October adventures

It’s a sweet grey day in the outdoor studio, midway through a three-piece sculpture commission that has kept me in my Patonga hideout most of this month.

August and September slipped by without my sending you a single update, yet I’ve lost no pledges and received no complaints—for which I’m humbly grateful ???? To have your backing in spirit, let alone the regular remittance, is my biggest prop, and the freedom NOT to have to update you with merciless regularity is a blessing (probably for all of us).

That said, we are way overdue, so here goes. These are today’s images of works in progress for the commission; I expect to finish around the end of the month. Meanwhile I pop back to Sydney on Sundays to pose for another sculptor, Jenny Pollak, who’s running a 6-week course at the Tom Bass Studio Sculpture School. (Actually it’s a 9-week course, but they have the model for 6.) Between the two, my income this month won’t quite reach $650/week, but it’s probably enough to wipe out JobSeeker. Lucky my costs are low.

So my days are spent cutting and sanding, measuring and shaping, wielding power tools and rasps and chisels and brushes and a vacuum cleaner. And in between, I swim in the sea and take my meal breaks in a bird-filled garden.

Al, my partner (most of you know him in person—if you don’t, I highly recommend it; he’s excellent value), is a wonderful wife (and not ashamed to claim it). So lunch is laid on—cold meats, cheeses and salad—and dinner is often ready when I get out of the shower after dusk. As hard-working low-income lifestyles go, it’s pretty damn fine.

And of course, around and between this simple rent-paying venture, the plans for the YouTube channel continue to develop—albeit delayed by the disruption. We now have a 10-minute script, rough stage directions, provisional costumes and some storyboarding. I’ve taken delivery of a projection screen which will descend between my dining room and dance floor, giving me a well-lit white background—something not available anywhere else in the Art Asylum. Shooting, originally (re)scheduled for October-November, is now planned for November-December. It’s a punchy, edgy dramatised monologue about the politics of penetration. Don’t know what that is but it sounds intriguing? Don’t miss the video.

Stay tuned, you never know when I might post a random update. If you want more, the sterling way to get prompt feedback is to engage—write me. Send thoughts. I appreciate you as always, and in every way ????

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