So here I sit in my studio painting an artwork for a upcoming overseas art exhibition, the theme of this one is Sydney and it’s skyline which of course makes me think of this painting below that I painted many years ago after we had been to Sydney for a holiday.  If you look closely you will find hubby and I with the kids behind the Monorail driver.  This painting sold in Japan and that is rather fitting as it was in Tokyo during my modelling days that I first became fascinated with Monorails, so it goes without saying, wherever I come across one I want to have a ride.  I have always loved train travel and this love is just an extension of that I think.  Although not all train stories are good, lol here is a link to see what I mean; 179 ART AND CHAINED TO THE RAIL WAY TRACK

Sadly the Sydney Monorail is no longer in operation as it closed this year and apparently 2 of the carriages will be used by Google in Sydney as their meeting rooms.

SIGHTSEEING AND ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

However it was a great way to see Sydney and we did many a loop around just as sightseeing trips before getting off and exploring by foot.  Last week’s blog 202 ART, Phuket and Tripadvisor features a painting from the Chinese Garden which you can find in Darling Harbor which was one of the stops on the way.  If you go to the Chinese Gardens do make sure you enjoy a traditional tea in the Teahouse – we sat on the balcony and were joined by little cute birds, a real oasis in a big city.

THE ART OF THE REVOLVING RESTAURANT

Another thing we enjoyed in Sydney was the Centrepoint tower and I have lost count of the number of times we have been there, both as a family and alone.  It has a great revolving restaurant, another thing I love and try to do in all the cities that have them on my travels.   The trick is to go for an early dinner so you can see the city skylines in daylight and then as the sun comes down enjoy all the lights flickering on for a night time experience.

Sydney Tower (Centrepoint) is the tallest freestanding structure in Sydney and used to be the tallest in Australia until Q1 (meaning Queensland Number One) was built on the Gold Coast.  The Q1 used to be the tallest residential building in the world until it lost its title to Dubai and its Marina Torch.  Your mind boggles really to think of what the future will bring with each city wanting to have the tallest building, in the end it will all end in tears I suspect.

THE ART OF THE BUCKET LIST

Sydney Centrepoint is 309 meters tall and sits in between Pitt and Castlereagh Street on Market Street on top of Westfield Sydney.  It comprises of three sections; Sydney Tower Dining, Bar and Dining and Sydney Tower Buffett which includes fine dining, buffet and a function area.  The forth section is the observation deck called Sydney Tower Eye which has a fully enclosed platform with 360-degree of the city as well as a 4D cinema with effects of wind, fire and bubbles.  Love that lol, I am just a big kid at heart!  Then there is the Skywalk; an open air platform high above at a height of 268 meters with glass flooring encircling the tower, this is something I haven’t had a chance to try yet but is on the Bucket list to do when next I go to Sydney.

The Sydney Tower has also been featured in several movies such as Supernova, Godzilla: Final Wars, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie and perhaps the most famous one starring Tom Cruise was Mission Impossible 2.

So keeping the Bucket list in mind, here is quote I like by Nicolas de Chamfort;

“Contemplation often makes life miserable.  We should act more, think less and stop watching ourselves live.”

Till next time happy painting, sculpting and living!

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This travel and artblog is the continuation of my daughters and my Queensland trip and if you want to re cap here is the start; 197 THE ART OF BIG BROTHER & MOVIE WORLD

We got up early again the next day, beachwalked (got to do the exercise bit) and then we were on to SeaWorld.  I must say SeaWorld was amazing, so big and with so many great shows and animal displays and lots of great rides as well.

SEAWORLDS ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

We started off with the show in Dolphin Cove followed by the Jet Stunt Extreme and Seal Harbour for the Fish Detective, three excellent shows.  Saw the Penguins and Polar Bears and then to the Shark Bay where we explored life beneath the ocean’s surface in the world’s largest man-made lagoon system for sharks.  We were amazed by the magical display of tropical fish, sting rays and other bottom dwellers.  You come face to face with the sharks that glide past the huge glass windows.  The two-level exhibit offers viewing both topside and underwater as well as an interactive touch pool and a snorkel and dive lagoon pool.  Next time we come we’re going to go snorkeling as that looked absolutely amazing.  Painting underwater scenes is something that I never tire of doing.

