MONTHLY MISSIVE

RADIO ROUND UP

So once again we've been off the radar for a few weeks, but this month we've actually been out and about learning more about making ceramics, seeing new exhibitions, launching new creative endevours and putting the finishing touches (at last) on the Craft Companion. We hope you're all looking forward to August which as usual promises to be THE BIG ONE for the Craft community in Melbourne with the launch of Craft Victoria's annual Craft Cubed festival. We're on The Grapevine RRR again this morning around 10:15 and we'll be bringing you a choice selection of what's happening in the craftiverse.

SoCa THE SCHOOL OF CLAY AND ART

Theres a new school in town. Shane Kent, one of Melbourne's premier ceramicists is quickly becoming the poster boy (man) for modern artisans - regularly collaborating with chefs on large commercial commissions, maintaing a vibrant personal artistic practice and encouraging and inspiring aspiring clay mavens through both formal educational settings and short courses in specialist clay centres and continually showcasing the kind of life that can be sustained through creative endeavour. The latest string to his bow is the new School of Clay and Art which is offering up a unique mix of wheel thrown and hand building classes as well as career advice and perceptual skill building. We're excited and we will be signing up.

MEREDITH TURNBULL

One of Melbourne's finest (the lovely Ms Meredith Turnbull) has curated a new show called Form and Flex which we are really looking forward to. Makers who create interactive wearables that examine the physical connection of body, ornament and environment really push our buttons, often literally, playing with notions of performance, functionality and adornment. In this exhibition the spotlight will be on the conceptual artistry and manual skill of Bridie Lunney, Sanne Mestom, Anna Varendorff and Benjamin Woods as they take centre stage. We can't wait.
Opens Tuesday July 28, 6-8pm
Pieces of Eight Gallery

DOMESTIC FRONTIER

This August will see the second iteration of this wonderfully curated temporary retail space that focuses on a select range of works that skilfully embody the skill and inherent beauty of purpose built functional objects. Baskets, ceramics, metal, wood and textiles come to life as hand dyed, hand sewn and hand wrought tableware, napery, aprons and utensils. This year sees the original collective of Sophie Moran, Bridget Bodenham, Sandra Bowkett, Adriana Christianson and Vic Pemberton expand to include a new list of makers joining the team presenting a selection of modern classics that will be seriously hard to resist. We highly recommend getting in early.

Opening night Wed August 5 6-8pm
466 Smith St. Collingwood
Runs from 5-16 August, Wednesday to Sunay 11-6pm.

POP CRAFT CAKE SALE

Northsiders with a liking for fibre arts and baking can combine their activities for a good cause this month. Pop Craft are hosting a cake sale to both raise money for their Craft Cubed chunky weaving public access project. The results from which will be auctioned off once complete to raise money for both The Lighthouse Foundation and the ASRC. Sign up your support here and get your apron on! We should also mention that the fabulous monthly feast has a Caribbean flavour this month and takes place THIS FRIDAY the 31st of July. We'll be there enjoying the festivities and no doubt drooling stoop idly at the deliciousness NOM NOM NOM.

AND NOW FOR THE BIGGEST SHOW IN TOWN...

CRAFT CUBED (the festivus for the restofus)

Make no mistake this festival is a big deal for anyone involved in the craft sector. This is sixth year Craft Victoria has presented Craft Cubed and it will bring together over 150 events all over Victoria during an extended 7 week schedule that starts on August 1 and finishes up on September 22. For a small arts organisation that literally runs on the smell of an oily rag, the scope of the festival is enormous and its impact profound. All media, all skill levels and all makers are celebrated and encouraged to participate in a program rich with exhibitions, open studios, public events, skill sharing, markets, open access activities, a curated window walk, Koori Showcase at Fed Square, collaborations with Radiant Pavilion and the inaugural Victorian Craft Award.

This year the festival finally has its own mobile friendly website making it even easier to work out your own program of must sees, which we advise doing in advance because the program is HUGE. It has been incredible to see the development of this event into one that is completely unique and that attracts an audience of over 150,000 visitors! It would be even more fantastic to see it receive a whopping great lump of cash (are you listening Mr. Brandis) to take it Australia wide in the future. But enough of our grandstanding… whats on!

