Spring certainly is in the air…and it’s all about flourishing. I have three exhibitions coming up over September and October.

Surfacing 27 September – 21 October 2018 Opening “Afternoon With The Artist”: 29 September 10-4 Sydney Road Gallery, Seaforth, Sydney
Catriona Pollard’s solo exhibition ‘Surfacing’ offers stunning works of sculptural basketry and assemblage works that explore the concept of layers of self and oneness by applying material and techniques to different surfaces. Catriona uses natural surroundings to inspire her and find that through the observation and interaction with nature she has developed works that allow colour, texture and organic form to surface. More information below.

Artisans In The Gardens  12 – 21 October 2018 Lions Gate Lodge Royal Botanical Gardens, Sydney
A celebration of the natural world, Artisans in the Gardens, now in its 18th year, brings together an extraordinary range of artwork. The exhibition showcases some of Australia’s best established and emerging artists and craftspeople with over 2,000 artworks including sculpture, ceramics, hand blown glass, jewellery, textiles, plus so much more. More information here.

Exhalation of the Trees  22 September – 2 December 2018 Mosman Gallery – InProfile Solo
As trees exhale, we inhale. Through the ethereal beauty and harmonised rawness of ‘Exhalation of the Trees’ I am asking the viewer to see; to notice. Transforming found organic material into sculptures creates moments for people to view the natural world around them in a different way.

Surfacing exhibition

Celebrated Sydney fibre artist Catriona Pollard’s fourth solo exhibition ‘surfacing’ offers stunning works of sculptural basketry and assemblage works that explore the concept of layers of self and oneness by applying material and techniques to organic surfaces.

Running from 27 September to 21 October 2018 at Sydney Road Gallery, the sculptures are made from foraged plant material, and through the observation and interaction with nature Ms Pollard has developed works for this exhibition that allow colour, texture and organic form to surface.

Ms Pollard uses the process of exploring nature to inspire her, and the work offers glimpses of shapeshifting natural forms, from unnoticed branches, leaves and seedpods into shapes that celebrate the abundance of nature.

“By placing ourselves in nature, removed from the constant interruptions of the digital life we now live, it allows an expansion of our creative expression and an uncovering of deeper layers of self. Through these sculptures, I’m giving the viewer an opportunity to experience this idea of oneness with nature,” said Ms Pollard.

“Highlighting a deep connection with the natural world, the sculptures offer up the idea that we should see nature as part of us rather than simply an object that has no meaning or spirit. And to see ourselves in harmony with the natural world around us.”

“My work transforms the inherent beauty of nature into moments that encourage reflection and connection. Nature plays an important part of helping us become fully aware of who we are. It inspires us to expand, but also forces us to confront whatever stands in way of that expansion; to see the layers of self,” said Ms Pollard.

Ms Pollard has exhibited extensively in selected and group exhibitions and has been shortlisted in many art awards and was recently finalist in the Northern Beaches Art Prize. She is currently Artist InProfile at the Mosman Art Gallery.

Her work highlights the link between raw foraged organic materials, like vines and seed pods, with earthy materials like base metals including copper, and natural elements like charcoal, clay and silk.

Exhibition details:

When: 27 September – 21 October 2018

Meet The Artist: Saturday 29 September 1 – 4pm

Times: Thursday – Saturday 10:00am – 4:00pm and Sunday 9:00am – 12:00pm

Location: Sydney Road Gallery, 563 Sydney Road Seaforth NSW 2092

 

A few weeks ago it was my 17 year business anniversary. (Yep, I’m a stayer). When I started CP Communications my sister gave me a card that had a quote from Anais Nin on it. It’s framed in my study and I notice it most mornings when I’m getting ready for my day.

She gave it to me as she knew that for me stepping out from a safe established career to start a business was what I desperately needed to do at the time, and at that moment the risk to remain a tight bud was more painful than the unknown of starting a business.

I think we have all experienced moments in our lives where the pain of remaining closed becomes too much.

Whether it’s finding our voice and stepping on stage, leaving that job that no longer serves you, picking up the phone to call a long lost friend, creating an online dating profile, starting the online business you’ve been dreaming of…

Whatever it is, as each petal loosens its grip on the bud, and you give the petals permission to open one by one, it releases new inspiration, insight and beauty.

The release of blossoming also leads to significant growth.

Do you need to allow the bud of potential to open – to bloom? Is it time to share your beauty with the world?

While it’s often fear that holds us back. Sometimes it’s complacency. Sometimes it’s simply exhaustion.
Staying as a bud we think we are protecting ourselves. Tightly wrapped, cocooned from the unknown.

But staying safe is an illusion. It’s like saying chaos doesn’t exist. It’s everywhere. Staying safe is what hurts the most.

So opening to your potential is about moving from unknown to expert, it’s about letting the world know you have something to say. If you don’t bloom you miss out on sharing your beauty with the world. You miss your purpose.

So today is your day to unfold. Release the bud of hope and desire and make your dreams come true. And remember, you are truly beautiful.

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Tweetable: It’s time to bloom and let the world know you have something to say @catrionapollard http://bit.ly/2tiZtzu

 

I caught up with Angharad Rixon from TextileStories and had a wonderful chat about how starting basketry had helped me find my hidden passion and creativity.

I spoke about how I use materials to tell my stories, how I find the material and then deciding what to make and bring my vision to life!

I share how organic sculptures offer an opportunity to reflect on our own interconnectedness with each other and the world which surrounds us, inviting us to see the beauty in ordinary objects and slow the pace of our daily lives.

My exhibition ‘I am of you’ at Sturt Gallery was inspired by how everyone is so interconnected but also so disconnected from the world around us, this concept is inspired by the belief that we are inextricably linked with everything around us, the trees, the soil, the water, and all living things.

I talk about how I teach the exploration of basketry and creativity, not just process, but how even while I may have a plan for my art, it can change at any moment, and I may not even realise that the piece is actually completed at all!

I spoke of my struggle with confidence before teaching my first basket weaving class, and how I had thought that because my pieces weren’t very traditional, I didn’t have enough traditional knowledge to teach. But little did I know, it’s not about the structure it’s about your creativity and finding your own way, and using the skills you may not even know you have to make amazing pieces of art.

To read more about my art please go to theartofweaving.com.au

Listen to it on iTunes or here:

https://soundcloud.com/user-911455131-629910622/an-interview-with-catriona-pollard

Watch it on YouTube while you listen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ODPuTBBZHQ

New exhibition ‘I am of You’ challenges viewers to see and appreciate nature in a different light. 

‘I am of You’ offers glimpses of shapeshifting natural forms, from unnoticed branches, leaves and seedpods into shapes that move you; that celebrate the abundance of nature and our place in this universe.

We are all interconnected – plants, air, people and animals. From the earth beneath our feet, through to the air above us and everything in between. This body of work explores that connection to all living things and the fluidity of energy between everything. It transforms the inherent beauty of nature into moments that encourage reflection and connection.

This body of work asks you to lift your gaze and see the earth. To recognise that we are not that much different, you and I. Our ancestry is so closely connected to the earth and the vines, leaves and plants that grow from it.

‘I am of You’ is a call for us to fall in love again with the natural world around us and see that we are bound by nature to claim its place in our heart.

For more information go to my art website: TheArtOfWeaving.com.au

 

Exhibition details:

When: 15 April – 3 June 2018
Where: Sturt Gallery, Cnr Range Road and Waverly Parade, Mittagong NSW 2575
Opening: 15 April, 11am
Gallery hours: Open 7 days, 10am – 5pm

ABOUT CATRIONA POLLARD

Catriona Pollard Speaker and Trainer in Social Media