Performing Arts at Ballina Beach. 04/30/2010
 This week last few days spent in Ballina has been full of catching up on shopping and services while we are near a large town, Ballina. The leisurely time spent painting has not happened yet. Performance art should factor high in our enjoyment for the next couple of days with a jazz band arriving here tonight and fire performers, tomorrow night. Maybe even a visit to the area from a circus. Circus Arts Ballina Circus Arts Ballina has a weekly timetable of circus classes and high flying trapeze sessions for all ages and abilities. The trapeze is actually within view of our caravan; we will get an onsite viewing.  Add Comment Am I Smart Enough For A Smart Phone? 04/23/2010
 Reg and I are now north of Newcastle on route to our next stop. We plan to stay at the beautiful South Ballina Caravan Park for one week. I should get some great photos to share while in this area. This caravan park has a fantastic reputation, they do better than an outdoor fireplace they provide an outdoor fire show. I am looking forward to experiencing this. I got delivery of my smart phone today and i am sad...it is smarter than me I have trouble using it.  The swimming pool at South Ballina Beach Caravan Park. Community Celebrates, Ritchies Hut, Rebuild. 04/18/2010
 What a great subject this would make for an artist to paint. Tomorrow, Parks Victoria staff will be joined by the volunteers with the Victorian High Country Huts Association, the Ritchie family, local schools, and members of the community to celebrate the completion of Ritchie’s Hut. The hut was rebuilt after the original was lost in the Great Divide Fires of 2006-07. The decision to rebuild the hut followed close consultation with the community and was based on the high social, cultural and refuge values of the original hut. “Rebuilding of the famous High Country Hut started in May 2008,” said Parks Victoria Ranger Chris Clarke. “It was a labour of love for many of us. It was also a lot of hard work.” “This was a true community effort. So many people were more than willing to pitch in whether it was with materials, services, or their time. We are extremely grateful for the fantastic efforts of volunteers from the Victorian High Country Hut Association, trail-riding groups, scouts, venturers and school groups who contributed over 2,500 hours to the project. ” The original Ritchie’s Hut was built by the Ritchie family in 1947 at the junction of 14 Mile Creek and the Howqua River, near Mansfield. The hut was built with materials from the surrounding land, with timber for the walls and roof cut and shaped by hand from nearby trees. Ken Birch, President of the Victorian High Country Hut Association, said that many of the traditional techniques were kept alive in the rebuilding of the hut. “We’ve seen a lot of the materials used in Ritchie’s Hut carried up on pack horse. It’s great to see everyone involved in the rebuilding embracing the heritage of the huts in the Alpine National Park.” Parks Victoria’s Chris Clarke said many weekends were spent prefabricating the hut at the Blackbird Hut depot in the Howqua Hills Historic Area. “Volunteers sourced timber from local forests, which they cut into slabs using a traditional blade and broad axe,” said Mr Clarke. “The hut was then dismantled and transported to 8 Mile Flat, where pieces of the hut were carried in by hand, pack horse and helicopter.” “Although the hut’s remote location created some problems for the builders, it also gave the volunteers a taste of what life was like for local designer Fred Fry and the Ritchie family at a time before power tools and helicopters.” Robert Ritchie, son of founder Bob Ritchie, said that this was a fantastic day to celebrate the completion of a lot of hard work by many people. “For Dad and his friends in the 1940s, spending days on end fishing the remote areas of the Howqua was their dream. It was the reason the hut was built in the first place. We’re delighted to see that dream, re-imagined by so many. I, on behalf of my family, would like to thank everyone involved. We encourage visitors to come up and enjoy the simple pleasures of one of the most picturesque areas of the park.” Below is a hut at Warburton that I am preparing to paint at the moment. I plan to show some of the stages of the art work here in this blog.   