A surprise trip to Adelaide took me to the Art Gallery of South Australia. For a relatively small gallery, it really punches above its weight with stunning, carefully curated exhibitions like Fred Williams and Lidia Groblicka. The real eye-popper for me was Anna Platten. Her work is stunning, precise and opens up a cornucopia of wonder. What especially struck me is that she creates full … Continue reading Anna Platten is devilishly crazy
In April, I received a commission for a horse. It’s totally outside the scope of what I normally do and because it was a commission for someone I know I was debilitated by the request. I was torn with all manner of stupid things like what size do they want it? What colours would they like? How realistic do they expect it to be? In … Continue reading I’m on a horse
A sudden icy downpour made me seek refuge in the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra. It was serendipitous as there was an amazing talk by artist Fang Lijun, the collector Uli Sigg and the curator Claire Roberts of the Go Figure Contemporary Chinese Portraiture exhibition. The exhibition is really compelling with such vibrant colours and racy content being birthed from suppression. Fang Lijun said that … Continue reading And then I met Fang Lijun at the National Portrait Gallery
A lot of people were asking me to see my Summer in Berlin series in person, so I have finally curated an exhibition at the Arthouse Hotel in Pitt Street, Sydney. It’s on till October 15, so if you’re passing by, please pop in to the Ground Floor gallery and take a peek. If you don’t live in Sydney, you can see the original series … Continue reading Come & experience Summer in Berlin
After a hiatus of far too long, I am back behind the wheel. It’s funny how a small commission can help you get your sticky fingers going again. This collage is for the cover of a local cookbook. Locals have a trailer set up near the park and when there is lots of holiday traffic they serve free tea & coffee to give drivers a … Continue reading Back behind the wheel
Thanks to a generous government grant, the local arts group has been able to purchase its very own space for exhibitions, workshops and meetings. Originally two school houses put together and then used for years as a saddlery, the buildings needed a lot of cleaning, painting and rebuilding. After months of hard slog, it finally opened and crowds poured through. It’s exciting for a small … Continue reading Not the painting you expected
It’s the most incredible thing when a friend supports your art. There’s a big difference between saying you like someone’s work and paying money for it. I’m still kind of uncomfortable with the idea of friends giving me money for art, but I guess money between friends is always awkward. After seeing my A Dingo Ate My Baby series, a close friend said, “Make me … Continue reading Can I tackle a horse? My first commission
I love when great work gets shortlisted for an awesome prize and the finalists for the Abstract Showdown are really incredible. I actually think the new voting system has helped here where you vote for a work based on it’s merit, giving it a score, rather than a “hot or not” showdown like in previous showdowns. Abstract is not my thing yet, but I had … Continue reading Check out the amazing Saatchi Online Abstract Finalists
Normally I create my work on the kitchen table, it’s comforting and easy and close to hot cups of tea. With the rain falling constantly & roads cut due to flood waters, I’ve needed to leave the house and have set up a workshop & studio in the old sheep shearing shed. It’s drafty and dusty but the natural light from the sky lights is … Continue reading When it floods, head to the shearing shed
I’m really happy that Kelly Susan won the Saatchi Online Collage Showdown. I was concerned when I was looking at the entries that there seemed to be many entries that bore little resemblance to collage. I think her works are striking and deserve a win. It’s hard though to judge someone’s work from a single piece and I think many artists would have suffered from … Continue reading Congratulations to Kelly Susan; Collage Showdown winner
Ray Monde 