#anyexcuse to take The Diva for a drive

Happy Birthday to V - i took him on a mystery tour encompassing 1.5 hours drive one way, that he guessed just 15 minutes from leaving home.

Seahorse World at Beauty Point - a lovely drive, new vistas to take in and  Aussie eats beginning to our trip - pie and sausage roll. stopped at Exeter Bakery enroute.

We keep getting the signage wrong in taking photos - happy birthday V

The Diva - #anyexcuse 

Spring joy is fast becoming the most stressful time of year

 

Normally we would not see the daily machinations of the native hens (turbo chooks) that live with us however, we have a pair of turbo chooks that have set up house on our front lawn - they have been there for 3 years and have not yet grown their babies to adulthood.  

Its fast becoming the most stressful time of the year for us.  This poor little bundle was picked up by a goshawk, turbo chook mum and i went hollering across the hill and the hawk dropped the chick. If it were not for the talons i wonder if the chick would have survived.  She is now buried under a shrub.  

This little one (above) was part of 6 day old chicks and as of today we are down to 4with one that is hopping having hurt a leg.  Today has been the most stressful as goshawks have come and gone and now a crow has noticed the little one that is not walking well. Mum has chased it away twice and it is just upsetting to think of the battle these little ones endure daily.

a short video here of the turbo babies a couple of days before.

In the chase for simiplicity it becomes complex - where to find me

 if you follow me you may know that i am in the studio every day and work across media including collage, painting, slow stitching, photomedia, printmaking and poetry.

The image above is from my exhibition held at the Wilderness Gallery Cradle Mountain a couple of years ago - acrylic & gesso on paper.  90x110cm framed in a simple genuine hardwood (eucalypt). Images of the works in the exhibition can be seen here.

With over 120 published works of poetry I have created and am slowly bringing the site up to date here. Writing is a big part of my arts practice and poetry is an extension of that writing.  I enjoy mostly short form such as haiku, haiga, haibun, tanka and some free verse. I was fortunate to be a part of a fabulous forum, in the day when there were forums, where some of the world's top poets in short form guided new poets like myself through the maze of information and bias of the various forms. This kind of support in writing and being published was key to the growth of new poets coming through.  I feel most fortunate.  

My site of artworks, blackfishartstasmania, hosts a gallery of works and workshops for sale as well as exhibitions my works have been in and artist statements.  The site is new, and i am tentative, so updating this site is taking time, but it is being done.

There is also my 'studio work' site which talks mainly about works in progress, #getaways, the works of other artists and general musings of this artist, working every day, living in (and loving) Tasmania.

last but not least, this site 'Regents Park' contains the aritst's lifestyle having moved recently to a country property in Tasmania where everything is new to me, new discoveries, learning to live with wildlife proper (turbo chooks, a resident eel, tiger snakes, bandicoots, platypus as well as dairy cow in retirement. #Snowcone.

 In the chase for simiplicity it becomes complex.

oh ... dont forget we have a youtube channel too

and my instagram

I appreciate you being here .... let me know where i can find you - let me know what you think - let me know you visit.    Gina

Sunday musing pre workshop

 Its a beautiful Spring day here - intermittent showers with sunny moments in between.  The Camellia which was planted before we came is in full flower again.  Unusually, i think, its turned two-tone - quite lovely.

The studio is lovely and clean - V & I mopped the floor a week ago - huge job (18x12 metres in and around tables and benches) and i swept it up this morning in readiness for our workshop.  A small group (as i like it) and a day of making this book and this one.

I dont have workshops often as i work a lot on my own projects but i do enjoy when i hold them. Usually they are held in winter or winter's end but i am open to any time of year if groups organise themselves - bring 1 or 2 friends with you and email me your dates if you wish to have a workshop. I have placed the book workshops here.

Updated my poetry site a little yesterday - big job - onward with regular updates to post in one place all my (mainly published) poetry but also some of my favourites.

SIGNS of Spring (again)

The birds, in mobs, are racing around, chasing, being chased, singing and heralding. The creek is high from recent rains, chinese cabbage and brocoli have bolted, the mini nectarine is already in full flower and if there was any doubt at all .....   the wattles are out.

and then there is #Snowcone ... such a sweet girl - our dairy cow in retirement 

find her on our youtube channel here ... and check out this hilarious one where she got out and i had not a clue what to do ! 

took this new addition for a spin today #classic

a lovely surprise  - a great excuse now for regular #brunchdates 

love this car ... lunch at the Raspberry Farm was so good. and the little walk around afterwards was enjoyable in lovely surrounds. 

lovely Rainy Days this month - remembering the flood !

July and we have been experiencing many days and night of rain. we needed it as the paddocks had got very dry, turning wheat coloured over summer.  it only took a couple of days of rain to return to green again and we get these little visitors at night.    image below - link refers to info on the little brown tree frog.

and it was such a nice surprise to find, online, the sound it makes - surprise because i always assumed THIS sound was crickets but it is actually the little brown tree frog. 