Today I had the pleasure of meeting Australian entertainment legend Frankie J.Holden. Frankie J. Holden is an iconic, Actor, Singer, Entertainer and now a Holiday Park Owner! Yes, Frankie J Holden is currently in the process of finalizing arrangements with the other partners Laurie and Di Dellavirgin and Garry and Narelle Hetherington, formerly of the acclaimed “Holiday Hub”, at Pambula, to turn an already lovely caravan park in a magnificent natural setting, into a park to be known as the “Little Park, With A BIG Heart”. Frankie J. Holden wants to bring the very best features he sees at many of the parks he is visiting in his travel show hosting, back to the Tathra Tourist Park. We chatted about these plans he has for this park and his current travel hosting role in the programe What's Up Downunder being presented by Channel 7on Saturday afternoon. This new show will bring the world of caravanning into viewer’s homes and is sure to be a hit with gray nomads and families alike. The show is co hosted, by this musician and actor Frankie J Holden and his wife Michelle Pettigrove and features their daughter Georgia and guests. What’s Up Downunder is the only television travel program focusing on caravanning, camping, touring, self drive and fly drive holidays promoted through holiday parks. It will also showcase regional tourism in Australia. Staying in holiday parks had come a long way over the years, with consumers now able to choose many different product offerings from standard powered and unpowered sites to luxury spa cabins and more. What's Up Downunder will air on The Seven Network, including all regional affiliates on Saturdays between 4pm and 5pm. Lifelike Drawing in Colored Pencil with Lee Hammond Sketching at the Beach. 04/15/2010
   Reg enjoying a coffee and apple Danish cake I bought him and watching from the beach side cafe.     Tree Stump, Sculpture, at lakes Entrance. 04/10/2010
 Lakes Entrance Avenue of Honour WWI Memorial Statues  'In 1924 an avenue of Monterey Cypress trees was planted along the Esplanade to commemorate the 26 local men who lost their lives during World War I. Over the years the odd tree had been removed for various reasons and in 1997 the East Gippsland Shire Council, unaware of their original significance, planned to remove the remainder. Their decision caused considerable controversy within the community. Following a public campaign by the Lakes Entrance Regional Historical Society the trunks of six of the trees have been preserved and transformed into memorial sculptures by chainsaw artist John Brady.  Brady carved the stump of one tree into a sea captain to reflect the community's early pioneers and to commemorate the loss of ships and lives at Lakes Entrance. The sculpture proved so popular that it was decided to utilize the other tree stumps in the same way and local businesses sponsored the carving of the five other stumps which represent a World War I soldier, a wounded soldier with a donkey, a World War I nurse, Simpson* helping two wounded soldiers and a family waiting for Dad. The sculptures are waxed and oiled constantly to preserve the wood.' The Avenue of Honour and the WWI Memorial Statues were rededicated on 1 May 1999 by Peter McGauran, Minister for the Arts and the Centenary of Federation. The sculptures shown here Inscriptions carved on tree sculptures Mariner CARVED BY JOHN BRADY NOV 1998 Family WAITING FOR DAD CARVED BY JOHN BRADY FEB 1999 A comment from a tourist viewing the sculpture of the family was that ‘back then women were concerned that they would lose their children to childhood illness, or die in childbirth themselves, they never needed to concern themselves, about dieting or diet pill side effects, they had real life and death situations to be concerned about and how much easier it is today when men and women are concerned about management of life’s excesses.' She had a good point. We are fortunate in that it is the poor management of an affluent lifestyle that is now one of our greatest risks, a luxury that the everyday man or woman of the era depicted in these sculptures, would not have known. Soldier WWI SOLDIER by JOHN BRADY MAY 1998  Sand Castle Sculpture at Lakes Entrance. 04/09/2010
  How to build a sand Sculpture A lot of work goes into making a good sand sculpture. Sculptors need patience and endurance to create their masterpieces from thousands of tonnes of sand. They can take up to two months to build and span up to 10 meters in height. Sculptors use a special kind of sand that is also used on building sites and was most likely used in the foundations of your home. It is called heavy sand and is different to the sand you see on the beach because each grain is square, which means it sticks together better, like building blocks. The sand on the beach is smoother and rounder so it doesn’t stay together quite as well. Some beaches are located near the mouths of rivers have better sand for sculpting as it isn’t worn down by the surf. The most important part of making a sand sculpture is the preparation, or what sculptors call “pound up”. Pound up involves building wooden walls in a square or rectangle shape. These walls are called “forms” and are about two feet tall. After the forms are built they are filled with sand, like a giant sandpit, right to the top. When the forms are full, sculptors set to work making sure that the