THE VICTORIAN CRAFT AWARD
What can we say - this will be amazing. A selection of over 100 of Victoria's top craft works running at 4 different venues and featuring some of the most skilled craftspeople across all media. This is a unique event showcasing the best craft our state has to offer and is the first of what will become a biennial event. The prizes are big and the stakes are high. Unmissable. More information on the craft website here 1-15 August

WINDOW WALK

Fellow window shoppers rejoice! This years festival will feature a series of collaborations between leading artists and retailers to present site specific exhibitions and in-store events that showcase some of our favourite makers in some of our favourite spaces. Like The Golden Opportunity Shop (pictured above) which includes live gilding of op shop finds at Alpha 60, Volcanic Landscapes by the incredible Megan Nicholson at Print City (pictured below) and Dear Plastic's Peace Bunnies Victory Land  at new docklands book hub Library at the Dock.

SATELLITE EVENTS and OPEN STUDIOS
The list is long and pretty much everyone in the community has something on or is opening their doors. If you've ever had even the slightest interest in finding out more about anything about local craft nows your chance.

Some of our top pics include Wild Weaving at Pop Craft and Twilight Textiles at the Handspinners and Weavers Guild and the welcome-home weaving project at Home Work in brunswick.

Newcomers Handmakers Factory  are putting on some Mini Workshops  that have us hooked as well as the Upcycling jewellery class with the Ethical Makers Movement at Radiant Pavillion.

For clay lovers the best known learning centres Northcote Potters, Carlton Ceramics and Slow Clay Centre but a raft of smaller studios as well as the new School of Clay and Art in Brunswick are also opening up for public viewing.

EXHIBITIONS

Too many to mention. Just go on the website and look - we're not kidding we couldn't possibly fit them all in. Collage, books, photography, jewellery, ornaments, glass, ceramics, jewellery, wood, mixed media, jewellery, ceramics and textiles, textiles textiles. Emerging makers to the most revered masters of their craft offer up works showing the diversity of concerns and skills present in todays contemporary craft landscape.

Our short list already includes Electric, Elise Sheehan, Anna Varendorf and Meredith Turnbull, Roseanne Bartley, Surface and Structure, Illuminate, Multiple Signatures and Hothouse. The list is sure to grow as our families become festival orphans once again.

TALKS

As part of the festival there is also a flurry of discussion groups from small highly specific round tables to key note day long seminars (our top pick - Craft and Design as a Career), and Craft The Australian Story presented by the World Crafts Council at which our very own Ramona will be speaking. Scan the festival guide and find your topic or people and get on board. Nothing like being among like minded people discussing the intricacies of your favourite hobby or profession. There is also the super expensive and highly contentious Parallells gab fest at NGV timed to coincide with Craft Cubed but presented by the NGV and the National Craft Initiative that is causing conversation ripples (make that tidal waves) of its own... But that's a whole other story we'll get to next month!

Don't take our word for it though, head over to the website and see for yourself.
BECK and RAMONA

BROADCAST OF THE MONTH

long time no see!

What must you think of us dear readers? We say we are back when clearly we are not. We seem to be popping in here only to coincide with radio appearances (this morning 10:30am on RRR FM!). Truth is even though we said the book is finished, it's never really finished. There is the painstaking and painful editing and proofing, the publicity planning, all at the same time as trying to get things on an even keel on the home front - which for us is quite the challenge! That said we have started leaving the house/studio/writing bunker more and more we've found some fantastic things out there in the world to see

EXHIBITIONS 

Hello Play!

We admit to being a little biased when it comes to artist/designer/coolguy Spencer Harrison. He designed our book and let us tell you a little secret - it looks beautiful! Somewhere between wrangling our craft tome, creating the Rhythm and Repeat Project, painting epic murals and hosting one of the best Instagram accounts ever, Spencer has created an amazing new body of work. 

No Vacancy Gallery has never been more fun, with a magical selfie wall complete with props, painting, sculptures, ceramics,  works on paper and super cool merch (we love our squiggle socks!). Better get in quick, five more days of delight to go.

