8 January 2012

Living the grass roots life.


'The Shack Out The Back'
...is a special place for me. It's only a humble little out-house, with no electricity and no running water. One of the glass windows was missing so I had to replace it with some heavy duty clear plastic. Does the job fine and keeps out rain and weather. All  my paintings are stored here and I also paint sometimes in here, if not outdoors. I refused a traditional washing line in favour of an ad -hoc line made of branches and string. ....the backyard vista looks poetic in my eyes.



I've been renovating small kitchen items. A once dark blue enamelware vase has taken on a fresh look in white enamel paint. Looks really nice now filled with fresh hydrangeas from the garden.



.......very old canisters covered in layers of paint , scrubbed backto reveal the shiny metal beneath. I did this without the need for chemicals, by submerging them in boiling water for 15 minutes and then, scraping away the paint. Revealing some of the original labels which probably date back to early 1900's australian . I decided to leave some of this original paintwork on the tins which now gleam.
We are enjoying a cooler spell here in Melbourne, after the onslaught of heat last week. With temperatures reaching 40 degrees, I escaped outside and painted in the shade. We have no air - conditioning in this home,  
but a fan does suffice, coupled with the occasional drenching with water. Have no desire to pump up the electricity usage when the over- use of electricity is part to blame for the extreme temperatures facing us in this day and age. Australia's early settlers managed , and so can we.