{"id":416,"date":"2015-07-06T15:28:56","date_gmt":"2015-07-06T07:28:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/?p=416"},"modified":"2015-07-06T15:28:56","modified_gmt":"2015-07-06T07:28:56","slug":"precious-time-precious-things","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/?p=416","title":{"rendered":"precious time & precious things"},"content":{"rendered":"

WEEK\u00a0 TWENTY-SIX \u2013 ( june 29- july 5)<\/p>\n

I have been really pleased to have had a friend from Uni days visiting Perth for a short time, much of it spent with me. Very little else was achieved this week but I was happily prepared, and excited, to participate in this timely mid-year break.
\nAlthough Helen and I catch up regularly when I visit Melbourne, it has been a big treat to have her in my home and my studio.
\nVisits of creative friends are a beautiful way to reflect on where one has been\/is\/is going<\/em> – as conversation plays catch-up in an often disjointed or excitable way.<\/p>\n

Helen has a beautiful little garden studio in her Geelong backyard – which is also beautifully full of native plants, chooks and\u2026. guinea pigs<\/em>.
\nWhen we were youngsters she was a painter and did beautiful portraits of her friends. \u2028Now she teaches classes in mosaic making under the name Flock of Birds<\/a>.
\nLike me, she has also spreads her knowledge and friendship via local Community projects.<\/p>\n

Again, like me, she is also rediscovering art forms of value to her.
\nFor example, we were both interested in dolls – not the twee types of course, but antique, old and artisanal beauties\/uglies. For her perhaps it was a form of portraiture, for me I think it was obviously the textile aspects but I think it was also the story they told, the connection they gave.
\nHelen is, as usual, being inventive with methods and the photo of the prototype is beautiful\/covetable!<\/p>\n

Another lovely little thing to mention is that Helen stitches when travelling – and I don’t:)
\nShe makes tiny little \u2018jewels\u2019 with fabric and thread – almost like she is creating the broken ceramic pieces she uses to build her mosaics. If we weren\u2019t too busy talking and excitedly lurching from one topic to another I would have remembered to take some photos.<\/em><\/p>\n

It was also lovely to watch her explore my very visual, very colourful, very open home.\u2028…<\/p>\n

I have a few artworks of hers amongst my precious possessions.
\nOne, an embroidery she did as a wedding present for us, where she brought her portraiture skills into play beautifully, (remember I was the textile bod)!
\nFor as long as I can remember it has been in our bedroom.
\nIt currently rests behind both the current book I am reading – though not today – and a precious op shop find ….a glow-in-the-dark Casper.<\/p>\n

\"beautiful<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Obviously, precious to me means that it brings me connections\u2026of my past, of family and of friends.<\/p>\n

\"beautiful<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Another is a piece we commissioned for a wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n

\"beautiful<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There is a sketchbook landscape from her travels to Italy. She did end up marrying a beautiful Italian\/aussie bloke fittingly.<\/p>\n

\"beautiful<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Most poignantly are four tiny mosaic pieces she made for the bloke and I when, in turn, each of our parents died. They sit in our bathroom amongst the ordinary – but these are far, far from ordinary….<\/p>\n

The week included visits to Fremantle, Fremantle Arts Centre, Kings Park and a few dinners, lunches, cuppas and meetings with family and friends.
\nThe highlight, for both of us I am sure, was simply hanging out in the studio with our leapfrogging conversations and darting explorations.
\nA VERY precious part of the week.<\/p>\n

Friday with Esther included a damp visit to Freo to the Wintergarden where we watched ice-skaters and snowball throwers enjoy themselves.<\/p>\n

\"wintergarden<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A lovely little sojourn.
\nI am increasingly appreciating my Esther-days where we set out to see what Perth has to share with us.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WEEK\u00a0 TWENTY-SIX \u2013 ( june 29- july 5) I have been really pleased to have had a friend from Uni days visiting Perth for a short time, much of it spent with me. Very little else was achieved this week but I was happily prepared, and excited, to participate in this timely mid-year break. Although […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","spay_email":""},"categories":[12,22,21,14],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/416"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=416"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/416\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":430,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/416\/revisions\/430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/janmullen.com.au\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}