Tara Axford welcomed us into her home in Sydney last week to talk with us about her work, and her 25-year career as art director of publications such as The Good Weekend magazine. 

'As a mixed media artist working with prints, collage, mixed media, fibre arts, and photography, I am interested in the push-pull of constantly searching for something... Are we developing something new or are we constantly referencing and influenced by the past?I draw inspiration from my surrounds, I find patterns, textures, imperfections. The forgotten, the weathered, the discarded appeal to me. '

We talked to Tara about working full time and making time for art, her process of collecting her 'pocket finds' and sharing them with her large online following, her online course with Fibre Art Take Two, what success means to her, and much more. 

Tara has a show at Gosford Regional Gallery on 24th June, with the Makers Studio, so go see it.
 
Thanks so much for talking to us, Tara, and showing us your beautiful work and studio. 

Links -
Studio Print Studio printing tiny books
Blurb printing - for printing of catalogues
Pro Camera by Moment 



Episode 112 - Tara Axford, Art director and maker of art

Come along for the ride with two comical, curious artists Fiona Verity and Julie Nicholson as they talk about their creative journey. Hear them interviewing artists, curators, gallery owners, teachers and creatives to guide them, and the listeners, within the arts community. Enjoy the banter whilst they navigate through all the Art W**k.

Arts

Literature

Performing Arts

Design

Food

Fashion & Beauty

Visual Arts

Education

Training

Language Courses

Higher Education

K-12

Educational Technology

Business

Investing

Careers

Management & Marketing

Business News

Shopping

Entrepreneurship

Self-Improvement

Jesse - The Empowered muse, life modelling for individual wellness and social sustainability. 

We've been eager to chat with a life model for some time, and luckily Jesse posed for Julie's Art class in Avalon. She's skilled and knowledgeable, exceeding our expectations. Initially anticipating a conversation about modeling experiences and anecdotes, we were pleasantly surprised. Jesse shared her reasons for life modeling, driven by a need to confront her fears. This journey led to enhanced self-awareness and body positivity, influenced by the artists' portrayals of her beauty. After mastering modeling, Jesse traveled across Australia last year, organising life modeling classes in rural towns. Her goal was to break barriers and demonstrate the benefits for both individuals and communities. It was an extraordinary conversation, and we're grateful to Jesse for her openness. Her story has reshaped our perspective on life modeling, offering a beautiful insight into her journey.

Episode 183 - Jesse The Empowered Life Model

Natalie O'Connor and Jo Mellor are currently showing at Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf so you can go check out their work right now! 

Natalie O'Connor  is an artist recently awarded her PHD at UNSW for her thesis, 'The Nature of Redness', which is also the title of Natalie's exhibition at Woollahra. 

 Natalie O’Connor is an artist, researcher, public programs & education coordinator at Hazelhurst Arts Centre. Her experience in the international colour manufacturing industry has heavily influenced her practice. She holds a Bachelor of Education and Master's degree. Most recently, she was awarded a PhD at UNSW for her thesis, The Nature of Redness- A Practice-Based Research into Red Pigments to Offer a New Understanding of Material Colour. Her practice and thesis are concerned with the permanency and fragility of colour and the technical innovations of the artist’s palette that result from a collaborative dialogue between artists and scientists since the early nineteenth century. She engages deeply with the colour red, investigating its materiality and revealing its inherent qualities of colour.  By understanding and experiencing the delicacies of each red pigment, scientists explore the potential for colour-making in the future. This allows the new potential for contemporary artists to make informed choices with their palettes to interpret the world around them.   
Jo Mellor is also a graduate of UNSW recently a masters in Fine Arts research
 
'Jo Mellor is a recent graduate of UNSW Art & Design's MFA program. Her MFA project was guided by Aboriginal knowledge provided by Ngiyampaa Elder Aunty Beryl Carmichael. The project applied the methodologies of yarning and deep listening to an expanded textile practice as well as consultation and collaboration with the Menindee Ngiyampaa and Barkandji community. Emerging from this research, Jo's current exhibition, Cobalt and Rust (Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf, 20 March - 14 April 2024) is a critical examination of the ecological crises affecting Broken Hill (Wilyakali Country). Through a textile-based, eco-feminist practice, the exhibition lays bare the devastating consequences of land and water mismanagement by government bodies and corporations who fail to consult with the Traditional Custodians of Country. The textile series in the exhibition presents dense clusters of embroidery that suggest textures of scarred earth, whilst hues of cobalt and rust echo chemical discord. -

Jo's exhibition at Woollahra is called, 'Cobalt and Rust'. 