sand is pounded down as hard as possible by whacking it, jumping on it and watering it. Water is REALLY important; the water helps the sand stick together and helps it to set hard as it dries out. Successive forms are built on top of the first and compacted down so that eventually you have what looks a bit like a wooden pyramid of forms, as high as is required, all filled to the brim with sand that has been pushed down into them. When pounding up a couple of thousand tonnes of sand, this process can take weeks but care is very important because if the sand isn’t compacted hard enough the sculpture might collapse later. After the sand has had time to set the sculptors climb up, take off the top form, and begin to carve into the sand block left behind.  Coordinating the supplies and set up of a sand sculpture being created in public as a fund raising project, l must be huge, admin jobs, it is art project on a large scale and I take my cap off to those in Lakes Entrance who have organised this sand castle sculpture. When you are on the beach this summer you might not have the time (or equipment!) to make forms but a bucket is the next best thing. Fill your bucket with sand that is damp, not too wet and not too dry but somewhere in between is best, then push the sand down as hard as you can into the bucket. Be careful of the strength of your bucket because too much pressure can crack it just as forms sometimes do when too much pressure is exerted on them. Once you are happy with your pound up, find a good spot on the beach, flip your bucket over and very carefully remove it, leaving the sand behind on the ground. Now you have the beginnings of your sculpture. If you want to go the extra step ask your parents if they have an old bucket that they can cut the bottom out of, that way you can start with your bucket upside down and fill the sand in from the top. This allows you to build up on top of each layer that you pound up with cups and containers like the professionals do with their smaller forms.  Now the fun part - carving. Carving gives the sculpture all of its detail and character. You can use almost anything to carve and most of the professional sculptors actually use cooking and dental utensils. You better ask your parents before you start using their icing scraper at the beach though. There are loads of tools you can use to help you carve out a work of art from icy-pole sticks to house keys (again you better ask before you try that one) and even water pistols can be used to cut a hole through the middle of your pile. Try to visualise what you want to carve out before you get started and then go wild! If you can get one, a water spray bottle is a great idea to have handy while you are carving to keep the sand damp. Every once in a while, give your sculpture a couple of sprays so it doesn’t dry out. The rest is up to you. Try using stuff you find on the beach like sea shells and sea weed.   Six Month Tour. Vic, NSW, Qld. 04/04/2010
 Our Mode of travel, an Eco-Tourer Caravan, 'Highly recommend' towed by a 'Troupy" Locations Listed are the Evening Destination. Rest area = a FREE or low cost caravan Park from Camps Australia Wide, Book 5 Caravan Parks. chosen are ones I would 'Highly recommend'. All locations allow dogs at the managers discretion in off peak periods. Vic. Tuesday 6th April Shepparton, Wednesday April 7: KING PARROT CREEK Rest area no (222 ) Thursday April 8 Lakes Entrance Idelours Caravan Park Friday April 9 Lakes Entrance Idelours Caravan Park. Saturday April 10 Thurra River rest area no (7), 11klm east of Cann River. Sunday April 11 Mallacoota Foreshore Camping Park no (4) NSW Monday .April 12 Yellow Pinch Dam near Bega/Pambula no (629) Tuesday April 13 Bodalla Park Forrest rest area, no (621)near Narooma. Wednesday April 14 Waldons Swamp rest area no (616)near Batemans Bay. Thursday April 15 Seven Mile Beach near Kiama Booking for one week. Thursday April 22 Billy Grace reserve (732) near Wee Jasper. Staying 48 hours Saturday April 24 Sandy Beach reserve, rest area (800) between Junee and Gundagia Sunday April 25 Mendooran Rest area,(435) beside river, north east of Dubbo. Monday April 26 Cawsey Rotary Park, rest area (191) near Denman beside Hunter River on route towasr Newcastle, stay 48 hours Wednesday April 28th 12 mile hill rest area no (121) 17 klm north of Raymond Terrace, past Newcastle. Thurdsay April 29th Bloodwood rest area no (70) 6 klm south of Kempsey. Friday April 30th Ballina, South Ballina Caravan Park stay 1 week and 2 days QLD Sunday 9th May Maleny stayng at Maleny Show Grounds Monday 10th in Maleny Tuesday 11th Torquay /Hervey Bay area Wednesday 12th May Torquay /Hervey Bay area Thursday 13th May 1770 Captain Cook Holiday Village stay for up to 4 weeks. Thursday 10th June, leave 1770 for Flying Fish Point Beach near Innisfail taking up to 1 week and maybe returning there for one week, after the QLD school holidays are over. Thursday 17th June (or sooner), arrive at Flying Fish Point Beach , stay for 1 weeks leave Thursday 24th June Friday 25 June, Jullaten ( stay with a friend :-)Gem) until Monday 12th July. Late July till early September, No 'tight' plans yet', Stay in North QLD through July possibly Atherton Table land, Finch Hatton August and early September. South QLD via Rubyvale, Warwick QLD, NSW Moree NSW and (thermal pool s) area and inland NSW. VIC. Summer home studio retreat (family visitors only), in Goulburn Valley, October 2010 Celebrate Reg's 70th birthday, 1 month late with family :-) in late September.   