It took about two weeks to find my way with this work, which was hard but so worth it. Now I can’t wait to get to drawing and I do have to stop and do adult things and parent things but I am so lucky my studio is just out the back so once everyone is in bed I can just get back to it.
I think I will get this done sooner than I thought, and I have a second one planned.
Under Skin, Under Earth. Ink on paper, 56 x 76cm , 2016
My Grandmother died a few days before I finished this drawing, it has been so hard to finish.
This begun as an experiment, which is the best part of not having a deadline – experimentation. I want to find ways to explore mortality – all the life and death lessons I have experienced over the last couple of years. I thought I would write about them – but that doesn’t feel like the right to do for me.
I’ve tried drawing people’s objects and painting still lives of flowers, while they were fun to do, they were not enough. I’ve been road tripping and sitting and reading and sketching and photographing and I get inklings of things and then I moved towards other things. I’ll get there, I’ll find it.
When I was a teenager, I spoke to Grandmother on the phone and she had asked me about my drawing. She always asked me about my drawing. When I told her I wasn’t doing that anymore she told me that I was being silly/ stupid/ ridiculous – one of those words, all of which I was deserving. I was such an angry teenager and was putting all that anger into being destructive towards myself instead of being constructive. Anyway, she said I was being silly/ stupid/ ridiculous – that I have a gift. I shouldn’t waste it.
So I’ve been trying not to waste it. I’ve had busy hands for a number of years now. In my early twenties I was making toys, she showed me how to make a simply teddy out of felt. I made a pirate one and Grandma examined it, said I was clever but I make repulsive things. I was really proud.I’ve been trying to make things that I think she would be interested in, my art has run the gamut of angst to art school to hyper sexualized to general interest and exploration of body to telling life stories. The kind of stories that Grandma’s would be interested in. It pains me that when our minds and experience become so rich, our bodies begin to age and fail.
Grandma passed away on Monday evening, I looked up the clock face of the Melbourne Town Hall around the time she left. When I got the texts and the calls and found out what time I remember this moment.. I wonder of it is connected. But maybe that’s just what we all do, try to find meaning in things and maybe there isn’t any meaning.
We are all so temporary. It’s heartbreaking.
Morning Song, ink on paper, 76 x 56cm , 2016
Hallo!
I am really pleased to say that my drawing Morning Song has been shortlisted for the Rick Amor drawing prize and my drawing Wrestling Three has been shortlisted for the National Works on Paper prize.
These are both really amazing exhibitions and I am really, really proud of the work that I have going into these exhibitions.
The Rick Amor opens July 9th at the Art Gallery of Ballarat and the National Works on Paper Prize opens 16th of July at the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery.
Hope you can make it down to see the works while they are on display. Good luck to all the shortlisted artists!
Wrestling three, ink on paper, 75 x 105cm, 2015
Grandma’s salt and pepper kitties
Over the last week I have been back in my studio, I begun a drawing that I think will take me about three months to complete. It’s new and something I have wanted to explore for a while, yet wasn’t ready – until now. Also this week I pushed myself back into drawing from life. I have slacked off a bit with that. So I set myself one hour for each of these drawings, and pushed myself to get as much as I could on the page to a timer.
Tetris Kitchen
Elephant ears plant
Table Stuff
Phallic Banana
Seriously – how phallic is it!
Nose Dive
The last one is a drawing of a bird that I found this morning. I was walking past a hospital and saw something fall to the ground from my peripheral – it made a noise when it landed that made me turn. I thought it dead but when I looked closer I saw it’s tiny body breathing, little black eyes blinking at me. So I called wildlife rescue and while giving my location details, so a rescuer could come and collect the bird, it opened it’s beak up super wide and then it just stopped. Last breath. It blinked no more. So I told the lady on the other end and she asked that I could at least move it so people wouldn’t step on it, which I did. And then I drew it. What a strange thing to witness but at least I was there in it’s final moments so it didn’t get stepped on.
I’m enjoying drawing SO MUCH right now. Even though time is scarce and I would REALLY like to have more time to do it, I still smile about it because drawing is the best.
A3
Ink on Khadi handmade paper
By Lily Mae Martin
2016
Statement about the work:
When my daughter was born I began to draw mostly interiors as I was at home more. I didn’t think much about the act at the time, as when you have babies and small children you have to live in the moment – there is every little time for reflection! But now that years have past I have come to see that these small sketches and drawings the spaces and things around us was a way of documenting our lives, like a journal only in pictures. It captures the everyday objects that surrounds us and shapes our days, but is also a window into the emotions I was feeling at the time.
I draw with pen and paper as this is very accessible to me, and also my daughter can use them to. I am inspired by etching techniques and replicate this within my drawings.
I got upset today because I tried to have some ‘me’ time and I went to an art gallery and then I tried to do some sketching and it sucked. After a third failed attempt of drawing an Arkley I concluded that I should let Arkley do Arkley and I’ll do me. My lines are more.. organic. I guess. Anyway, not a comparison thing I just thought what the heck am I doing and then I began reflecting on my Art Life and freaking out and got out of there and it was overcast but I got really sunburnt anyway.
Anyway I was going to pack for tomorrow this evening and I didn’t end up doing it because I was doing one of my organic line drawings. Got to go back to the hospital tomorrow and the cat is attacking my boobs so I think I’ll go and sleep.
Pain relief is an interesting one. Watching G go through some incredible pain it reminds me how little we know of how to treat pain – that we can only really treat it superficially.
It’s not a lot of fun – I wish I could take some of it away from him.
The’ve drilled down through the bone in his ring finger in an attempt to reattach it. The cut went clean through the bone but too close to the knuckle, so it is most likely he won’t regain use of it. There’s also the risk that it will just cause him pain for the rest of his days and in that case, it will have to be removed. The middle finger was sewn up. So, I can see why he is in so much pain. He’s on some pretty strong pain killers – but they didn’t seam to really work yesterday and last night. We go back to the hospital tomorrow to see how the healing is going and hopefully he won’t need these hardcore painkillers too much longer – they are truly knocking him about.
All of this reminded me of a favourite TED talk of mine, so I thought I would share that today too – enjoy.
Latif Nasser: The amazing story of the man who gave us modern pain relief