Dawn Whitehand: Visual Artist
ephemeral art
Hand Drawn Gift Cards
Way back in April I posted about the blank gift cards I sell on Etsy to accompany my handmade sculpture, jewellery and functional tableware – or any other gifts purchased on Etsy or anywhere…
The cards are designed on commercial card stock and feature images of my artwork, images of ephemeral artworks or original hand drawn images – not pictures of them, the actual drawings.
Many of the drawings have been inspired by my other blog which features poetry and drawings.
The cards are blank so they are ideal to compliment any gift on any occasion for any gender – as well as being a unique gift within themselves, because they are unique works of art and are frameable.
While I have sold other items in my Etsy store I have not sold any cards…. so the question begs WHY?
Are they too expensive, especially compared to some other cards on Etsy?
I guess to answer this some facts need to be stated and questions need to be answered…
- the photography cards are all $9.50 and are limited editions
- the drawn cards are all 11.50 and are one off
- the photography based cards capture ephemeral artworks that no longer exist, and are in limited editions, and are hand signed
- the drawn cards are one off never to be repeated – being hand drawn they can’t be repeated, and so are unique works of art, and are hand signed
Are these prices too expensive? I don’t think so when considering the intellectual work/property that goes into them – we think nothing of paying this amount for a mass produced card in a newsagent.
Or are they just crappy images that no-one likes? well not according to the likes, shares and treasuries that have been made from them – or is this just due to the politics of Etsy? (like me and I will like you)
So, I am going to plunge in at the deep end and ask you to vote in a poll to let me know the future of my cards…
The following images are the cards that feature in my Etsy Shop. PS… Fathers Day is approaching…
Environmental Art Installation
This video is a walk through (as the viewer would experience it) of my PhD installation which consisted of sculptural ceramics installed in the natural environment at my property in Dunnstown, Victoria, Australia.
The research and subsequent installation was based within a feminist framework, supported by the theories of new physics and evolutionary psychology which purports recognition of universal symbols and universal connections.
Clay was used as an organic material to capture the innate connections and nuances that humans have to the environment.
Installation as an art method was used to create an environment which could act as a conduit to the viewer re-establishing their inborn understanding of their place in the universe.
My actual PhD can also be downloaded or read online at Academia.edu or at the University of Ballarat.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Renewal
This weeks photo challenge theme is quite convenient – for me at least!
Last weekend I spent Friday and Saturday night in Apollo Bay with my partner Strobe, because he won second prize in the Greens Art Prize, and two nights accommodation was the prize (pretty good prize)!
Apollo Bay is a coastal town along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia, and is a popular tourist destination for international and local tourists. During the winter months its resident population is around 2,000, but come summer this explodes to 15,000 – 20,000! Luckily we were there just before this explosion.
So the photo challenge ‘renewal’ theme has a double meaning for me : first it coincides with a relaxing and renewing weekend away, strolling along the beach, sleeping in, coffee on the promenade, yummy restaurants and taking photos!
Secondly, the constant renewal of the environment by Mother Nature. As well as personal renewal, the photos I am sharing depict detail images of the ever changing shoreline. As tides flow in and flow out coastal debris becomes ensnared in damp sand, forming mini organic installations. And each day these spontaneous ephemeral artworks created by Mother Nature are renewed, fresh and invigorated for the next beach comber.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Near and Far
As I am currently living in Bentleigh, and not my home, I don’t have access to all my camera lenses, so for this weeks challenge I’ve dug up some images from a couple of years ago that I took while undertaking an artist residency in Beaufort, Victoria.
At this time large parts of Victoria were under drought conditions, and many of our waterways were extremely low, if not dried up.
The aim of this residency was to draw attention to the environmental impacts of climate change by creating an installation on one of the many regional lakes in the area. I chose Lake Beaufort, one of many rural lakes, which was extremely low at the time. In fact at this time Lake Wendouree, Lake Learmonth nd Lake Burrumbeat were completely dry.
During the first few days of the residency I contructed some large abstracted bird forms from recycled clay on the shore line of the lake – which was actually exposed lake bed. After the forms had dried they were moved into the water and allowed to disintergrate. The process was documented photographically, as is the practice for ephemeral installations. Many of the photos I took using the near and far method in order to highlight the exposed lake bed.
An exhibition of selected photographs from the residency was later exhibited at the Ararat Regional Art Gallery.
The bouy in the foreground was once in the water, it now sits marooned on the dry lake bed. The length of the chain indicates how deep the water was at this point. The clay sculptures can be seen in the distance on the waterline.
The clay birds can be seen in the far distance on the waterline. The foreground is dry lake bed.
Late afternoon View of the dry lakebed. Debris that was once beneath the water is now exposed. Clay sculptures in the distance.
The clay sculptures are now in the water.
Footprints
An Ephemeral Artwork
Currently I am living – temporarily – in East Bentleigh with my son while my sister is on holiday: she is doing base camp on Everest. My son is living here while doing VCE at Brighton Secondary College.
A few days ago while taking my dog, Eddy for a walk I collected some natural urban debris from the nature strips on my way home. It has been very windy lately in Melbourne, with lots of bark, leaves, tree branches and twigs, and seedpods littering the streets.
On arriving home I arranged some of my gleaned ephemera into an artwork which I documented using my digital camera. The concept of an ephemeral artwork is that it is temporarary, and often constructed of non-permanent materials.
I like the soft textures of the small flexible tree branches and redness of the leaves in contrast to the cracks on the concrete. I also enjoy the organic nature of the materials juxtoposed on the cold harsh, yet textured, surface of the concrete.
I think I will explore using this image on some gift cards which I may add to my shop on Etsy.
A Public Art Perspective: Sculpture Exhibition in Ballarat.
Focusing on the benefit of public art to the broader community, including business, the public and local artists, A Public Art Perspective consists of two linked exhibitions: Backspace – exhibiting a range of smaller marquette works, and Backyard Gallery – displaying public art from some of Australia’a leading public artists.
The marguette works are on show in an intimate gallery space, and the larger works are sited in the centre of the Ballarat Arts Precinct: adjacent to the Ballarat Art Gallery, Backspace Gallery, and the University of Ballarat Arts Academy; home of Inge King’s landmark sculpture Grand Arch; and the site of community celebrations such as Harmony Festival, effectively cementing Alfred Deakin Place as an arts hub for downtown Ballarat.
Curated by Julie Collins the exhibition represents a diverse sculptural practice, ranging form the playful mixed media sculptures of Louise Paramor, the formal sculptures of Robert Hague through to the powerful works of Bruce Armstrong.
The exhibition is ongoing until the 22 April, and is well worth a visit.
Featured artists:
Bruce Armstrong
Robert Bridgewater
Chaco Kato
Robert Hague
Matthew Harding
Louise Paramor
Julie Collins & Derek John
Inge King
This work by Dawn Whitehand is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.