Friday Friends - West Australian Artists - Tanya Cole Arts

Hello again readers, Friday is here. The sun is shining bright this morning, it's looking like a perfect winters day. I am hoping to spot some elusive whales on the coast here over the weekend, fingers crossed this lovely weather hangs around for a little longer :) 

This week it is my great pleasure to introduce to you an artist from one of my favourite regions in WA, meet the very clever creative Tanya Cole of Tanya Cole Arts! 

I stumbled across the work of Tanya Cole quite by happy accident and am so glad I did. Her work is just fabulous, her images strong and I hope they resonate with you all as they did with me.

I really enjoyed browsing through her collection of works. Let me share some of my favourites with you now. The first piece is 

"Enjoy all your life moments" - this should be a mantra for us all, I really adore this painting!

Next is "Forest Fairies Dreaming" - this piece reminds me of carefree childhood days where you would see magic all around. Sometimes we lose sight of that magic when we "grow up".

Finally, this mixed media work in progress is just so beautiful; don't you agree? 

Dear readers, I invite you now to take some time out, put your feet up for a short while and read "The Palette of Tanya Cole Arts". I hope you enjoy this feature as much as I did. 

Happy Reading x♥o  

The Palette of Tanya Cole Arts
Who is Tanya Cole Arts? I am a Mixed Media Artist, OT and Expressive Art + Wellness Facilitator (Hope Illuminator, Spirit Inspirer + Soul Bloomer); based in Dunsborough, Western Australia.

Tell me about your creative side, how did you get started? 
I have always loved the practical aspects of using my hands to mould, make and create. I remember cutting up my dads Emu Export cardboard beer carton to create a two storey house for my barbie doll, with a string-pulley lift inside lol! I also had one of those spirographs that kept me enthralled and fascinated at the shapes that appeared. I'd spend hours sketching my family as they watched TV and loved art classes at school; right up to the end of year 12. 

I wanted to and had aimed to do fine arts at uni, however my parents very much encouraged me towards the sciences. I studied Occupational Therapy as it was the only course which had a creative side (I loved woodwork and acrylic design). Fortunately I fell in love with being an OT, as it opened up my heart to give and help and heal. I have specialised in Hand + Upper Limb Rehabilitation, so I got to make thermoplastic splints, melting and moulding, cutting and adhering and adjusting. 

I dabbled in my art, painting a few acrylic paintings here and there over the years (mostly when I was inspired by the highly creative places I was living; like in Broome, as well as here in Dunsborough. Once I hit the magical 40 and had completed all of our baby making and birthing; I started to  think about what brings me deep joy and contentment (other than my children and of course my hubby).

I knew I had to rekindle, evoke and reunite with my artist within, to give me back my soul nourishment. So almost 3 years ago I passionately got going and haven't looked back. The surprising gift that came from not completing a fine arts degree, is that I didn't have any structure to follow, so I just followed the fire in my belly and the things that got me so inspired that I stayed up all night to pursue. 

When I declared myself, a Mixed Media Artist; it was liberating, freeing and joyful, as I was able to incorporate my former love of sewing with painting and drawing (my mother-in-law taught me how to sew ragged quilts and from there I became addicted and started making a lot of hand-made ruffle bum bloomers and art dolls and owls, you can see my old fb page here bubbleandbear.

It has a few of my earlier paintings on it but if you look in photo albums you will see all the sewed items. I stopped using that page after getting spammed and scammed!).I love the freedom MM art provides. It's like a disclaimer…if I get uninspired by creating one way, I can always change things up, learn new techniques and not feel locked in. I'm libran…I have to feel FREE lol! 

In addition to my MM art, I am also an Intuitive painter which allows me to incorporate my deep need to help others, to inspire women and young girls to find their happiness and joy in life. I love to create pieces with messages that speak to them, that uplift and open windows flowing to deep personal growth. You can find my current Facebook page here tanyacoleartist.  Would love you to come and say a little hello.

What inspires you, what are your current sources of inspiration?

