Art and fishies and really dodgy cakes

This is my beautiful goldfish Buddy. He's about four years old now... maybe five and has survived three house moves and about seven flatmates.

We're been working on a style of drawing they call "Gestural" in the afternoons with our teacher Pete. The idea is to capture the essential movement of an object, the direction of the lines, the energy... oh dear god, sounds so much less like a hippie when he says it...

The purple dress thing draped over the back of the chair was my subject

Ten and I found the world's ugliest birthday cake made from Donuts while we were late night shopping at Garden City. Filth.

My painting teacher Dallas' workstation. Today we learnt how to mix colours which is something I have been desperately wanting to learn since forever.

My paint box... otherwise known as a magenta beauty case. My Mum gave them to Cas and I when we were little but we scoffed at their girlyness and refused to use them. Now I love the thing to bits, especially since it has two long pockets and four elasticy things that are meant to hold bottles but work equally as well with paintbrushes.

I used a warm red and cool blue (with a bit of yellow) to mix up a grey to use in my fan painting

My fan painting as it was at the end of class this week. I painted over last week's grey (mixed from black and white) effort. Really like how the blue comes through the grey as it dries, adds depth... or something.

Now THIS is what I am most excited about... besides the Emerald Arts launch party of course. In Sculpture we're carving fish out of a lovely wood called Camphor Laurel. I went with a big round puffer fish shape because it seemed like the easiest way to go and if I stuff up something I can whittle it down and pretend that I meant to make a skinny fish the whole time.

The fish after our teacher Peter cut the contours on the bandsaw for me. Apparently we're not qualified to use it yet, but considering that I have made ANYTHING with wood before and tend to cackle like a madman around power tools.... that's probably a very good idea.

Using a mallet and chisel to refine the shape of the fish. Apparently I got an evil glint in my eye when handed these. What can I say, I heart making stuff. Anyway, Dad's a carpenter by trade, maybe I learned some of it by osmosis?

The fishy's face. What looks like the eye is actually a wet (ew) spot in the wood, but I drew around it and am going to make this the eye somehow.



Procrastinating at the moment, have to do the dishes, handwash my good clothes so I have something to wear tomorrow, dye my hair, do my frankly disgraceful nails, clean Emerald Arts... actually I think I will leave the cleaning till tomorrow and spend the night prettifying myself and drinking vodka instead. I had vowed to not start drinking till I had at least done my hair, but Ten's facebook status said that he had started drinking at work and I got jealous :P