It was October (i think) 2022 when the creek flooded - a once in 7 year flood (apparently) ... there is a playlist of flood videos that happened in 2022 on our you tube

hoping it is is indeed once in 7 years ... or longer - we will be fine as the house is up the hill but the studio got flooded and that took 6 weeks to clean up !

love this idea - recipe

recently moved to the country and more natural ways to clean and what is disposed of is top of mind ...we have water tanks and a septic tank which requires gentle cleaning products for it to work well.

a walk by the creek

on a recent walk discovered this lovely flowering - Fatsia Japonica - i wrote about it here.  a winter flowering.  look forward to seeing how big it gets - apparently quite large and wide.

i took photos of this particular part of the creek, from the bridge and came back at night to take shots of around the same area, from the bridge.  

still discovering things along our journey here -the creek has filled a little since we have been getting regular rains - the paddocks have greened over and the wallabies are gathering in large groups during the night to chomp on the grass.

check out this video on youtube of blackfish in the creek 

and i am doing monthly videos (just started this year) - we have been here 3 years and i began the monthly vids so i can notice the differences and changes each year.

looking back - Archie & Kimba (cute ginger alert)

THEN & NOW. Archie on the left and Kimba on the right (in both images)

They came to us as a pair after we lost Harry - a beautiful boy that was with us for a short time (2 years) - a bold, cheeky, independent ginger that was cross eyed, pigeon toed, highly talkative and much loved.   THIS IS HARRY (below)

and so the twins arrived ... Archie and Kimba - such beautiful little souls that have been with us for 4 years now having come to us as very tiny little beings. 

check out the cat run that was built for them - including the early days and planning - the full playlist here - my list of must haves was room to move outside, in the sun, with shelter and trees.   #livingwithcats #countryliving

MUM's CSIRKE PAPRIKAS. (Chicken Paprika) - recipe

Paprikas is pronounced - 'cheerke paap-ree-kysh'

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons butter or *pork lard 
• 6-8 chicken pieces, *bone-in and skin-on
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 2 tomatoes, very finely diced (Roma are good)
• 1 Hungarian bell pepper, diced (optional)
• 3-4 tablespoons of quality, genuine imported sweet Hungarian paprika. (this is the secret ingredient)
• 2 cups chicken broth (*homemade preferably - just boil chicken wings and bones for hours with whole onion, salt and peppercorn)
• 1 and half teaspoons sea salt
• half teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup full fat sour cream , room temperature (full fat prevents lumpy cream)
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

• *traditionally used for the best flavour

METHOD :

• Heat the lard in a heavy pot and brown the chicken all over 
• Let the chicken rest on a plate.  In the same oil, add the onions and fry until golden brown.  
• Add tomatoes, garlic and pepper and fry another 2-3 minutes.  
• Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the paprika, salt and pepper (you must remove the pot from heat otherwise the paprika goes bitter)
• Return the chicken to the pot and place it back over the heat.  
• Pour in the chicken broth. The chicken should be mostly covered. Bring it to a boil. 
• Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove the chicken and transfer to a plate.
• In a small bowl, stir the flour into the sour cream/cream mixture to form a smooth paste. Stir the cream mixture into the liquid in the pot, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. 
• Simmer for a couple of minutes until the sauce is thickened - keep stirring. 
• Add salt and pepper to taste. 
• Return the chicken to the sauce and simmer to heat through.

Serve the chicken paprikash with Hungarian nokedli, steamed rice, pasta shells, rigatoni or mashed potato.

Jó étvágyat!

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a surprise winter flowering

On a walk across the paddock yesterday I found this plant flowering by the creek.  and today it looked like this !

so pretty. This is called fatsia Japonica and is best suited to outdoor growth.  I purchased one last year and have it indoors - it grew so well that i had extras come up in the pot and this one is outdoors growing beautifully by the creek.  The flowers were such a nice surprise - the one indoors is leafy and large-ish but nothing like this one outdoors.

Things I learned from Google today. The name. fatsia Japonica.

• It is better suited outdoors than indoors - i am now planning where to plant the indoor one once we get into spring.
• The location i put the one outdoors is perfect for it - shady with some sun.
• it flowers in autumn (although we are winter here just now) and berries will follow !  great. so good for the birds.
• it will grow 6-10 feet both in height and width!  how fabulous and apparently the new shoots may get eaten but the older ones are not tasty for the critters.  we shall see. i do have it currently fenced waiting for it to expand before i test that theory.
• its also known as the paper plant of finger plant.
• pruning encourages dense growth

very happy to have this one in the paddock.  might plant the indoor one outside the front of the house. 

A recent visit to The Bridge Gallery in Burnie, Tasmania

An article about this awe-inspiring, wonderful exhibition has gone up on Blackfishartstasmania studio blog.  We travelled to Burnie to pick up the Oistre book which was a finalist in the Burnie Print Prize 2025. 

A write up about our experience of this exhibition along with links to the artworks and artist statements.  There are 21, i think, artist books where each artist responds to each Afghan womans experience of living in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover in 2021. i have posted a few images taken on our visit.