Geoffrey Gurrumul in Concert

Tonight I went to the Perth Convention Centre to see Geoffrey Gurrumul in concert. He has such a haunting voice. The musicians that accompanied him where excellent. Gurrumul is a member of the Gumatj clan of north east Arnhemland and he sings about the stories of that clan. He was a band member of Yothu Yindi  until 1992.

  

Two Rocks, Another Sunset

Beautiful sunset this evening at my favourite spot. I often go there to watch the sunset, I take a glass of wine and my camera, chill out and watch the view.
  
        

Etching on Copper

I love the idea of drawing with a permanent marker onto copper and then immersing it in the etching solution. I can doodle a design or draw a picture.
These are a few copper items that I’ve done.
  

This technique opens all sorts of ideas because the etching can be used as a stamp of later for enamelling.

Darwin to Perth

Sadly I had to leave the warm Northern Territory and fly back to Perth. I hope to come back next year for another visit.
The vast spaces of the countryside always amazes me and I am drawn to capture its beauty with my camera. Here are some of the scenes on my flight back to Perth.
  
Darwin – a little hazy due to burning off                                               Tidal flats
  
Plateau                                                                Sand Dunes
  
River Tributaries                                                                     Open Cut Mines
  
Salt Lakes                                                          Paddocks of flowering Canola
  
Swan Valley, Perth

Edith Falls & Mataranka

My daughter Ruth recommended that I visit Edith Falls. She told me it was an spectacular place and well worth the visit, so I drove the 50kms from Katherine early in the morning. There are a series of waterfalls to visit, I walked up a steep escarpment to a most beautiful sight.

  

  

Later in the day I drove to Mataranka and visited the thermal pool where water gushes out of the ground at 32 degrees Centigrade.

  

Katherine Gorge

One of my students very kindly loaned me her car so I was able to sight see in the two days before I flew back to Perth.

I went on a cruise up the Katherine Gorge located in Nitmiluk National Park. Katherine Gorge is actually a series of gorges, 13 in all, cut into the colourful limestone over 23million years. The Three Gorge tour takes four hours. You travel by boat to the end of the first gorge and then walk a few hundred meters to the next boat, which takes you up the second gorge. There are aboriginal rock paintings to view along the walk and a swimming hole to cool off in on the return journey. Another boat takes you to the end of the second gorge and a then a walk to the next boat. The third boat trip is much shorter and at the end we walked a short way into Gorge number four.

  

  

  

There are Freshwater crocodiles in the gorges which are not bothered by all the attention. Usually only freshwater crocs inhabit the gorge but during the wet season and floods, “”Salties”, Saltwater crocodiles can sometimes make their way into the gorge. After “The Wet”, National Park officers clear the area for saltwater crocodiles. Theÿ use traps like this one to capture them and then relocate the saltwater crocodiles to another area.

 

Saltwater Crocodile Trap                                   Aboriginal Guide “Rocky

Katherine Festival, Northern Territory

I took part in the Katherine Festival by teaching polymer clay jewellery techniques at the Territory Craft Rooms. The students made some awesome beads for necklaces, textured cuffs, book and box covers.
  
   
   
Katherine Festival:
During the community comes together to enjoy a wide variety of arts and entertainment over a period of ten days. The event has included the Katherine Prize Art and Craft Acquisition Awards, exhibitions, workshop activities, Aboriginal culture and a Family Fun Day.
I was invited to attend the evening showing of the Katherine prize is the oldest art & craft award in the NT,  awarding over $7,000 in prizes. This was the Official opening of the 2011 Katherine Festival. A beautiful evening of art, food & entertainment under the stars.
One of my talented students, Helen Aland exhibited a beautiful painting.
     
Helen Aland – Besse Springs NT                  Winner -   Jan Milner Cole – Days End

Flight to Darwin

This morning I drove to the airport early in the morning to catch my flight to Darwin. I wore layers of clothes as it was freezing but knew I’d be peeling them off later in the day as the temperatures in the Northern Territory have been in the mid thirties. I had a bit of a panic as I was stuck in early morning traffic for what seemed ages. However I got to the airport in good time and found the long stay car park where I was leaving my car for the six days I am away.

I had booked a window seat on the Qantas flight. I like to see the terrain below me. There was hardly any cloud cover so I had a perfect view of the vast open spaces.

  

  

  

The views of rock formations, sand dunes, salt lakes and river systems are a great source of inspiration for my art work, both in jewellery design and textiles.

Helicopter Exercise

Today at the Two Rocks Sea Rescue we were involved with a helicopter exercise just off the coast.