THE ART OF SCREAMING

Then it was time for us to hit the Thrill rides at SeaWorld and our favorites were the Sea Viper and Jet Rescue, both had us screaming at the top of our lungs, we often sat in the front row seats and alternated that with the very back for a different experience.  My husband has said for quite a few years now that it is unbecoming for a woman over 40 to skip in public but lol I don’t give a toss!  He would have been horrified to see my daughter and I run and almost bowl over old men, pregnant ladies and children to get to the front of the queue for another turn on the rides.  Well almost anyway, we had so much fun and laughed the whole day through and lost count of how many rides we had.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and after being the very last passengers to leave on the Sky High Skyway we made our way to the hire car in the car park.  Mmmm maybe not so much fun now that we discovered that the car had been hit by some not so kind person.  That certainly put a dampener on our spirits, luckily in hindsight we had taken out the annoying extra insurance (or the hire car company would have kept $3000 dollars until the repairs got sorted out.)  I was very thankful to have babygirl hit the phones and sort out the car situation while I drove us back.  But as these things go when you hit a snag there are usually a few to follow and so it was when the key magnet for the car park and the door at the hotel was not working.

THE ART OF COOLING DOWN

We decided the only thing to do was to head to the pool area and have a spa with a refreshing champagne to brighten our moods, lol but here again the now newly gained key magnet would not work so “moi” had to make her way through the front door to the bar in a bikini and a sarong – to get our refreshments.  By this stage the champagne was absolutely necessary and more like a medicine to cure the steam that was coming out of my ears, lol!  Thankfully the spa and Champagne did the trick and afterwards we had a very lovely dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.

THE ART OF GETTING FREAKED OUT

We even fitted in a little bit of shopping and a trip to Infinity which was an amazing special effects place and scared the living crap out of me – cost us 25 bucks each and I held my daughters hand so tightly we both got cramp.  Hillivi had been before with her boyfriend and cousin Tamon and I think perhaps that is what we lacked some male company as it was really creepy and claustrophobic.  The advertising said explore your way through a maze of mind blowing futuristic worlds of wonder – an extraordinary series of around 20 multi sensual environments. Every world is a whole new exciting experience.  Come through the Time Tunnel portal and be immersed into the coolest place you have ever seen.   Take the trip!

And yes we did Take the Trip and really it was like you had taken drugs but not in a mellow nice way for me anyway I got totally paranoid and it wasn’t helped either by a Japanese contingent who had gotten themselves lost in the darkness and were now heading back to the start.  So what we encountered in the dark was a busload of Japanese people unable to speak English and all jam-packed into a 1 meter square room with what seemed to be no exit or entry door for escape.  This nearly did my head in until I figured out that with the mirrored walls, floor and ceiling there probably only were about 8 of them.  But they were certainly lost and trying to talk to us and not making any sense and scaring the crap out of me, lol.  Luckily Hillivi to the rescue, she found our way out of there or we would still be locked into that room now.  No more infinity fun for me Ever, roller coasters are much more my cup of tea!

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

The next day we enjoyed a beach walk, some shopping and a leisurely breakfast before sorting out the hire car dilemma and making our way to the airport.  Of course I was dreaming about the artistic inspirations of our trip and the paintings to come.

A fantastic few days getaway with my favorite daughter, Thank you darling child!

Here is a quote I like by author unknown that fits well here;

“A daughter is a little girl who grows up to be a friend.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

I have recently come back from a wonderful 4 day trip to the Gold Coast with babygirl Hillivi and what a wonderful time we had.  I really should have stayed by the easel in my art studio painting but my daughter gave me quite the sales pitch, lol of why the 2 of us should fly up to Queensland together for a little getaway!

I must say that I am so glad she convinced me as we had so much fun, staying at the Chateau Beachside right in the middle of Surfers Paradise on the beach in a studio apartment with a sea view.

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

Even the flight up was really interesting when I sat next to a cute and talkative former soldier with a penchant for travel who recently returned from his deployment in Afghanistan and been part of some very hairy situations.   We declined his offer of a guided tour of Surfers and instead went and picked up our hire car.  As we had already taken out some extra insurance we debated back and forth on having to pay another lot that the car company was selling but in the end we signed up for that too (and as it turns out lucky we did).  Settling into the hotel, sightseeing and a Thai dinner followed.

