Tackling climate change

NSW had elections last weekend. The vote has not been completely finalised but there has been a change of government. Labor has the most seats,  replacing the Liberal/National coalition. However Labor does not have enough seats to form majority government, most likely falling one or two seats short. 

They will be relying on the Greens (3) and Independents (7) to get their legislation passed, a result that will please everyone concerned with climate change as Labor has difficulty divorcing itself from its fossil fuel friends. 

Above: Go the Greens! Acrylic on Canvas. 

Changing colours

Roses don't last long in Sydney's hot humid  weather so I've been picking them when they flower and  painting small canvases of roses in vases. I've discovered that some varieties that are lovely in the garden or a vase don't look so good in a painting. 

One of my roses is called Afrikaans (above). It is hot orange and lights up the garden when it is in flower. A few weeks ago I put Afrikaans in a vase with a lemony rose called Sunny Skies and painted the pair. I found the resulting painting somewhat garish and last night when I was heading off to sleep my irritation with the painting got the better of me. I took it off the wall, picked up tubes of Yellow Ochre and Burnt Sienna and painted out the orange. Then I added ochre to the lemony Sunny Skies as well. I put it aside to dry and went to bed. 

I've just retrieved the painting and I like the result. If I'm going to paint Akrikaans in future I will have to choose its surrounds more carefully. 

Window sills of memories

Bathroom shelves are often a place where we keep collected memories. A friend just posted a picture of her bathroom window sill with collection of shells, stones with markings, dried flowers and a painting. 

In response I've just take a photos of my bathroom shelf. It is up high and has a collection of glass objects collected over the years that look best with light behind them. Each reminds me of a person or place, all except the first item on the left which is a small dark blue glass bottle that I find hard to throw away because it is so pretty. 

These glass bottles are still sold by the German organic cosmetics company Weleda filled with various lotions and potions. Next to it is a silver and green koru stuck in a piece of pumice made by friend and artist Jo who lives in Dunedin; a coloured glass bottle with stopper bought in Hamburg; a glass squirrel with nut that I bought my mother from a glassworks in Belgium when I lived there 50 (!) years ago; a little bottle of shells that actually belongs to my youngest grandchild; a glass stand with lighthouse which used to be part of a candle holder bought in Hamburg-Rissen, home of the Rissen lighthouse on the River Elbe. 

Then there is a little green scent bottle with old paper lable and firmly-stuck stopper. It belonged to my mother. Next is a ceramic bird-whistle bought from a craftsman in Maribor, Slovenia. You fill it with water, blow in it and suddenly the air is full of bird chirping. Then there is a piece of glass from a Napier NZ artist given me by my elder sister and a little bottle found on the beach in Umina by my son's ex-girlfriend which is propping up a colourful kimono bookmark given me by my younger sister. 

I'm sure my friend and I are among many people with bathroom window sills full of memories. I love mine.