Print Exchange 2014

Not my best work, but the fact that I managed to put together an edition of 12 prints when I am currently struggling with the basics - not a bad achievement.

Little old dog with the big heart

Arriving home today to your little dog smile, melts my stupid heart. I spend a lot of time lately thinking about you and while mostly you've changed...every now and then my cheeky, happy, neurotic dog reappears. The one who busts into the bathroom to check on me in the shower (your head pushing the curtain to the side),the one who impolitely taps when he wants attention, the one who licks my tears away (yep that's you right now). 

We've been through a lot together, you and I - more than anyone will ever know. I can't imagine you not being here but if I were honest you haven't been here for a while, there have only been little glimpses of you.

Tonight as I scroll through old photos I think about the day I picked you. The cheeky, loud, naughty one of the pack. You barked all the way home and there started our life of you being you - a bit naughty, too clever, very handsome, intensely loyal and loving of your people. I would pick you over anything and I hope you know that, as much as dogs can know these things. Xx

S is for

Stars 

Do you know it doesn't matter where you are in the world…we can all see the same stars  

48 hours of favourite things

Seeing the new puppy, girl catch ups, dinner with friends (even when crashed by Canberra punk boys), farmers markets, coffee, fresh apples, ice-cream for second breakfast, watching dog shows (and men wearing dog jumpers), second hand shopping, polka albums, picking roses for inside, quiet times with the dog, wine at lunch, coffee and cake, making up cocktails, riding bikes into the wind, seeing rosalie gascoigne, vapour trails, spying girls on roller-skates, marvelling as the clouds rolls in, drinking german beer, drinking belgium beer out of big glasses, watching football teams win, losing at pool, listening to bad jukebox music, espresso martinis, watching the crowd, james brown, sharing stories, feeling like me, malteaser easter rabbits, drinking tea, seeing foxes, staycation hair, listening to go team, bread freshly made, bacon and eggs, golf, shandies, winning at galaga, losing at galaga, buying treats for the dog, bike riding as day turns to night, dukkha with bread, rusty nails, more bacon for dinner, watching scary movies, micro sleeps and just doing exactly what I want to do.

Red sky at night

Daytime at night

Exactly a week ago the moon was so full and bright, like daytime at night. It was so stunning that I stood outside on the street in the chilly night air and marvelled that my little house looked like a Reg Mombassa painting - such beauty in suburbia. Gazing at the sea of stars in the ink blue sky I was struck by the stillness and silence. The only noise was the clip clapping of the little dogs paws as I could hear him move from room to room in search of me. 

So this is what my house looks like from outside in. There is a warmth and brightness that lives beyond the inside out. I like that.

Friday morning (just after midnight) sounds

I always forget the Falling Joys were originally from Canberra and back in the day knocked around with Stevie Plunder and Bernie Hayes, before everyone pulled up stumps and moved to the big smoke of Sydney. This song, Lock It, was featured in the Top 100 series and I heard it somewhere a few days ago and for whatever reason, just wanted to listen to those beautiful lyrics (and Susie Higgie's voice singing them) again tonight.

R is for

Rainbow

This rainbow was at my house. Do you have rainbows in Jordan?

Luminous World

Luminous World is a selection of contemporary art from the Westfarmers Collection now showing at the National Library of Australia. The theme of the exhibition is light and this is the one thread of commonality amongst the selection of paintings, photographs and objects. 

This is one of the better curated exhibitions I have seen in a long time - the works are diverse in style and medium but as a group they flow and even compliment each other in their arrangement. 

I think I'll be revisiting this exhibition about once a week until it closes in June, even just to look at the Rosalie Gascoigne and its beautiful reflective assembled text. And while I'm there I might secretly daydream that I'd moved to Canberra a few years before I did, and somehow made friends with Rosalie. I would pick her up in the car after lunch and we would spend afternoons foraging for found objects on the outskirts of town, drinking tea from a thermos while she planned ambitious works of art. I would tell her about the work I made for some exhibition in Sydney (which exhibition? I don't even remember now). It had polaroids of floral linoleum from my first red brick Canberra home, wax encaustic and dusty pink roses...and some words written about her - that part of the daydream is actually true.

Lonsdale street roasters

New space, bigger menu, happy days.

Autumn afternoon

Happy Sunday

Torta pasqualina

Modified from here 

I halved the following:

500 gm plain flour
80 ml (1/3 cup)
olive oil, plus extra for brushing
1 onion, finely chopped
1.2 kg greens such as silverbeet, cavolo nero and frisée, trimmed
500 gm firm ricotta, drained
100 gm Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
6 eggs

Method

Combine flour and a large pinch of salt on a work surface, form a well in centre, add half the olive oil and 250ml lukewarm water, then knead until a smooth dough forms (8-10 

2 minutes), adding a little more water if necessary. Divide dough into 10 balls, cover with a damp tea towel and set aside to rest (1 hour).

Heat remaining olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add onion, sauté until tender (6-8 minutes), season to taste, set aside to cool. add greens and cook for a few minutes. Add cheese and an egg.

Cook greens in boiling salted water until tender (1-2 minutes), drain, refresh (see cook’s notes p218), drain well, coarsely chop and combine in a bowl with onion, cheeses and 2 eggs. Season to taste, stir to combine.

Preheat oven to 190C. Oil and flour a 20cm-diameter cake tin. Roll out half the balls on a lightly floured surface to 1mm thick and line base and sides of tin, brushing with oil between each layer. Fill with greens mixture, make 4 indents in filling with the back of a spoon and crack remaining eggs into indents. Fold in pastry edges, roll remaining dough balls to 1mm thick and layer on top of pie, brushing between each with oil. Trim edges, brush top with oil and bake until golden and cooked though (40-45 minutes). Cool in tin until cool enough to touch, turn out, cool to room temperature and serve.