Anyway the first day was spent at Movie World and wow what a time we had, after a fun start with a 4D Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs, we then got cracking with the rollercoaster’s good and proper.  For those of you who think that’s just for kids and teenagers you are soooo wrong, lol I just love a good ride!

MORE PAINTING IDEAS

First it was on to the Lethal Weapon coaster which had undergone some terrifying modifications and name change to Arkham Asylum and reaching speeds of up to 85km and pulling 4.5Gs.  Your feet hang in the air and miss the posts and poles by a toe length!  Now we are into it big time and run between that and the Green Lantern, Scooby-Doo and another of the favourites; Superman for the rest of the day.  Quite amazing we kept our lunch down as we spent more time upside down that upright I’m sure.

THE ART OF BIG BROTHER

Then after a quick drive and spruce up it is off to DreamWorld to be part of the audience for the Big Brother eviction night.  That was lots of fun too, being avid Big Brother tragics (yes I know, reality TV and all that, but apart from the fly on the wall intrigue I love the psychology of it too, and if you give it a go you can actually even learn some life lessons from the show yourself I find) But it is a program you cannot dip in and out off, unless you watch it from the start you won’t be able to follow and really get the gist of it.   In any case we caught up with Caleb one of the evictees (had seen him down the mall the night before too with Layla from last year) and he was every bit as nice as he seemed on the show.  The perfect gentleman and not just nice to the pretty girls but genuinely nice to everybody, so good on you Caleb the Fireman!

After seeing Heidi as the evicted housemate much to the surprise of the audience who had Tully pegged to go, we took off for Surfers for a late dinner and a squiz at the beachfront markets.

The rest of our trip will have to become another art blog for another day.  So I will finish with this quote that I think fits well here on psychology by Jerome Lawrence;

“A neurotic is a man who builds a castle in the air.  A psychotic is the man who lives in it.  A psychiatrist is the man who collects the rent.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This painting is of the Sydney Aquarium and if you look closely in the middle top of the artwork you can see me with long brown hair wearing a pink top and jeans with our daughter Hillivi in my arms and just in front is son Kai and hubby with the mustache and camera.

We used to go to the aquarium every time we visited Sydney and I thoroughly recommend a visit, such an amazing underwater experience without even getting wet!

INSPIRATION FOR ARTWORK

I love painting underwater scenes and fish and am always fascinated by the subject, also love snorkeling of course.  However when you don’t want to get your hair wet (it’s a girl thing) LOL, going sightseeing to the aquarium is a great outing.

Sea Life Centre, Sydney’s Aquarium is open to the public and can be found on the eastern side of Darling Harbour to the north of the Pyrmont Bridge.  It is host to a large variety of Australian aquatic life and comprises of more than 6,ooo individual fish and other sea and water creatures, some 650 different species.

There are lots of individual aquariums but the most amazing exhibits are a number of sea-through underwater glass tunnels, where you stand on a conveyor belt and look above you as all the sharks, some of them, Great White Pointers swim past showing their incredible teeth, as well as stingrays, shark rays, shovelnose rays, zebra sharks, eagle rays and dozens of different species of fish.   It does give you butterflies in your tummy as it makes you question the strength of the glass separating us from them.

The Australian architects designed the structure to resemble a large wave to complement the underwater theme and took nearly 2 years to build.

MORE ARTISTIC DELIGHTS

It was opened in 1988 and is one of the largest aquariums in the world and now also houses a crocodile exhibit and used to have seals as well, unfortunately the seal enclosure has closed and the seals have gone off to Sea World in the Gold Coast.  However in it’s place we now have a renovated enclosure called the Mermaid Lagoon which is the permanent home of two Dugongs; Pig and Wuru who previously lived at Sea World.   The Mermaid Lagoon can be viewed both from underneath in the viewing tunnels and from above in an open-air deck.   The Southern Oceans exhibit also features an open oceans Oceanarium and Little Penguins.

It also comprises of a tropical touch pool and a live coral cave, all with a constant temperature of 25 degrees.  One part that I really love is the reef theater where you can view the coral canyon and all the fish through a window which is 7 meters by 4 meters, and that looks just amazing.

THE ART OF ENJOYING LIFE

So if you come to Sydney that is a must!

LOL and here is a quote on the subject which amused me today;

“Men and fish are alike.  They both get into trouble when they open their mouths”

(author unknown)

Till next time happy painting and sculpting or perhaps fishing!