Very often I will be going about my day preparing food for my three boys, or pottering around the house, or in the shower and my mind will drift off to something I discussed with a patient or friend. Some insight from our discussion…their expressed suffering or experience in life and my reflective listening and it will inspire a saying or message that kind of sums up what we talked about. 

It ends up being the name of the next painting and then I sit down and start sketching or splashing paint or inks around and a piece transpires with a quote or saying on the painting. It's usually a personal growth insight that I need to harness also, but mostly I feel like if I can share it out there in the world, hopefully it will move someone and help them.

And it does. I often get very moving messages from people expressing how a certain piece has touched their life, or moved them forward in some way in some aspect of their lives. I feel incredibly moved and honoured and excited that my art can reach people like that. It totally is my intention and it totally motivates and inspires me to keep growing and keep creating. I am very much drawn to creating whimsical girls and animals and various aspects of nature. 

My three boys inspire me, but in a negative space kind of way lol! They are gorgeous, don't get me wrong, but because the masculine energy is so dominant in our house, I am driven to paint very feminine based paintings with lots of pink! It's weird because I don't see myself as really girly but obviously there is something inside of me needing expression, so I just go with it. I love, love reading and absorbing art magazines and book and having new art supplies arrive to try out and experiment with. The other amazing thing is that my inspiration spikes just before ovulation…totally blows me away how our creativity can ebb and flow in sync with our menstrual cycle.

What mediums do you work with - do you have a favourite ?

Acrylic Paints, Graphite Pencil, Pen, Ink/Stencils + Water Soluble Crayons + Coloured Pencils for detailed shaded faces, paper, fabric, sequins and beads. I love them all!

Do you have a favourite technique? 

I love the freedom and the not knowing side to Intuitive painting. Basically, you just get in front of your substrate and start playing with paint and colour and mark making and then something you had absolutely no idea would appear comes to the fore. It is totally captivating and I do believe that the spirit of our ancestors start making themselves known when you are in the zone and start guiding you to find what it is you are needing to express into reality. 

It's really quite an enlightening experience. It brings such joy that I want the whole world to experience that joy too and that’s my plan…paint and wine nights with other wondrous women. I have grand plans! :) I love the dancing and the intention setting and meditative process involved in Intuitive painting…it helps keep me on track in how I should be living my life in a much more holistic, healthy and fuller way.

What kind of things do you make, create? 

I create large intuitive paintings on canvas, mostly using acrylic and I also do smaller illustrative drawings that I then turn into mixed media pieces; often on canvas but sometimes onto wood or canvas board.

Do you have a favourite piece that you have created ?

I love the journey I went on when I created 'Hope. Believe. Embrace'. It's quite a sentimental and symbolic piece for me, so I chose to keep it in my private collection. I was very surprised when I came out of the zone (painting trance), as the painting evolved very quickly and I was surprised to see what was there. It was definitely something deep within, that was in a rush to be expressed before my ego mind squished that lovely nowhere~everywhere space I was fortunate enough to be inhabiting.

I also drew/created a whimsical girls face of a family friend for her commission piece 'I am with you' (pictured at the top of this post). I love that I captured a little bit of the essence of her. She is just love and light and has those squinty eyes that smile. I see her when I look at it, so I that’s my favourite face so far.

There is also a meaningful bunny piece I drew around Easter. I was kind of contemplating the deeper meaning of that time for my kids sake and created it when I was deep in feeling~thought. 
It's called 'The Hare That Cared'. 

I haven't done anything with it yet but plan to incorporate it into a mixed media piece. I keep thinking of it, so I know I will come back to it at some stage.

What are your future plans,dreams,aspirations ?

Ooh! I have many future plans, dreams and aspirations. I plan to keep consistently building my business, learning, persisting with the bits that aren't so compelling to engage in (structured paperwork stuff), I plan to develop 'how to' videos on tips and techniques, run small workshops for women, as well as teenage girls. I plan to bring my OT into it a lot more and provide 1:1 counselling with art expression to help people deal with such things as depression, eating disorders, life events, life dissatisfaction, growth and personal evolvement.  