No Vacancy Gallery 

Until June 21

Surfacing

Portuguese artist Patrícia Correia Domingues and Polish artist Sara Gackowska were joint winners of the 2014 Gallery Funaki Emerging Artist award. This combined exhibition showcases both old and new work from both makers and is both gutsy and austere, earthy and futuristic. Like sci fi props from Prometheus (we loved that crazy film).  It's a treat to see international work in such an intimate scale. Gallery Funaki remains one of the most important fine art jewellery galleries in the world, lucky for us it's only a tram ride away.

Gallery Funaki

Until June 20

Field Libraries

Yes you may have to brush your hair and shine your shoes to feel comfortable going into the Anna Schwartz gallery but don't let their retro snobbery put you off. We've told you how much we love Emily Floyd before, especially following her epic show at Heide last year. An injection of colour into this dreary Melbourne winter is just what we need, so we'll take our chances with this Slaves of New York style of gallery. 

Anna Schwartz Gallery

until 11 July

Group Exchange

When you can't go the mountain its great when the mountain can come to you. When it comes to local textiles the Tamworth show is the biggest in the business, and while we've been waiting to see one for years now but never managed to pull it off. How fabulous to find a collection of the best in the business in Hawthorn at the Town Hall Gallery.

 22 Australian artists were invited to explore the theme of collaboration. This of course mean many different things to different artists and we think in this case the word 'dialogue' is most appropriate. We'll be doing a full review of this show next  Monday, one not to be missed

Town Hall Gallery

Until July 26

Hold Me Tight

Brunswick's home of workshops, studios and hand made retail, Home-Work, is now adding an exhibition program to their bow. The inaugural show Hold Me Tight  features a fabulous collection of vessels from vases to modular shelving made by a great collection of artists, artisans and makers. One of the most refreshing things we've noticed so far this year is the number of new spaces that have opened their doors to  new and emerging makers. Closing this weekend so get in quick!

Home-Work studio and shop

Until June 21

WORKSHOPS

Clay Social

There's a new kid on the block in North Melbourne and its a cracker! Guild of Objects is the brainchild of three small batch potters - Brooke thorn, Chela Edmunds and tao Oudomvilay. Think super cool ceramic, metal and textile objects made by small scale independent artist as well as a workshop and exhibition space, Guild of Objects is dedicated to presenting the work of emerging artists, fostering neighbourhood interaction, presenting fun and accessible classes, artist experimentation and a love of the handmade. Winning combination if you ask us, and they're conveniently located right next door to one of the best cake shops in town Beatrix! Their first workshop - a ceramic cup building workshop with Chela sold out in hours, but we've managed to snaffle a class in their second session next week YAY. 

Guild of Objects

690 Queensbury Street

North Melbourne

Thinking in Three Dimensions with Felt

On June 27, authors, artists and felt wranglers Cat Rabbit and Isobel Knowles have an uncanny knack of turning two dimensional ideas into three dimensional wonders. Pop Craft is presenting a brilliant opportunity to learn some key tricks of the trade with these two magical makers. Basic sewing knowledge is essential but everything else is provided. Learn Pattern making, planning, cutting, stuffing and sewing in this hands on workshop. More details here

Shaping and Texture for Woven Tapestry with Sara Lindsay

This July Pop Craft is presenting a very exciting opportunity for weavers to work with one of one of the masters of the craft. Sara Lindsay, a founder of the Australian Tapestry Workshop, knows more about tapestry than the rest of us combined and then some. Simply put, her knowledge and teaching skills are legendary. This extraordinary pair of classes will see you learn some seriously impressive skills to build your textile repertoire over two consecutive weekends. One not to miss out on. More details here Pop Craft

BROADCAST OF THE WEEK

we're baaaaaaaaaaack…

After what seems like an eternity, we are back on air this morning with the wonderful Kulja and Dylan of The Grapevine on RRR (102.7 on your dial!). We are really looking forward to getting back out into the world after a solid three month stint in the Writing Bunker we need to stretch our legs a bit and see what's out there.  Lucky for us the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival has a bangin arts program this year with some shows already open despite the festival still being a couple of weeks off. We checked out We Wear Future at BSG on Saturday. A sprawling show of 20 artists and designers that, despite being a bit hit and miss, has some real gems. We kinda loved the 'morph jackpacks' by Cadia Belante(above). Turns out we missed a whole floor of this show, doh! A return visit for sure.