Love Marie xxxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

My son Kai and his lovely girlfriend Samantha has just left on a week’s holiday to Tasmania, which is an Island approximately 240 km from the mainland separated by Bass Strait.  They will visit Hobart, Launceston and Cradle Mountain among others, and that reminds me of a family holiday that we took a few years ago there as a family.  This acrylic painting called “Life wasn’t meant to be Breezy”  (which sold in Japan) depicts a tiny bit of the “weather” that we came across on our travels.

We as usual had the most marvelous time, spent much of it laughing and the other making ourselves sick on Devon-shire tea and scones which is something they sold in quaint little cafes at what seemed to be around every corner of the Tasmanian forest.  That “one” had to go on a diet when we got home was a given!

THE ART OF THE SWEET TOOTH

In Hobart where we visited the former women’s prison called the “Female Factory” which had been turned into a fudge factory, go figure!  In the 1800s there had been some 12,000 women and children imprisoned there, it later became a “House for imperial lunatics” and a hospital for contagious diseases and a boys reformatory.  With such a history it seems strange that it now produces yummy tasting fudge and truffles and the like.

A SAD DAY

We also visited Port Arthur which was the prison that the hardest of the British and Irish criminals were sent to during the 1800s.  It is situated some 60 km along the coast from Hobart and is Tasmania’s top tourist attraction.  What makes this an even eerier experience is that it is also the place of Australia’s worst mass murder in 1996, when Martin Bryant went berserk and killed 35 women, children and men and wounded another 21 people.   A very tragic and fascinating story that had the whole country holding it’s collective breath for a couple of days.  If you would like to read more about that here is the link on Wikipedia

MORE ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

We had a hire car and visited Bicheno where they run nightly Fairy Penguin tours and you can see the little creatures returning from a day out at sea and coming back to their nest at night, so very cute waddling up their burrows.  Another interesting bit was the spectacular iridescent light that was moving and flickering all around in the water, which was some sort of sea lice from what I remember.

On our travels we also went to a brilliant maze made for adults where we ran around and had so much fun and of course there were some Devonshire tea and scones involved as well, lol.  We also visited a seahorse farm which fascinated me, but the rest of the family remembers that as a bit ho hum!  Well you cannot please all the people all the time.

MORE PAINTING IDEAS TO COME

One adventure we all rate as first class was the days spent at Cradle Mountain where we stayed in a cabin and whilst hubby made the dinner, the kids and I were playing detectives in the dark searching by torch light for the Tasmanian Devils which we thought we saw around every bush but never actually found in the wild.  Cradle Mountain is found in the St Clair National park, a mountain of 1,545 meters above the sea level and has a beautiful ruggered terrain and Australia’s deepest lake.  Dove Lake has a boardwalk right around it which makes it an easy 2.45 hour walk that we cut our teeth on, so to speak.

Then we decided to do the Cradle Mountain Summit Bush Walk which is a 5 and a half hours return, why not, this bush walking business is easy isn’t it?  We were warned that the weather could all of a sudden become inclement and snow, but we thought they were going overboard with their warnings as it was a summers day warm with the temperature in the 20’s.  So hubby made us all sandwiches and other delights and we reluctantly took a jacket each and set off on the adventure.

THE ART OF LOOKING SERIOUSLY STUPID

We were cursing the jacket advice as it was boiling hot climbing up huge dolerite boulders like a mountain goats and contemplating leaving them somewhere to pick up later.  Anyway we persevered and finally got to Marions Lookout with a magnificent view over much of northern Tasmania, where we decided to eat our picnic.  We were thoroughly enjoying the scenery and watching some other hikers along the path when suddenly without a warning the weather turned treacherous and an icy cold wind came from nowhere and it started to rain and hail.  What the?  How could this be, we scrambled to take shelter among the rocks and the only thing we could put on our heads were 4 plastic sandwich bags, lol.  All the while the other hikers pulled out very fancy professional hiker’s ultra light pants and jackets from their backpacks, goggles, hats and gloves – whilst we sat shivering behind some rocks like idiots with bread bags on our heads!  My husband even had a little pile of crumbs on his head when he took the bag off!

