friday saw la donna and yootha essaying their latest (meticulously) thrown-together looks at an opening at 4a followed by a quick fuel up at Bettys Soup Kitchen ("not that kind of restaurant") and on to the Stonewall (a quick turn of the stage with friday nite junior bride crowd)to warm up for Kooky. Such eminent luminaries as John Tonkin graced the dancefloor at Kooky as did an alluring assortment of tutu wearing riotgrrls, drinkbegging jailbait and the drainpipe legged cognoscenti. And those skinny boys in glo-inthedark mudpaint and teazedup wigs....made me reflect on our achievements so far and even tho one said "love your look...I would SO wear that" (THAT being tiger print jumpsuit - very ex-wife of rod stewart) ...............................................................

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lachlan did some exquisite darrell lea foil work on the Nettis bust yesterday on a grey blustery afternoon. The Wild Boys' component of the New Day show could well become a warnerised foilised pleasure dome grotto extravaganza. I was drawing itty bitty 'irregular geodesic' triangles trying to imagine how the cave would look, then saw tim's drawing which had bigger starker triangles. will it become ceremonial, sleazy, cramped and mystifying, a home away from home, a place to dump the kids / empties,

Cave idea – corrugated cardboard - irregular geodesic dome
Cave to fit two or three crouching nomads
Fur floor (fake? Real?)
DIRT!!!
Build cave in chunks in studio (cardboard from “Good Guys” – Richard to organise van)
8 hrs of unedited raw footage playing inside cave? (TV screens)
Edited video projected outside
Interior of cave lined with Lachlan’s red foil
Cave as clubhouse, womb, interior space, shelter, sacred space



check this - http://www.islandnet.com/~yesmag/projects/geodesic.html

What’s our involvement?
Adding fun… colour… fizz?

Minimal mess/focussed mess
Stark… detritus

Cutting holes in walls – and out through window space

“A nightmare of 70s gay kitsch” (Lachlan)
"Tragic disco evening"

Hire red carpet for opening night – red carpet leads to paparazzi wall (through Lachlan’s curtain)

"We're frustrated fascists" - Trevor

Text and images for Sarah Rawlings - publicity in local press (suggest gay press)

Residency is not product-driven - process/community/location/engagement

Bring in stuff for Artspace Resource Room (zines/ephemera etc)

Jo Holder, Catriona Moore and Sally Breen to write catalogue essays

Artist/curator speed-dating - a Saturday evening - Wild Boys to hostess (?) First weekend after opening? - Anne and Josie want a relaxed nightclub/lounge feel - candlelit/intimate/Skanky Jane to DJ
"Playfulness is a whitewash..." Trevor to Anne
"I'd really appreciate it if we could go gently on each other... I think we need to look after each other..." Anne to Trevor
"How's the shopping going?" Josie to curator

Anne's idea for Cake-making workshop (one Sunday during show)

Screening of Richard's Robin hood (21st Oct?)

Anne and Josie making large paper sign with ph no. to hang out window for "Who Needs Artists?"

Thurs evenings - slated as possible IAND meeting times

Fri 3rd Nov - Lisa's Pot-Luck Dinner (7:30) SHOW AND TELL

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walked thru the 'loo this afternoon on way to artspace, hoping that the op shoppe i went to once was still there-and was it ever. got some dresses to cut the armsoff and string stuffed floral blobs made out of apron-good for covering up the odd stain
tim and i checked out the storage area with podiums etc.imagined shirley on podium at opening with two hookah pipe contraptions-one with holiday 20s, one with goon
also hommage to ben spending thenight in the lift going upand down, multi video projection?
listening to michaeljackson's demos-the bare bones of songs he would makewith randy and janet beforehanding over to quincy

Feeling a little more energetic today (esp after that coffee hit). Loma (Trevor's friend) came in last night to talk about her involvement. She bought in some very cool sepia photographs and a very interesting story about a hidden uncle of hers who was institutionalised at a young age in NZ. She has one spooky pic of an unidentified family member who she is sure must be him and which documents the only time she met him - although she doesn't remember this. The pic features herself as a three year old. Her "uncle" is off to the side of the pic wearing all black - his face obscured by a hat. Everybody else is wearing white.

She has also obtained records of his ECT and handwritten letters from him to the director asking to be released. He remained in the institution until he died at 84. Her idea is to somehow embody her lost uncle by dressing up for a silent performance.

It was great to hang out with Loma and talk for a bit. Previously we had only said hello in passing. There's something of the eternal girl in her voice which attracts me.

A bit of interaction last night with Sarah and Lisa. Sally will be in the studios tonight - haven't seen her since dinner at Fatima's. Bunny coming tomorrow. Hope some of the others can join us too.

Richard's new Yootha pshops

Moved another shitload of stuff into the studio last night. Thanks Joan! Spent a while unpacking and organising everything - trying not to sprawl too much. Lugged in my old VHS video camera for some VDO antix. Michael Myers (the photographer) popped by to organise shoot times. Had a little show and tell of the latest pix and ate rice paper rolls fom Trevor, the last of the cake from Anne, soy crisps, apple, crackers, juice and choc macadamia bar. The macadamia bar was particularly fab. Have decided on a day shoot (in the gallery) and a day/night shoot in Wendy Whiteley's Lavvy Bay garden in the next cuppla weeks.

