getting fishy

a very talented and good friend of mine is an armature diver and under water photographer, but let me tell you there is nothing armature about his work.
i love looking at his images, as i don't dive, and to be totally honest don't think i ever would, it amazes me the world under the surface of the sea.

here is a very small selection of his images, these are ones i personal love and inspire me. all taken in the seas around gozo/ malta

 so after seeing all these amazing images, i deiced to make some fishy inspired mosaics, and here they are

why?????

 i was asked recently why i used so much religious imagery in my work, and why i liked it so much..... and the thing is i do use alot of icon's and religious related items in my work, and i always have.
so my answer to her was... i don't know, i love the look of them, and enjoy using them.

well ever since she asked me i have been really thinking about this answer, as i wasn't happy, and i have never really expoled in my own mind, why i am drawn to these types of items.

i love the colours of niches, and i like cheap tacky looking religious ornament's, i love rosary's so much, Mary statues and Jesus figures and interesting to me, baby Jesus plaster moulds are cute, crosses are so iconic, flowers bring a soft touch and are all full of meaning.

so i have been exploring in my mind the answer, and since moving to gozo 7 years ago, the religious influence has sightly gone over the top (but i love it) , being surrounded by catholic rich and sumptuous churches, and having so many religious items on hand, it was like a dream come true. as in England i never had so many gaudy over the top items, the Christan faith presents saints, Jesus and Mary in a very different way.

so here is a collection o f my work that is religious based

st claire

merciful Mary

worship

flutter

mary in her night garden

7.35 pm

number 13

golden rose

my bed side cabinet, found in a skip, then mosaiced

another cabinet, from a house clearance, then a bit of magic added

homage

luminous

santa rita

got to say a bit shocked how many works of mine have a religious theme, and that's not all of them too!!!!

but to get to the point, i now have the answer, as to why  like to use these types of imagery. i love the feelings they evoke, and that even if they are cheap and tacky looking, badly painted, people still look up to these objects, and worship them. i like to create feelings with in my work and  using collections of objects with such deep meaningful connections really intrigues me,  i find them inspiring, and i like to make small niches full of intrigue.

so all the while there are car boot sales full of cheap religious tut, i will be still making my small ode to religion.

what to do with a gold kangaroo

The other week i went to a friends new house, and she had a huge pile of "crap" as she called it, bit and bobs left over from the previous owner. i said "HOLD YOUR FIRE" there is probably amazing treasure in there, and kindly she let me rummage to my hearts content.

oh how many lovely treasures there where, old frames, china, plates cups,, and yes oh yes a golden kangaroo!!!!

• sorry this is not the real kangaroo, silly me i didn't take a photo of it before the creating happened.

this is item number 1 i made!!!!, well after a long think i decided i hated the golden kangaroo in its normal hideous ornament form, so i deiced to smash it up!!!, and with all the small body parts i used it to decorate this lovely baby Jesus. got to say i love it, and if you look closely you can see golden fur, and a golden foot!!!

but when smashing the golden kangaroo, the head came off in one complete piece, so i decided to use it as i couldn't bare smashing dear little face in, I'm not that mean.

then this is what i made from the head and an old Christmas decoration!!!! i love the pink against the gold, super funky.

so i was very happy with the two out comes, both very different, both with the gold element, so that's what you can make from a golden kangaroo.

life is beautiful

As i was walking to the shops today ( on the way back from dropping the kids at dance class) as we really needed many bottle's of juice, due to the hot weather and the need of drinking constantly all day long has our home, big time.
i bumped in to two lovely ladies i know, quick chat and laugh about general things, weather, heat, and people watching etc... when she turned around to me and said "life is beautiful"...... so so true, i thought.
not every day is easy, or floating around on a fluffy cloud all calm and serene.... but there is beauty all around us, what you or what i deem as beauty can range greatly, but does it matter, if it pleases your eye, makes you stop or turn around and take another look, if it makes you take a photo of it, if you remember it all day, then you have seen beauty.

so as i walked the rest of my journey home, i took a few photos of things i love, that i see every day and love, enjoy looking at them.

I see beauty in so many things, maybe not to everyone Else's taste, but i have learnt, its ok if you like it, because it inspires you, and we are all different.