Reg and I had a good drive home to northern Victoria from the Grampians. We had an interesting stop over at Bendigo Pottery and I took photos to share in my blogs of the historical pottery. We arrived home to find my autumn roses in flower and my potatoes ready to harvest. I have had a quick check and aside from some climbing roses needing a good tie back, all looks good after the storm that went through this area about a month ago while we were away. I freshened up and popped my feet up and I am now enjoying that I have full bars of internet connection on my computer so I will be able to do my internet work a lot faster, J and enjoy it more. Do those promised competition prize giveaways for my Kathy Shell fans. A quick look through the five weeks of accumulated mail which included an overdue gas bill, (oops), the dog registration due, three parcels to be collected, and a free life insurance quote, nothing too eventful there. I am sitting here relaxing for a short time, and thinking about what exercise I will do now I do not have those wonderful Grampians mountain ranges outside my caravan door. I am also deciding where to start on the many things I want to do while at home base, before resuming our tour. I want to catch up with my daughter and her family who live in this area soon J and I plan to pack more art supplies than I took with me on tour, the first time.. I had packed and took away on this trip, the pastels, acrylics, watercolours and guess what happened? I felt like painting in oils. Lol, Is that the artist’s prerogative? OK, where do I make a start? I have illustrated this post with some of my favorite photos from the Grampians.                      Aboriginal Rock Art and Natures Rock Art. 03/22/2010
 This week, Reg and I will be revisiting some of the sites in the Grampians, that feature aboriginal rock art, that we have visited in the past and look forward to including these sites in our walks during this, our last week in the Grampians for a while. These sites are- Bunjil's Shelter One of the most important aboriginal rock art sites in the region this site depicts Bunjil, the traditional creator of the land, and his two dingoes. Bunjil was known as a good spirit who created things as they are today and gave the tribes their law and culture. 11 kilometres from Stawell and sign posted off the Stawell-Pomonal Road Gulgurn Manja Shelter Gulgurn Manja means 'hands of young people'. The Gulgurn Manja Shelter displays small hand prints in red ochre. Signage outlines some of the stories and legends of the Jardwadjali people and the mountains they call Gariwerd. Mt Zero Road, Northern Grampians Ngamadjidj Shelter Take this self-guided walk to an Aboriginal art site that depicts the dancing spirit with white painted figures. The walk from the car park to Ngamadjidj Shelter is short and suitable for people with limited mobility. Plantation Road and Grampians Road, Northern Grampians Billimina Shelter Start this walk at the Buandik camping ground and follow Billiamina Creek upstream to the Buandik Falls. From there a short walk leads you to the shelter. This massive rock overhang was once a meeting place for the Jardwadjali people, and is covered with over 2,500 motifs that consist of red ochre bar strokes. Billywing Road off Henty Highway, Western Grampians Manja Shelter This fascinating large rock shelter is on the western side of the Grampians. Manja symbolises the link between the Jardwadjali and their land. It is believed, that the hand stencils were a way of recording a visit to this incredible rock overhang. This rock site also has more hand stencils than any other site in Victoria. Off Harrap Track via Glenelg River Road and Henty Highway, Western Grampians  The Rocks themselves are nature’s art Everywhere we look in the Grampians, we are awestruck by the beauty of the shapes and textures of the rocks. My imagination sees shapes within the rock forms, in fact there are rocks called the ‘Indian’, and 'Elephant’s Hide.’  The massive rock know as the Elephants Hide, viewed from Boroka Lookout, Grampians, Victoria. | Follow me on Facebook at @ Kathy Shell
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