The temperature must have gotten below zero and we were seriously considering our options when just as suddenly the bad weather past by and turned to spring.  This time we took more notice of all the signs and marked cabins should we need to seek shelter again, and thanked our lucky stars at least we had taken the jackets with us.  All’s well that ends well.

Here is a quote by Patrick Young which fits in here:

“The trouble with weather forecasting is that it’s right too often for us to ignore it and wrong too often for us to rely on it.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all or maybe mountain climbing,

Love Marie xxx   (c)

If you enjoyed this travel and Art blog you may also enjoy this one; 155 The Art of Packing Light

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

It’s no secret that I have always loved the sea, sun and beach, however I think the real reason behind that is the handsome surfer guys, lol.  Who can resist a tanned body and long unruly sun bleached hair? See what I mean in the Hang Ten painting of surfers below.

THE ART OF BEING BOY CRAZY

When my parents first started talking about moving to Australia it was the surfers I was keenest to see, much more so than any kangaroos or koalas.  I was 14 years old at the time and boy crazy, not quite sure I am over that affliction yet actually, although being very happily married I go by the rule of “Just because you are on a diet does not mean you cannot read the menu” right?

So here is my homage to all the gorgeous surfer guys past and present, this acrylic painting, sold in Japan I think (I should have paid more attention, and documented where they all sold over the years, a lot even left the art studio without me getting a chance to photograph them too, such a shame.)

SURFING AND ART

My own son Kai wanted to learn to surf and on a holiday to Queensland did just that.  I have to admit I found it really hard to watch (too many movies like Jaws over the years) and Kai who was around 15 at the time and assured us he did not need the parentals hanging around cramping his style.  He went the few streets over from the hotel and enrolled in the surfing lessons with a bunch of others whilst I stayed in the hotel and bit my nails (oh the joys of motherhood!)

Anyway, we were lucky, he had a great time, learned to surf over the week that we were there and came to no harm from the sea.  He did have one mishap though but that was right after he had finished his surfing lesson.

The four of us met up at a little café in Surfers Paradise that promised a delicious Big breakfast.  We had just been served this huge plate each of toast, eggs, bacon, sausages and tomatoes.  Kai fresh back from his adventure was feeling pretty independent and when his mother “moi”, said that he should push his plate away from the edge, he took no notice (as teenagers never do, lol) but instead thought and pretty much said that I should be zip it and not stress.   Well LOL, my husband, I and Hillivi can still recall what happened as if it was in slow motion – Kai put his knife and fork down on the plate to start cutting the sausages and the entire plate tipped upside down whereby he had the Big breakfast lying rather neatly in his lap.  The look on his face was priceless and I know it would have been kinder to have pretended not to see, lol but the 3 of us just could not contain ourselves and totally cracked up and laughed and laughed and laughed.  Sorry Kai but it was really funnnnnny!

HISTORY OF SURFING

Surfing whilst it was originally a Hawaiian pursuit dating back to the 15^th century first came to Australia and USA in the in the 20^Th century.  It is performed whilst standing on a surfboard riding on top of a wave. These days the surfboards are usually made from polyurethane (foam) or fiberglass but originally they were made from solid wood and were much larger and heavier, and could weigh as much person.

The most popular destinations for surfing would be Hawaii, California, Florida, Rio de Janeiro, Costa Rica and Australia.  In Australia it is Bells Beach, Victoria (not far from Torquay) which has been a favorite with the surfers since 1939.  It is also where the world’s longest running surfing completion – the Rip Curl Pro Surf & Music Festival (Bells Beach Surf Classic) is held.  The first one started in 1961 and since then has been an annual event every Easter (apart from a few times when the waves have let them down).  The surfers have an Olympic wrestler named Joe Sweeney to thank for the road or track to Bells Beach.  He apparently hired a bulldozer and cleared the road along the cliff and charged one pound per surfer to recover his expenses.  (ref. Wikipedia)

SURFING, MUSIC AND ART

Of course most of you would be familiar with the Beach Boys and no self respecting surfer would go without having Surfin’ Safari/USA, Good Vibrations, Fun Fun Fun and California Girls blasting from their kombi vans stereos.  So the whole surfing thing became a real culture with not only a carefree way of life but also a fashion of boardshorts, singlet’s, t-shirts and thongs (flip flops).  Today businesses like Billabong have grown to become hugely popular all across the world for their surf wear clothes and accessories.  Billabong was the brainchild of ex-Maroubra surfer Gordon Merchant and started from his flat in Burleigh Heads and the rest as they say is history.

