New Gelatine Prints.

 With the temperature in the high 30°C today, it was a good time to be inside out of the heat. The house is what is called 'double brick,' that is with walls outside of brick and also the inside walls are brick, with a cavity in between. This means that the house does not heat up quickly when it is hot outside, but equally it takes a few days to cool down after it does heat up. So with tomorrow predicted to be over 40°C, today was a day to print while the acrylic paint stays wet!

I'm happy with the colours of this one, but it seems a bit too symmetrical to me. Perhaps with the      addition of some hand carved stamps it will appear less so.

            I like this bright yellow background, and the additional grass prints are a bit less symmetrical

                   This is a very busy background, but with the stark leaf prints it works I think.

Green!

 A walk around the Botanic Gardens yesterday morning produced some lovely focal points featuring the colour green (of course) and some fascinating leaf shapes and textures.

                    I also came across one obliging Moorhen dozing in the sun on a garden bed.

Lesser Long Eared Bat.

With a recent bout of cool weather, (in the middle of Summer), we drove the 2 hours+ to the little bush house to see how it was all going. Surprisingly well actually, given the season.While out walking on the track I spotted something black and bent down to check it out. Suddenly it moved just a tiny bit and I

could see that it was a little bat. I picked up a stick to coax it off the road, not wanting to frighten it and get bitten. It clung onto the stick, but just as I lowered to the grass it took off and flew just a little way. At that point I grabbed my camera and took a few photos for identification purposes. It turned out to be a Lesser Long Eared bat, with its ears folded down. I do hope that it flew away safely!

Hot off the Gelli Plate.

 I'm continuing my exploration of the ability of the gelatine plate to produce interesting prints, and every time that I make a few prints, I find that I'm discovering a new way of producing an image. Even if I can't call the result a success most of the time, I'm learning something new or even just a new combination of colours every time. The print below has many layers of gear images as well as a few key shapes on the left side. I'm not sure if this is the final version, I suspect not!

The background in the print above has so many layers that I've forgotten exactly what I used to make it, but from a print that was destined for the rubbish bin, it now has possibilities.

I love collecting and using insect damaged leaves in prints, as in the one above. The chewed holes make the leaves so much more interesting than completely pristine ones I think.

Botanic Gardens Expedition.

 Having been in lockdown for most of 2020, it felt somewhat surreal to be driving on the freeway to the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne this morning. The gardens too were locked up during the worst of the pandemic, so people are now doubly appreciative of the wonderful asset that the gardens are to the city. I was delighted by the display of Lotus plants in flower, and enjoyed exploring the new Arid Garden area with its abundance of weird and wonderful cacti and succulents. Whilst we couldn't sit on the terrace to enjoy a cup of coffee as we would have done this time last year, we thoroughly enjoyed just wandering where we felt like going, and the dog seemingly enjoyed her time there too.

A Good Crop for the New Year!

 At last I have worked out a way to add text to accompany my photos in Blogger. It isn't nearly as simple as it used to be, but at least I can now do it!!

What a year 2020 was, but unfortunately I can see signs that 2021 will be very trying too, at least until there are vaccinations available, and that will certainly take some months to happen here in Australia. On the plus side however, we here have been very lucky with out island status and our strong state leaders.

The weather too has been kind so far this summer, especially compared to last year's  devastating heat and bush fires. We've had some rain too, which is a bonus at this time of the year, and as a result our vegetable garden is doing very well. I don't think that I have ever had so many tomatoes, however what with the nibbling of the rats and lack of ripening heat, I can't count my tomatoes until they have have actually ripened!

Happy 2021 to All.

                         This strange creature on the lid of our compost bin is a web casting spider.