movies. 26. Sunbaking. 27. Calligraphy and cursive fonts. 28. Google. 29. My Blackberry. 30. Skype and emails. 31. Quilting, embroidering. 32. Developing black and white photography. 33. Sculpting and life drawing classes. 34. Yoga, Pilates and Aqua Aerobic classes. 35. Laughing until my sides ache. 36. Mum’s home-cooking. 37. Time with my nephews. 38. Beautiful clothes and exquisite unique accessories. 39. Comfortable and stylish gym gear. 40. Feathers, lace, leather and pure wool. 41. Hot stone massages. 42. Deep sea body wraps. 43. Getting a mani and ped before I go travelling. 44. Two tones roses and Chinese peonies. 45. September. 46. Summer in Italy. 47. Firenze & Melbourne. 48. St Francis of Assisi. 49. The crystal rosary beads I was given for my Holy Communion. 50. Attending Italian cultural events, contemporary dance, live theatre and art exhibitions.

Travelling well

Staying close to my roots and travelling well. It's good to smile, be light and trust all the beauty and hope in my life.

Beautiful images

http://www.luigibussolati.com/

Archibald Exhbition, Tarra Warra Museum Yarra Valley

Tarra Warra Museum is showcasing the 2011 Archibald exhibition. Suz & I were amongst the 6,000 people that attended this Saturday.

As always, there was much to reflect upon. Including this year's Archibald Prize portrait of Margaret Olley by Ben Quilty (1); Adam Chang's strong and powerful Venetian red portrait of acclaimed novelist and academic J M Coetzee who was awarded the 2003 Nobel Prize in Literature (2); Craig Ruddy's portrait of Cathy Freeman. Ruddy’s work was created using expressive splashes of acrylic across the back of toughened glass and archival inks on the surface. Leaving the image of Cathy suspended above the canvas, and allowing light to move through her reflection (3); Geoffrey Dyer portrait of eccentric philanthropist David Walsh (4); and Apple Xiu Yin's portrait of one of Australia’s leading sopranos Cheryl Barker. The painting was entitled Hearing and Meditation. I particularly liked the artist's statement (below) (5).

"During last September and October, I finally had some time to rest after many years working laboriously,’ says Apple Xiu Yin. ‘I spent this time unwinding in my backyard listening to the sound of the wind and the birds chattering. I appreciated the multitude of white flowers upon my cherry tree. The smell of pollen wafted across my nose. My mind went blank as I totally relaxed and my heart filled up with nature. It was an incomparable feeling. This was, I think, a type of meditation".



Isidora

Every girl needs a Fairy and I was pleased when I found this adorable hand made Fairy in the Yarra Valley, Victoria. I hope that it brings much joy to Isidora, the precious and beautiful jewel in Lamme and Lorena's life.

Ferroagosto

Its Summer-time in Italy and that means that Italians commence the annual migration to the coast. I adore the heat, colors and sensations of this season and the Summer's I spent in Italy are amongst my most favourite memories.

... dinning under the stars with friends, open air theatre and concerts, driving along the coast eating saccharine seasonal fruit, swimming in the warm Mediterranean Sea, sandals, sun kissed skin, beautiful cosies and a touch of lip gloss... and the love story's that evolve.

Buon vacanza bella Italia.

Daylesford mist

Jamilla, Suz and I decided to take a Sunday sojourn in Daylesford today. The mist surrounding the area reminded me of winter's in northern Italy and made this beautiful town seem even more dramatic and inspiring. Our relaxing day was accented by a decadent lunch at Frangos & Frangos.

Paper boat

Like a paper boat on a windy sea,
Battered and bruised from the to-ing and fro-ing,
Drenched in drops of tears that fall like rain...
I've lost sight of the shore.


All this, yes.


But now that I am surrounded by all that is unfamiliar,
I'm more aware, more awake, than ever before.
And with wide clear eyes I soon find myself
In a world of wonder I never dared dream about.
It's in this world that wandering hearts come lost,
To be found.

from My heart wanders

My heart wanders

The moment I got back to Sydney and back to my 'old life', I knew that something significant had changed in me. Something was missing. But had I lost something, or had I found something? Now I know this something was, in fact, my heart. It seemed to have left a gaping hole. Or perhaps this hole had been present for some time but I had only just noticed. It was all very confusing, yet utterly apparent. Above all, I was sure of one thing: at some point in my life, my heart had wandered off, as though it had grown a set of wings and flown right out of the window.