So here is a quote I like from Kary Mullis;

“Sometimes in the morning, when it’s good surf, I go out there, and I don’t feel like it’s a bad world.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all, oh and surfing,

Love Marie xxx                (c)

If you enjoyed this art blog you may also fancy this one with a painting of  a nude beach 12. Salvador Dali and C’est La Vie

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This painting is of Popeye which is an iconic Adelaide institution, it is privately owned and the first ferry was launched in 1935 and took you between Elder Park and Adelaide Zoo.  The first two boats in service carried 20 passengers each and the three next Popeyes made seated up to 40 people. A very popular tourist attraction and they even took Queen Elizabeth ll and Prince Philip on a little ride in 1977.  The new fiberglass models,  was launched in 1982 by the then Prime Minister Malcom Fraser.

If you look closely at this acrylic on board painting you will see me, my husband and the two kids in the middle of the boat, the kids loved going on it when they were little (I’m in pink and hubby green).  I have even done a ceramic and mosaic version of this painting which hung in the old Adelaide Airport for many years.

JAPAN & ART

I will get back to the Popeye story soon but firstly let me tell you why we came to take another ride on the boat a few years back.  When the kids were in high school here in Australia they had a program going whereby Japanese exchange students would come over for 2 weeks each year and learn English and also learn about the Australian way of life. So we discussed this as a family and all thought it would be a worthwhile experience for our family to do.  We thought it would help to teach the kids tolerance and respect for other customs and cultures and perhaps learn a little Japanese too. I have for many years had a strong connection to Japan anyway.

During my modeling days I fulfilled a couple of contracts there as a Fashion model each one of three months duration (that’s another story) and then as I have written about in these art blogs 57. “THE SIGNING OF THE CONTRACT” ‎as well as 64.  “FLYING TO JAPAN” ,  I have also traveled there many times for my art exhibitions as well.

In any case all the parents who agreed to have the Japanese students attended meetings and were given information and lists of what to do and not to do, what was expected of us and also some basic words in Japanese. According to this information the Japanese students loved going for car rides, sightseeing, shopping (particularly for souvenirs), food shopping (as they liked to see the different types of food we have here) exploring Museums and Galleries and going out for lunch and dinner.

THE ART OF BEING A TOURIST

Over the years this had all worked very well and we had 5 students come and stay with us over the years and all were delightful.  However one particular boy drove me completely nuts one day, he was a very quite boy and hard to communicate with but seemed happy enough.  A week or so into his stay when we had been very busy with life and work we thought we better plan a day for the boy to see a bit more of Adelaide.

None of us really had any time to this, I could not really afford to take any time away from the art studio, my teenage daughter was supposed to go to a birthday party which she regretfully cancelled and son and hubby likewise cancelled other engagements. We asked him what he thought of the plans and he seemed very excited at the prospect so up early in the morning and into the car for a big day of fun.

Now we lived a three hour round trip to the city and with a few detours for points of interest we covered a quite a few kilometers to say the least.  However the “Star” of the day sat bolt upright with his eyes firmly closed asleep for the entire trip, (as only the Japanese can do on transport,lol) only to open them for a minute or two when poked to have a look at something.

ART & TOURISM

Then as we showed him the Museum and the Art Gallery, he walked everywhere with us but looked down on the floor the whole time, and when we sat down to enjoy a lovely lunch he was not hungry and only had a glass of water. So we thought a spot of shopping would surely get him in the mood and took him to the center of the shops and asked what type of things he wanted to get and which shops he would like to go to?

That’s when he informs us that he doesn’t like to shop and doesn’t want to buy anything! What was wrong with telling us that yesterday!!  So at this stage we are nearly all tearing our hair out, my children rolling their eyes as teenagers do. We then ask him what he would like to do now and when no suggestions were forthcoming we suggest a few other things and he settles for a ride on the Popeye.

So we go and purchase the tickets, now the tickets aren’t expensive but for the five of us it’s still 60 dollars, ordinarily I would not have minded, but when the five of us sat down and the Japanese boy promptly fell asleep again I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, lol. However the four of us looked at each other and just cracked up laughing, thinking about what we should/could have been doing that day instead of dragging this sleeping boy around Adelaide and totally wasting everybody’s time.  We laughed till tears streamed down our faces and still the boy just slept.

