Grunt.

Posted: 27 March 2013 | Author: Rona Green | Filed under: Artists, Inspiration | Tags: animals, art, artists, rabbits | 9 Comments

‘Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.’

– John Steinbeck (1902-1968)

Greek Corinthian hare vase

Young Hare by Albrecht Durer

Rabbit by Henri Rousseau

Rabbits by Nishimura

Bugs Bunny created by Tex Avery

Harvey starring James Stewart and directed by Henry Koster

Nijntje (aka Miffy) created by Dick Bruna

Rabbit by Jeff Koons

War by Paula Rego

Rabbit looking into mirror by Shao Fan

Lightning Ridge by Adam Cullen

Discotheque Nasties by Rona Green

Woof!

Posted: 23 December 2012 | Author: Rona Green | Filed under: Artists, Inspiration | Tags: animals, art, artists, dogs | 2 Comments

‘In times of joy, all of us wished we possessed a tail we could wag.’

– W. H. Auden (1907-1973)

Roman sculpture of a pair of dogs circa 2nd century AD

A Foxhound by George Stubbs

Self-portrait with Black dog by Gustave Courbet

Requiescat by Briton Rivière

Dog Lying in the Snow by Franz Marc

Man with dog by Francis Bacon

Muffin by Robert Mapplethorpe

Feral Dog by Dean Bowen

Eli by Lucian Freud

A Dog’s Treasure by John Ryrie

Dog and Skull by Leon Golub

Projection by Deborah Williams

Archie by Rona Green

Meow…

Posted: 18 September 2012 | Author: Rona Green | Filed under: Artists | Tags: animals, art, artists, cats | 3 Comments

‘Time spent with cats is never wasted.’

– Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

Bast the feline goddess of ancient Egypt

Four cats in different poses by Kuniyoshi Utagawa

Mademoiselle Julie Manet with cat by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Girl with a Kitten by Lucian Freud

The Cat by Alberto Giacometti

Black Cat Leaping by David Hockney

Reflection by John Ryrie

Cat by Kiki Smith

Falling Cat by Noel McKenna

Sergey by Rona Green

Behind closed doors

Posted: 18 April 2012 | Author: Rona Green | Filed under: Artists | Tags: Abbotsford Convent, artists, Mercator, Phoebe Porter, Pip Davey, Rona Green | 4 Comments

‘The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without the work.’

– Émile Zola (1840-1902)

Portrait of Émile Zola by Edouard Manet

Previously I have posted about my studio in the Mercator Building at the Abbotsford Convent.

In this post I thought I would give you a glimpse inside the studios of my talented and industrious neighbours.

Studio MG1 is the workshop of Phoebe Porter, a creator of stylish contemporary jewellery.

Phoebe Porter in her studio

When I dropped in to see Phoebe she was completing work on a pair of commissioned wedding rings.

You can see the finished result on Phoebe’s facebook page.

Phoebe Porter at work

Studio MG5a is the workspace of Pip Davey, who creates evocative pictures in oil paint and encaustic.

Pip Davey in her studio

When I visited Pip she was working on a series of encaustic paintings inspired by recent travels.

Pip is also organising a group exhibition that will take place during August and September 2012 at the Abbotsford Convent. The show will include paintings by Pip, jewellery by Phoebe and prints by myself, as well as work by other artists from the Mercator Studios. I will let you know more about the event in future.

Pip Davey at work

To finish here is what was happening in my studio on this day.

Rona Green's studio 17/04/2012

I spent the day hand colouring a linocut edition for an Australian + USA print exchange folio and exhibition project organised by artists and lecturers, Melanie Yazzie (University of Colorado, USA) and Rodney Forbes (Monash University, AUS).

Rona Green works in progress 17/04/2012

If you have a particular interest in artists studios and listening to artists talk about their work I highly recommend the PBS documentary series Art21.

Strange soirées

Posted: 18 March 2012 | Author: Rona Green | Filed under: Artists, Inspiration, Rona | Tags: art, artists, Bela Lugosi, Diane Arbus, Dutch Golden Age, Frans Hals, inspiration, Jean Dubuffet, Jim Henson, Muppets, poppets, prints, Rembrandt, Rona Green, Thomas de Keyser, Vincent Price | 5 Comments

Diane Arbus, Transvestite at her Birthday Party, N.Y.C., 1969

‘For me the subject of a picture is always more important than the picture. And more complicated.’

– Diane Arbus (1923-1971)

Boogie's 6th birthday party, 1978

All kinds of images fire up my imagination.

One photo in particular has intrigued me so much that I have created three different interpretations – it is a snapshot of my guy’s birthday party, illustrated above.

The first incarnation, party, was highly influenced by my love of Jean Dubuffet’s art.

Rona Green, party, 1995, lithograph, 17 x 30 cm, edition 4

Then there was Birthday Boogies, a mixed media piece including soft sculptural objects that I call poppets.

Rona Green, Birthday Boogies, 2002, mixed media, 27 x 35 x 3 cm

The poppets were born from a fondness for dolls, puppets and masks. As a kid I adored The Muppet Show produced by Jim Henson, and the colourful characters of Warner Brothers and Hanna Barbera cartoons.

Jim Henson and Muppets

After Birthday Boogies came Secret Robot Society, which incorporated my fancy of the Dutch Golden Age of painting.

Rona Green, Secret Robot Society, 2002, linocut and watercolour, 49 x 70 cm, edition 13

Favourite artists from this period in art include Rembrandt, Frans Hals and Thomas de Keyser.

Rembrandt, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, 1632

Frans Hals, Regents of the Old Men's Almshouse, 1664

Thomas de Keyser, The Syndics of the Amsterdam Goldsmiths Guild, 1627

After making Secret Robot Society I produced two more prints – Treacherous Boys With Charisma and The Ventriloquist – to form a trio of group portraits.

Rona Green, Treacherous Boys With Charisma, 2003, linocut and watercolour, 49 x 70 cm, edition 13

My creative process is very much about collaging together an eclectic range of source material to invent something otherworldly and somewhat absurd.

The dashing Bela Lugosi

The debonair Vincent Price

In the case of these prints I have referenced the Dutch painters along with TV shows, horror movie stars, dolls and puppets, as well as ideas about social hierarchy and esotericism.