It feels like recently I’ve been less busy on art, and instead happily occupied with house guests, rugby, family and school. That said, I still managed to fit in some art activities over the last few months!
Sketching
In summer, I sit in the sun, lazily sketching slow cricket games with a thermos of tea. Now in winter, rugby is too fast paced to sketch live so I’ve been working from photos instead.
A new press
I repurposed this die cutter into a printing press, and so far it has been a great success. I’ll share the process in a future newsletter.
Watercolour workshops
I spent four Saturday afternoons in this sunny corner of the Darfield library, teaching this lovely group watercolour and sketching techniques. Thank you to Selwyn Libraries for organising.
Stamp Carving Workshop
Selwyn has a new Youth Hub in Rolleston, and over the holidays they offered a variety of activities for youth, including getting to design and carve stamps with me.
Matariki in Malvern
I had the privilege of participating in our local Matariki event, where our community gathered in the depths of winter to share kai, kapa haka, and activities including printmaking.
Foraging Workshop
I attended a foraging workshop with Peter and Jackie from Wild Cuisine NZ, who shared their immense knowledge in a walk around McHugh’s plantation. So much overlap with art in the slowing down and noticing of detail. (PS, these pictured mushrooms are not for eating!)
Quietly Carving
A moment I have been enjoying on these frosty mornings, is quietly carving my lino by the fireplace.
Soon-Lee Spicer - Artist 