So as we drove the one and a half hours back to the farm I thought of this quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson (essayist and Philosopher)

“Finish each day and be done with it.  You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can.  Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it well and serenely.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all,

Love Marie xxx

FOOTNOTE; we hope and pray that our Japanese exchange students; Kaori, Kazuya, Takahiro, Yuki and Megumi, and their families and friends are all safe and well after the Tsunami.  We are thinking about you and hoping to hear from you.  Love Marie, Bryan, Kai and Hillivi xxxx                (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

As previously said I started painting when I was pregnant with my first baby and the very day my son Kai turned one years old we set off travelling by car to Katherine in the Northern Territory.

We had his birthday party on the Sunday before and then said our goodbyes as my husband was going to be working on the Tindal Airbase where houses for the air force were currently under construction.

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS IN COOPER PEDY

The distance was only, lol 3000 kilometers, this country Australia is big remember, so we figured we should do it in 3-4 days without too much trouble.  The first night we spent in a dug out, that’s the way most people of Cooper Pedy live in what seems very much like a normal home but completely underground.  The town inhabitants are mainly opal miners and other essential services that support the town of about 5000 people.

When you first get there you think it’s a deserted place as all you can see is holes in the ground and something poking out of the ground which is actually the ventilation shafts that go down to all the rooms (looks like a small white plastic pipe).  There are some larger ones to let a bit of light into the kitchen and living rooms.   We stayed the night in a dug out motel, it was lots of fun but I have to admit I felt just a little claustrophobic; however it was totally silent and very cool.  The temperature can get to 50 degrees in Cooper Pedy so it is a very clever way to keep cool without air-conditioning.

THE ART OF CELEBRATING

We had done a day’s drive when we got to the dugout hotel, our little boy Kai was ready for bed so Bryan and I settled into our room and celebrated our sleeping baby boys birthday with a take away hamburger (vegetarian for me) and a bottle of champagne (of course!)

ART AND A SPA

The next day we kept driving and in the end it took us 4 days to reach Katherine, the whole way I was excitedly looking out for the rainforest and the palm trees which I mistakenly as it happened thought would soon appear on the horizon.  But oh no that is up Cairns way and the closest we got to that tropical feel was in the very picturesque Mataranka Thermal Pool.  Now that is my idea of heaven, a virtual oasis in this very bare and hot landscape sprouts a palm forest with a natural pool which is a constant 34 degree fed by a spring.  I could have stayed there for a month at least!

However it is the subject matter of this painting that I was going to tell you about “Condos in Katherine” acrylic on canvas board, sold long ago, but available as a limited edition Giclee print for any of you out there interested;  Giclee Prints for sale

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

What so fascinated me when we first got up to the Northern Territory was this great big mounds made of clay by the termites.  To me they seemed like little cities with skyscrapers full of little apartments and I just could not get the image out of my mind.  I saw all the ants, living in their little flats, going about their business, making meals, house cleaning, having a sleep and going about their days just like we do.  So of course I had to paint it.  The image has been very popular and was also used in a book published by McGraw-Hill Publishers called Art Smart written by Lou Chamberlain, there I had my own chapter in a field of the great artists like Picasso, Miro and Da Vinci, and so you understand I was rather pleased.

THE ART OF TERMITES

The termite “homes” are usually referred to as Anthills here in Australia and they grow very large in the Northern Territory.   The ants mix saliva and mud together which becomes like cement (the ones I saw were red oxide in colour) and can take over 50 years to finish, and can contain a few million ants.  So I probably gave them bigger apartments then they are used too, lol.  However the termite nest can actually stretch up to 10 meters underground apart from what we can see aboveground, so perhaps that was where the opal miners of Cooper Pedy got their dugout ideas from?  The ants also have lots of tunnels that act as an air-condition system and also contain indoor gardens, nurseries and it goes without saying that the Queen has her own chamber!  Here is another travel art blog that you may enjoy 6. San Francisco Art Blog with more artworks and fun.

So here is a quote from Charles Darwin (naturalist) which I think fits well in here,

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives.  It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”

Till next time painting and sculpting to you all,

Love Marie xxx   (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This tale begins with art blog 30. Moggy Fontain Painting, and the Melbourne trip

so if you fancy read that first.