... and it was time to follow it.

From My heart wanders, by Pia Jane Biijerk.

Accentuate The Positive

'Accentuate The Positive' featured on Compass (ABC) tonight. A documentary on Year 9 students from Geelong Grammar School's Timbertop campus in the Victorian Alps undergoing the first year of a world-first experiment in education.

The "Positive Education" program is the brainchild of renowned U.S. psychologist Dr. Martin Seligman. It's designed to help children develop ways of becoming happier, more resilient people. Its introduction at Geelong Grammar is the school's response to the epidemic of depression and alienation affecting teenagers around the world. But can children learn optimism in the same way they learn reading, writing and arithmetic? Over the course of a year this film follows five students through the program. It's a challenging and tumultuous journey and not everyone will make it through.

During the documentary a young Indigenous girl stated that "Hope is different to wishes... hope is something you have lost in the future and are trying to get to."

Italian Pavilion

Promoted by the Ministerial Committee for the 150 years of Italian Unification and proposed by Hon. Vittorio Sgardi, Director of the Italian Pavilion at the Biennale, the project Biennale Venezia: Italian pavilion in the world has involved artists of Italian descent from 89 international Italian Institutes of Cultures with the intention of recognizing Italian contemporary artists living abroad.

Throughout these countries the art works of these artists are being exhibited, and at the Italian Pavilion in Venezia a video mmontage of the entire collection and all artists are being presented.

Tenth Anniversary

Gioielli

Together with the Italian Institute of Culture, Melbourne, RMIT Gallery is presenting an exhibition which showcases the worldwide impact Italian designers have made in contemporary jewellery.

Stefano Marchetti, Collana, 2004-2007, Necklace.

Gioielli d'Autore. Padova e la Scuola dell'oro. Italian Contemporary Jewellery. Padua and its Jewellery School.

New horizons

Winter mornings

 

Bliss

Cold winter mornings, make me snuggle deeper under my doona until the scent of fresh coffee brewing stirs my senses. Even though these moments would be more delightful if there was someone to share them with, they are moments of pure bliss.

My parcel from Florence arrives

Like a babe cradled in a swaddling blanket, beauty awaits. At last my treasures from Florence have arrived.

Florence

Dream board - Winter 2011

US

My dear friend Suzanne Kent screened her short film "US" in the 2011 St Kilda Film Festival today. I'm so proud and inspired by her courage, eye for beauty and creative talent.

http://www.stkildafilmfestival.com.au/2011/details/246

US places the relationship of couple Nell and Chris into focus and as Chris attempts to position Nell's contact lens, allows the audience to gather a glimpse into their relationship.

Director Anna Jeffries
Director of Photography Marin Johnson
Producer Tobias Webster
Screenwriter Suzanne Kent
Principal Cast Marg Downey, Christopher Bunworth

Mirka Mora

Mirka Mora spoke candidly and expressively at the South Melbourne Town Hall today. She is as colorful and expressive in person as her paintings.

"Colours play like music in my mind." Mirka Mora

Intention

"Matter follows intention."

In the Asthanga poses, Darren my Yoga Instructor, helped us to understand the power of intent.

MONA

MONA in Hobart houses the private art collection of Tasmanian art collector and philanthropist David Walsh. The 75million dollar building and surrounds took 4 years to complete and houses an extraordinary collection of contemporary art from national and international artists. One of Davids intentions is to provide a forum for discussion and contemporary dialogue on contemporary art or "what constitutes art".

(above)
The entrance to MONA.

Check out the view and the dali-esque Tennis Court - a taste of David Walsh's quirky sense of humor.

(above)

Captured moments in time at the Void Bar. Level 3, MONA.

(above)

A moment of contemplation in the Library. Level 2 MONA.

Cinema screenings are projected outside the MONA Cinema (near Bar Void, Level 3).