November 2008

Jorn Utzon dies

30 November 2008 - 10:19am — creativevoyage

Architect of the fabulous and very controversial Sydney Opera House.   Today I did an architectural walking tour of Surry Hills area of Sydney - I'm knackered as a result. We saw some fabulous but many neglected buildings - one from 1830 and others art deco. The Readers Digest building was the most amazingly detailed modernist building I've seen.The photo here does not do it justice.

what I love...

29 November 2008 - 2:59am — creativevoyage

In haste as about to catch ferry

Starry Starry Night's new calendar

Black poodles sitting on the wall at the ocean front with their owners ( I hope the photo comes out)

Smelling eucalyptus when on the ferry from the city wafting over from the shores.

The ferry - I love being on water.

Sunshine so strong that it makes proper mottled shaddows through tree leaves.

Blogging for perfectionists

28 November 2008 - 3:03am — creativevoyage

I've been spending time at the Fluent Blog by Havi Brooks. I'm really enjoying her take on things such as fear, change, marketing and putting yourself out there. I've got a few friends who have issues with blogging - so I'm directing you to her series on blogging. This one on  blogging time is great but check out the rest.

Letters to a young artist

28 November 2008 - 2:26am — creativevoyage

"If there is one essential survival skill that you must learn, it is how to sustain yourself and your work over the years. There is really only one way to do this, and that is by loving what you do, being fascinated by your work, and by being obsessed by making art. You will get in trouble if you need the approval of others to keep your work moving forward. After all these years, the one essential element in my practive, the one thing I am sure of is that I need to be interested in and happy about what I am doing in the studio.

conversation

27 November 2008 - 11:22am — creativevoyage

I went to the Sydney Museum yesterday and absorbed some history of the white colonizers and the Aborigine people who lived in the area. I didn't know that Captain Bligh was one of the Governor Generals !

drawings

26 November 2008 - 11:07pm — creativevoyage

whiteley birds

desk at whiteley studio

For Michael Nobbs who asked on Facebook to see the drawings. Sorry don't know how to rotate them ! a bit of head movement required to view...

terrified

25 November 2008 - 11:46pm — creativevoyage

On an creativity email list I'm on one of the members has to write a book proposal before Christmas. She has just had this great opportunity land in her lap. Now she's a translator, cellist, composer, actress, and shamen. And has been multi creative for probably about 30 years. But she reports being terrified at the prospect of having to produce this new thing. Immediately the group shot back suggestions the best one being to of course allow herself to produce the worst book proposal ever !

Quantum of Pleasure

25 November 2008 - 11:13am — creativevoyage

After writing a storm this morning I went to the post office. Where when I asked about the special film stamps to send to film-maker friends the lady went and checked all over the office to see if they had any.

Then I went and swam in a baby shark free pool. Cold cold water. Then I went and saw Quantum of Solace which I really enjoyed.

Ode to a cafe

25 November 2008 - 4:51am — creativevoyage

Candy's cafe Manly

Image from here

I found Candy's cafe on a back street of Manly last week. Inside its cool and dark. It has shelves of books to read and magazines to browse. Organic food no more expensive than other cafes and a nice leave alone policy. I sat and wrote for two hours today.

4 hour work week

23 November 2008 - 10:51pm — creativevoyage

I'd read about Tim Ferriss on the internets and picked up his book yesterday. I've read about 1/3 of it and actually its pretty good. The stuff about outsourcing your life is probably not for me at the moment but the core truths that we make give ourselves 'busywork' and that there are much more efficient ways to work is right. I'm checking into the internet mostly once a day instead of being on the internet for hours and hours and really my life is better.