Stephen McLaughlan Gallery continues the have sneaky brilliant shows that slip under the radar, the latest is no exception. The Useful Set brings together some of the best ceramicists currently at the wheel (see what we did there)? Jane Sawyer, Prue Venables, Sophie Moran, Elizabeth Masters, Zak Chalmers, Phil Elson and on and on. With the addition of beautiful still life paintings by Lisa Banks this is quite a quiet gathering of marvellous minds. a MUST see.

We'll be talking more about White Goods, the current show on at Craft, later in the week. Suffice to say it's a beautiful meditative show - perfect for hot summer days. We'll also talk a bit about the mysterious National Craft Initiative and the new announcement of a Victorian Craft Award. 

We'll also tell you more about what we've been doing while on hiatus (a lot of hunching over our computers to be honest) but more excitingly what we are about to do! It's fever pitch here at HML headquarters with a kind of marathon of making ahead that will test our craft mettle to the core. It's nice to be back, we missed you! Happy New Year Everyone… RAMONA & BECK

BROADCAST OF THE WEEK

Feels like forever since we last graced the airwaves with our dulcet tones (snort). We are raring to go this morning as we catch up with our good friends at RRR. Listen in to The Grapevine with Dylan and Kulja  around 10:15. We'll be talking up seminars, markets, Christmas, books. Basically we'll be talking so fast we run the risk of sounding like we've had too many pharmaceuticals with our double espressos. We'll be giving a big plug to a writing seminar hosted by Craft this Thursday because I'm actually leading the charge, helping makers find their authentic writing voices. I'll be cutting through all the crazy art speak and noncing about with the english language and giving it to them straight. We'd love it if you came along (Beck will be the heckler in the back row). There is nothing nicer than meeting hml readers! You can book a ticket here

Sophie Moran is one of the many great makers at Markit this year

We'll be chatting a bit about the upcoming makers markets, Markit on the 23 of November and The Big Design Market 5-7 December. We've got some tips on how to avoid market fatigue and talk about some of the highlights for us at these blockbuster events.

If you can't handmake all your gifts be sure to buy local and handmade

We'll be tellling you what is on our Santa list this year. Top of my list is this stunning tinsel inspired necklace by jeweller Felicity Large now on show at Bini Gallery. Just one of the many great places you can buy beautiful, unique, local handmade objects that will beat a book voucher any day.

a new book by Beci Orpin is always reason to celebrate

If you do get a book voucher we highly recommend the new crafty tome by uber designer Beci Orpin. Make and Do is an explosion of ideas and inspiration, cleverly capturing Beci's warmth and generosity as well as her unique superstar style.

Kate Wischusen. 

If we have time we'll also let you know some of the great shows on around town. We love this time of year because there is so much on, a highlight being the graduate shows. Some of our favourite emerging makers are in this years RMIT School of Art Honours opening on the 18th at First Site Gallery.  Listen in people! Stay in the loop! RAMONA

SHOW OF THE WEEK - SANDRA ETEROVIC

mind blown

Seeing new work by Sandra Eterovic is always exciting. Long time favourite of handmadelife, this hard working and talented illustrator/artist just gets better and better. A sense of humour dryer than a desert married with the prettiest of palettes ramps up the sarcasm to 11 without being too clever clogs.

Her new table tennis paddle paintings (all sold by the time I got to the opening) are pitch perfect. People lie awake, their minds racing with the knowledge life just doesn't live up to expectations.
There's always a smattering of self deprecation to keep the ego in check. Above all this sardonic sloganism there is an undeniable beauty in her work. We never know if this is just a way to seduce us as viewers, a way of tricking us into believing that everything will be all right in the end, when in fact reality is far more complicated than that.

, 

Despite this lack of apparent optimism, the work is ultimately funny and open hearted. Eterovic seems to be saying that even if things aren't all rosy, at least we are in it together and that will make it more than bearable in the end. We can have fun in the lifeboat together despite being such a motley crew.

Still Waiting to be Blown Away  

by Sandra Eterovic

until November 12

HUT 13

79 Swan Street 

Richmond

SHOW OF THE WEEK - CARLY FISCHER

wasted

The ladies of HML are enormous fans of paper-craft, origami, silhouettes, paper-cuts, embossing, we love it all. Ramona even has a thing for quilling. But we seriously love paper when its used as a clever and confounding construction material. And Carly Fischer's new show Magic Dirt, currently on at Craft does this in spades.

