Wednesday 15 December 2010

Celebrating our tree change with Mirka

Front cover of Mirka Mora Exhibition Catalogue
Yesterday - when I was supposed to be attending to the fifty million things I have on my 'to do' list - I took myself off to Heide Museum of Modern Art to spend the afternoon with my husband and NO children!

               The reason was twofold - one was to visit the Mirka Mora exhibition that is currently on there and two was to celebrate our impending tree change!
Untitled (Big Bad Wolf) c.1975 mixed media 46cm x 80cm
Mirka in her studio with soft toys - photographer Rennie Ellis






















You see - the next chapter of my creative life is about to begin in the rather large and charming regional city of Ballarat. My husband Sam and I have bought a lovely old Victorian house (built 1885) and shop where I will have my working studio and eventually a sweet little shop where I can sell my work and the work from others that I love and also a vintage haberdashery of sorts with lots of gorgeous vintage fabrics, buttons and trims and more modern things like craft kits and wool felt supplies.

We arrived at Heide at 2pm - just in time for a wonderful guided tour of the exhibition which brings together a selection of paintings, works on paper and soft sculptures (these were without a doubt my favourite part) that covers a thirty year friendship Mirka shared with John and Sunday Reed (the founders of Heide).

I have blogged before about Mirka Mora and my LOVE of her whimsical colourful style of work - what I hadn't ever fully appreciated or in fact seen up close were her soft toys. Mirka hand paints her design for each unique and individual toy on to canvas and then she cuts them out, sews them up and stuffs them. They are the most wonderfully magical creations – really really special and it seems that she has been creating them for at least 40 years – so there must be an amazing array of them that have found their way into the homes of Mirka fans and I would imagine many that have stayed close to Mirka in her studio.

All inspired – I am gearing up now to pack up my collections and to make that long awaited tree change. Nervous, excited and slightly overwhelmed I am looking forward to the day when I can finally say – the shop is open – come and play!
The window Mirka painted at her exhibition at Heide Museum of Modern Art

Mirka now with some of her amazing creations

6 comments:

Amelia Jane Again said...

Good luck with the move! Of course your shop will be lovely.. might see you in a couple of years when we make our tree change : )

Morgan Wills said...

Thanks Amelia! Would LOVE for you to join us x

Kate said...

What a wonderful dream and how exciting that it is about to come true. A while back my dream was to meet Mirka and for her to open our uni graduate exhibition, so I called her up. She told me I had to court her for a while until she made her mind up. We spent days together shopping, doing chores and chatting. She is as wonderful as you'd imagine. She did open our exhibition in the end. And she poured champagne into a fabric glass that I'd made and drank it. She is pretty wild.

Lark said...

Hee hee, I'm glad the news is out now about your move, we can't wait to hang out at your lovely place, and I'll see you on the school run! We went over today and it was lovely, I'll tell you more in email.

Did K drop off your parcel yet?

Allison xx

Crayon Chick said...

Reading this post makes MY heart sing! Mirka! Heide! Tree change!!! Oh Morgan, best wishes for this next chapter, I can't wait to see what you create. What a wonderful time to be on the cusp of something new. x

Morgan Wills said...

Kate - I too have met Mirka - she is a wonderful woman who lives life in her own unique way! What a fantastic experience you had with her!

Allison - Yay! Me too! Can't wait now until the move is all over and done with - my head is spinning with the thought of getting all of my belongings packed and moved there - but I know it will all be worth it in the end!

Michelle - Thanks lovie for your well wishes - you will definitely have to come up for a visit and perhaps a market or two in the new year! x