Picked up another 20 knives at lunchtime - luv those knives. They know me in HOT DOLLAR now. richard suggested moving the table away from the wall so I can get the installation really happening. Want to be able to go into the gallery with a clear idea of how I'm going to set this up.

Trevor has been working on some great shots of Yootha - pshopping in new bgrounds and distorting colours/angles.

A bit of interaction last night with Anne and Josie. They were so happy having had not one but TWO calls re: their project. I am relieved at this news. They also had some v interesting news re: films about Woolloomooloo. Can't remember the deets now but I think it had something to do with Jo Holder... our fave Art Maven.

I'm feeling really tired already. Not good. The travel time home is a bit of a killer and I feel like I could be doing more if I didn't have to commute. I want to be as productive as possible, esp. in the next few weeks. Need to find a balance between pushing myself hard and burning myself out.

Loma is coming into the studios this evening - not sure if we are doing pshoot with her tonight or whether she is just coming to discuss the shoot but what the hey! keen to get started on recording the vox for "Magic" this evening. Also want to get more clubs wrapped.

stripping down to naked, building up from there, 'gluing' together a new look out of rudimentary tools- scraps of fabric, generic womens underwear, wigs, accoutrements - belts, toy weapons, etc - initiating a photo shoot by doing the above - walking into the 'set', others grab cameras and start snapping. everyones a photographer, poseur, stylist, wardrobe assistant
posing - beyond vanity/ narcissism, its more about using what youve got, (we're still in the 'what does this look like/what do we look like/ working out what we like' mode)
what do you need to erase your daytoday self to become an approximation of a ?cartoon?maenad?woman?slattern? - all fodder for photoshop tweaking
interests me that the other artists involved in its a new day are women who don't tend to wear makeup - (stunning unadorned sheilas) with a casual attitude towards such things ('fashion' glamour etc)
when we (as la donna trix and yootha) ran into them on the way to ise's party thinking wow, theyre wearing what we usually wear! (jeans check shirt)

Lachlan Warner (dressed in his Dad’s burgundy Rugby blazer 1955) visited the studio last night and bought some very pretty tinsel foil along. He gets his supplies from Darrell Lee. The stuff is just gorgeous! Really... He has it in endless strips (gold/blue/pink/red) and also in long rolls (green). He has a few ideas for how he will use this:
1 Make a series of curtains (different coloured foil strips) that gallery visitors have to walk through to enter space – these will be like stripclub stage/disco dancefloor backdrops – “very seventies” – he will do a trial run upstairs in the studio hallway (Richard’s idea is to have a fashion parade up the hallway with little stools lining the walls)
2. Cover the bust out the front in Warner style foil, including nice big red lips – (my ideas – multiple bust foil pressings, bust with neckerchief like that gayyed up Ricky Martin pic – use of entry space – red carpet? Cover whole entry space in foil? GLITZY!!!!!!!)
3. Foil feature wall – tiled/variety of foil colours as backdrop – podium/stage could go in front.

Feels a bit lonely in the studios at night. Seems the girls are doing the day shift and the boys are doing the night shift - usually we stay till about 11pm. Looking fwd to the weekend when we can all hang out together. Hung out with Sarah last night which was lovely. We listened to a few seven inches. She bought in some classics – Queen, Charlene and her fave “All Men are Liars” (Nick Lowe). Also had a peek at Ritchie’s performance! We ate BBQ king prawns and talked about being accepted for who you are without hiding from others or yourself.

There’s so many interesting relationships between objects in Sarah’s studio – colour combos, links between textures, unidentifiable metal scraps butted up against squishy pink foam. See through blue skeletons. Clear extruded plastic shapes, upside down chocolate box moulds that look like warships. Trevor called it “butch” and compared it to our girly work.

Lisa has suggested pot luck dinner and show and tell nights. Would be great to involve other artists in residency at the mo. She also likes the idea of screening Richard's Robin Hood during the residency (need to get projector). Need to timetable these things. Maybe a Saturday meeting?

Richard has done some fantastic fucked up pshop work which has inspired some new makeup ideas (blood up the arms etc). Need more Showface red glossy paint for that. WANNA GO SHOPPING!

lounging about in the studio darling pre Kooky

GROTTO/CAVE IDEA
Astro turf (even just a corner – cut into organic shape)
Mimic Sherwood Forest from Richard’s Robin Hood – do screen captures of DVD
Cutout wooden trees (painted- extend into the ceiling)
Fake plants
Leaves
Rocks
Vines
Wallpaper with forest scene
Banana/lotus leaves (strewn)
Ground cover
Xmas tree bits
Fake plants better concentrated (too little will look scrappy)

Plaster tree - leaves scattered at base

Redo the greenscreen in the gallery

My stuff>>>
Sponge stacks – stalactites stalagmites
Fake fingernail line up the wall – crack in the wall
Fake eyelashes
Kitty litter shits BIG PILE (always wanted to redo this work DO IT)
More hammers/tools (as many as possible in as many sizes as possible)
INSECTS
BONES (REAL AND FAKE)
FUR for outfits
phallic objects
more wigs
more weapons

Other ideas......
Bed in gallery
spots for photoshoots (hanging shower curtains)
Lachlan’s camp foil walls!!!!! And CURTAINS!!!!!
Disco light
Smoke machine for extra atmosphere – with green spooky lights