Carly is a contemporary artist who brilliantly utilises the medium as both a conceptual and mechanical tool. Making models is not in and of itself new. However playing with the traditional context of model making as starting point for a finished piece of work and flipping it - by using the 'real' piece as the starting point and making a paper model as the finished piece, really is. Especially when said work is so realistic it gets your brain totally twisted up in chicken and egg knots.

Her mastery of mimicry is mental. Upon first sight the gallery space looks like its mid installation, with dirty plastic and green shopping bags strewn among cigarette butts and discarded soft drink cans. Of course under closer inspection the true nature and genius of the exhibition reveals itself. Honed on the visual cues of iconic cinematic representations of the 'outback' from films like Wake in Fright and Mad Max, Fischer deploys the interlopers associative aesthetic and spiritual mythology built around the landscape, contrasting it sharply against the reality of the land as it is actually inhabited. 

The soundscape that accompanies the exhibition continues Carly's collaborative work with Berlin Based composer Mieko Suzuki. Created from both site specific atmos recordings and film score samples it provides a poignant and evocative backdrop to one of this years most profound and compelling exhibitions.

Craft is recording an interview with Carly for their brilliant Craft TV channel, so keep your eyes peeled hear and learn more from this amazing artist. Or in the meantime check out the website for more details. BECK

Magic Dirt by Carly Fischer

Gallery one, Craft Victoria

31 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

September 5 - October 18.

SHOWS OF THE WEEK - JASON HAUFE, SARAH CROWEST

visions of spring

Jason Haufe @ Stephen McLaughlan Gallery

The ladies of HML are big fans of makers seeing out inspiration from multiple sources. Whether it be gardens, food, architecture and in this week's slew of shows, visual art. We refuse to see boundaries between any of these things. Creativity is creativity, inspiration is everywhere right?

encredible multimedia work by Melinda Schawel at Flinders Lane Gallery

New colour ways, materials, thought processes, even settings can really fire up the brain. As the weather gets better it's good to push ourselves a little further afield. Don't forget that every university campus usually has an accompanying exhibition space or two that should be explored on a regular basis. 

Artist Books at George Paton Gallery UMSU

We find that makers of all disciplines can get very caught up in their own media and become a little tunnel visioned. To loosen things up there is nothing better that going to see work in unusual spaces and in unexplored territories. in the same way we recommend spending the odd day or two doing the blockbuster shows at the national galleries. You'll find yourselves refreshed and ready for making new Spring work.

always inspiring Sarah Crowest @C3 Gallery

All the captions have links to the galleries in them so you can grab the details. Some are finishing and some are starting this week so be sure to check the dates and opening times (which fluctuate wildly from space to space as seasoned gallery visitors will know). Happy inspiration trails people, back to more craft based shows next week. RAMONA

POP UP OF THE YEAR - DOMESTIC FRONTIER

the wild frontier

You still have a few days left to visit the hottest pop up in town. Domestic Frontier brings together makers that have some interesting and beautiful similarities. The aesthetic is earthy, simple, with distinctive handmade qualities.

Jo Ruchel's beautful baskets

There is also a beautiful colour palette ranging sumptuous earthy tones to indigo blues, basically the stuff of dreams in our opinion.

Bridget Bodenham's free form platters

The ladies of HML wished this sort of thing happened more often. There is such a freshness to it,  and we can attest to the beauty and functionality of the pieces (We love our Sophie Moran cups and use them every day for that all important first coffee).

Sophie Moran's perfect cup

We are also huge fans of so many of the makers involved. We've been swooning of Greg Hatton's furniture since we saw it last year at the Slow Clay  open day.

Of course Vic Pemberton is a firm favourite as we loved her indigo course and always find her Bind & Fold range so seductive, she always gets the best blue out of her indigo forays!

Bind & Fold beauty

So gorgeous and not to be missed!

Domestic Frontier closes this Sunday
19 Nicholson Street Brunswick East
Open 11-6 so plenty of time! BECK AND RAMONA