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

We stayed in a Hotel overlooking Albert Park and its Lake, not far from where me and Bryan used to live when I first went to Melbourne to model long before I ever started painting and had this new life as an artist.

We actually took the kids to our old house to have a look and they were suitably impressed although whilst we were trying to find it we were all starting to doubt whether this huge walk would be worth it.

We do like to walk though and spend a lot of time doing that, great exercise and also you get to see and feel a city.  We had dinners in some great restaurants along the Yarra and caught trams and buses and trains and taxis too and enjoyed the outdoor spa at the hotel,  I had the pleasure of Hillivis company a couple of mornings in the gym, but in the end they all opted for a sleep in, while I still slogged it out.

ART & LIFE

The Melbourne Aquarium is always a favourite with us as you can see from this painting, but this time we also visited the Titanic exhibition which was really good.

What got me really thinking was that on your way into the exhibition they handed you a boarding card.  Everyone got one, and it had the name of an actual passenger that was on that voyage, also the background of that person, who they were travelling with and married to and what reason they had for being on the Titanic.

We all read our own and then each other’s and it really gave you a great insight into their lives. Then at the end of the exhibition you had to check your Boarding card against a huge board with the names of who lived or who perished in the disaster.

THE ART OF BEING A MAN

Two of us lived and two died, now this happened in 1912 however we all still felt it in the pit of our stomachs for those poor people who lost their life’s that night.  Many more people in 3^rd and 2^nd class died than in the first class and of course many more men lost their lives than ladies.  So many brave men who gave their lives for women and children they never even knew, so very very admirable.

I must add here that I think men are often vilified, I know that there are some bad apples out there.   However from my experience, the men in my life have all been fantastic; my son, husband, brother, father, grandfathers and nearly every man that I have ever met have been lovely.  So thank you fellows and from the bottom of my heart,  Men I Salute YOU!

Here are the last words of John Jacob Astor IV, the richest man in the world, saying farewell to his lover as he gave up his seat on an escaping lifeboat from the sinking Titanic for a female passenger;

“The ladies have to go first…Get in the lifeboat, to please me…Goodbye dearie,  I’ll see you later”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all!

Love Marie xx                                                                      (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

Just a few days after baby boy came home from Europe we all flew over to Melbourne as one of our Godchildren were turning 21, and what a beautiful girl she has grown up to be,  well perhaps I should say always was, as she started modelling as a baby and never really stopped.

We have shared lots of time over the years with the Burns family but my favourite funny moment was when our son Kai and Saasha were playing hospital as little children, and Saasha lay down on the floor and declared that she was a LITTLE bit DEAD.  Lol,- Out of the mouths of babes.

CAT AND DOG SERIES PAINTING

This painting Moggy Fontain was bought by them for their second daughter Tarrah who is a fantastic Ballet Dancer presently in New Zealand where she won a 3 year position at the New Zealand School of Dance.

Their son Tristen is very talented as well and dances, sings and acts in various shows around town and recently appeared in Home and Away.   Anyway we had a fab time at the Cowboys and Indians themed 21^st birthday party.

But what I enjoyed the most was that we were all together again us four, and boy did we have fun, as we always do.

ART OF LAUGHING

For some reason we spend more time belly laughing than anything else.  You know that deep in your gut laugh where you lose control, well if you were in Melbourne a little while ago and spied a tall family of four, doubled over laughing that was us! Lol

Outside of the Melbourne museum Perth based artist Bennett Miller had built a smaller scaled set of the United Nations Commission as an Art installation, for the Next Wave Festival called Dachshund UN.

In this performance “artwork” there were 47 sausage dogs that took part and formed the delegates, speakers and interpreters of the UN Human Rights committee.  It looked so funny, the dogs were all different types of sausage dogs;  short , long and wired haired, black, brown and reddish and some were constantly barking, while others whimpered or sat quietly whilst others were bored and some could be found napping- just like the real thing really. The detail of the painting below is one of my own Sausage Dogs.( Melbourne tales to be continued)

Here is some advice by Hermann Hesse (writer) that the real UN Human rights Committee should perhaps take.

“Some of us think holding on makes us strong; but sometimes it is letting go”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all!

Love Marie xx                                            (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

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