Their shows are on until 14th April.

Thanks for talking to us!

Episode 182 - Natalie O'Connor and Jo Mellor

Many thanks Evie for your time and sharing your stories and experiences about your life and artwork. Evie is inspired by her environment. 

To find out more about Evie and her artwork you can see on her instagram. 

https://www.instagram.com/evie.adasal/?hl=en

To see the artwork of Evie's from Paddington Art Prize 2023 

https://www.artgalleria.com/folio?p=cb840d31-507c-457c-9439-0d7fe04a31bd

Episode 181 - Evie Adasal

We had the great pleasure of interviewing artist @elle_beaumont_ at @michaelreid.northernbeaches last weekend just before the opening of the group show, ‘Country’, as featured in this month’s @countrystylemag. Elle also has a solo show in October at @michaelreid.southernhighlands so keep an eye out for that. 

‘Elizabeth Beaumont (b. 1989) is an emerging artist living on the remnant bushland of the Ngambri/Ngunnawal people in the Southern Tablelands, NSW. Elizabeth grew up in the Southern Highlands, NSW. 
Elizabeth is self-taught, with a background in criminal law and psychology. Elizabeth has always painted, but has dedicated time to her practice since 2017. Elizabeth’s paintings are predominately abstracted landscapes and expressions of the bush, with recurring interrogation of the ecology of the southern tablelands, wallum heathland, the central Australian desert, and Southwest Tasmania.  ​​
.
Thanks so much for talking to us, Elle, good luck for the future and happy painting! 



Episode 180 - Elle Beaumont

Join us for the latest episode of @art.wank featuring the talented artist Nicole Kelly (@nk_nk_). Congratulations to Nicole on becoming a new mum! In our recent Zoom interview before the Xmas, we delved into her painting techniques, past exhibitions, and her unique approach to color. Nicole is a very generous artist and offers dedicated mentoring through workshops and classes. Visit her website today to learn more and reserve your spot. Represented by Arthouse gallery in Sydney and Nicholas Thompson gallery in Melbourne . ‘Kelly creates paintings that linger between the essence of a subject and the experience of being. Clouded by the romanticism of remembering, her paintings are imbued with experience captured in vibrant strokes of colour and with swift brushwork. Kelly’s works, informed by an interest in literature and the discipline of painting, cast moments of shared stillness in an atmosphere of light. She says of her works “my desire is to push painting beyond a surface likeness of any subject and into the realm of poetics”.   Winner of the prestigious Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship (2009) and the Hurford Hardwood Portrait Prize (2018), Kelly is well recognised for her landscape, portraiture and still life painting. She has undertaken residencies in France (2019, 2018, 2017, 2010) and Spain (2016) and has completed major public commissions for the Sutherland and St George Hospitals in Sydney. Her work has been selected for inclusion in the Lester Prize for Portraiture at the Art Gallery of WA (2019, 2018, 2017, 2015), Portia Geach Memorial Award (2021, 2020, 2019, 2015, 2014), Salon des Refusés (2023, 2020, 2019) and Wynne Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW (2015). ‘ . Thanks Nicole! Listen wherever you get podcasts or link in bio  : #Podcast #artpodcast #artwank #abstract #art #artistsoninstagram #artwork #artist #artgallery #nicolekelly 

Episode 179 - Nicole Kelly

Art Wank

Episode 112 - Tara Axford, Art director and maker of art

Download our free app to listen on your phone