Studio Diary - March 2022

Charlotte Wensley
Mar 10, 2022
3 min read

Updated: May 27

Welcome to the first edition of autumn! I'm not sure if we really had a summer to speak of, it was so wet and wild day after day...... but what a whirlwind of a month!

A big THANK YOU....

...for your positive response to my Curiosity Series. I had lots of lovely messages and emails from many of you, which blew me away! I truly appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts, and find great energy and motivation in your kind words.

These paintings have now been installed as part of the local artists offerings at Steven's Street Gallery for the duration of March and April. If you're local and passing by do call in and enjoy all the amazing work on show.

The catalogue for these artworks is now online!

The gallery open night is scheduled for Friday 25th March to which you are all most welcome, it's a casual and informal evening of mingling with artists and enjoying a browse through paintings, sculptures, ceramics, jewelry and prints.

Local musician Hayden Hack from Maleny will be providing the sounds!

Bar Deco (right next door) is open from 5 pm 10 pm for dinner and refreshments.

2 Steven's Street, Yandina.

Open 10 am to 4pm

Tuesday - Sunday

All Welcome!

Stevens Street Gallery Yandina promotional banner

Caloundra Regional Gallery

Local Artists - Local Content Art Prize 2022

I'm very excited to share with you that my painting 'Rustlers', from my Departure Series, has been selected as a finalist in this year's local art prize.

To have been selected to hang alongside the beautiful work of 39 emerging and established local artists in the finalist exhibition is an honour indeed!

The finalists exhibition opens on 25th March and runs until 8th May.

Since finishing my Curiosity Series I've got back to work on my large mixed media pieces on paper. Gradually adding layers of paper and paint and slowly refining shapes have been helping to reveal the compositions. It's a quiet and meditative process which can't be rushed, so I've just enjoyed being with these works-in-progress and allowing their stories to unfold. These two pieces are now up on the easel for review, waiting for me to make final decisions and add finishing touches. I did get sidetracked for a few days with a minor flood in the studio as a result of days of heavy rain and wondered if I was subconsciously channelling the water gods by working with these colours!

'Submerged', as a title for this work, had already come to me, before the rain began in earnest. I'll let you decide if there's some twilight zone action happening at my place!

grid of photos of green and blue abstract collage

I've also given myself some circuit breaker time to do a few experimental pieces that are totally unconnected to any current investigations and bodies of work. It's an important part of my process to pause here and there, observe where my energy is going and create spaces for my awareness to breathe so I can see what rises to the surface. Having a go at altering my working methods can result in either subtle shifts in my current thinking, or sometimes spark a whole new creative direction. You never know where these little journeys of inquiry will lead and what will appear on the page when you give yourself permission to just have a go and see what happens!