I dream of building a big mezzanine level in the kids playroom, to become a larger studio where I can run my paint, wine ~ with ~women nights and paint to my hearts content. I dream of doing my first solo exhibition in an art gallery. I dream of painting becoming my full-time love~job. I dream of being published in art magazines, of publishing a book and hopefully one day, offering online classes. I dream of connecting with my community and bringing the love of creativity to shine in everyone's lives…particularly kids, those who are suffering and the heart + mind locked-down people. I aspire to being a better artist every year. I aspire to my art making shifts in peoples lives for the positive. I aspire to healing the world and our planet. I've got a lot to do! :)

Do you have any exhibitions or markets coming up? 

I currently have some of my artwork exhibited at a local winery The Growers Handcrafted Wines (thegrowerswine). Phil and Doreen who run the winery are just gorgeous and the wines are divine! Phil is a tremendous supporter of art and artists.  I am also hoping to exhibit at Clancy's in Dunsborough again this year and will be entering the Vasse Art Awards once again and hopefully other nationwide art competitions. I am also currently in negotiation with a local Tearoom, to start putting some prints and smaller, originals in their shop. I will be taking a break from commission paintings for a few weeks, so that I can immerse myself in creating a body of work for exhibit. Very exciting times and I'm excited! 

Thanks so much for this opportunity to share with you Samara and your readers of your blog. In writing this, it helps crystallise a lot of hopes and dreams for me. Best wishes and happy creating. 

X Tanya 

Here are some other places to view Tanya Cole Arts:

Website: 

http://tanyacolearts.com (still a work in progress), 
Etsy Shop: 
https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/TanyaColeArt  
Twitter: 
https://twitter.com/tanyacolearts
Instagram: 
http://instagram.com/tanyacolearts  
Flicker: 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tanyacolearts
and Pinterest: 
http://www.pinterest.com/tancolearts

Friday Friends - West Australian Artists - Andrew (AKA OHP)

Happy Friday lovely Maddabling readers - phew what a week! How's things in your part of the world? There is a long weekend coming up here, it's kind of nice to have an extra day added to your weekend. 

This week it is my great pleasure to introduce you to Andrew (aka OHP), this weeks Friday Friend. Andrew is a fellow West Australian and passionate music lover who also happens to be an extraordinary leather worker! 

Andrew will be taking over the Maddabling blogging reigns as my Guest Blogger this week. I don't get to feature blokes all that often and you will just LOVE his work. My other half worked in leather work as a trade (in an earlier life) so I truly appreciate the work and skill that goes along with this craft. Here are a few favourites that I had to share with you all.  Aren't they gorgeous ? 

I was also particularly captivated by this series of photos showing a restoration, from old to new again. Love love love it!  

Dear readers I  now invite you to take a little YOU time, sit back and relax, and read a very inspirational story, The Lowdown on OHP's Leathers. I hope you find his story as fascinating as I did. Have a fab weekend everyone x 

The Lowdown on OHP's Leathers

G'day, I'm Andrew  and my passion is leather. 

I have been doing leather work for 9 years and I've worked with a variety of leathers including Cane Toad leather. I think my journey started  shortly after working as a rousy in hot smelly  shearing sheds from dawn to dusk every day. It wasn't good for my health , it also landed me in hospital, and in a lot of pain, however, work was also hard to find in my central wheatbelt town in WA. 

It wasn't long before I asked myself a simple question " what  can I do with my hands?" as I've always been quite creative , and virtually out of the blue, I decided to try my hand at leather craft. I have never worked with leather at all at this time, not even in school.

I went to my local library and borrowed the only  1970's book on leather craft numerous times, I  found some leather craft suppliers , commandeered my Mothers sewing room ( much to her disgust) and it went from there. It started mainly as  a hobby at first, but then realised that I could make a few dollars out of it. But best of all,  it was the buzz of actually making something with my own hands that I loved.

There were successes and failures at first, but mostly successes, but as the saying goes, 'we learn from our mistakes', and much to my surprise, I became quite good at it and I really  to enjoyed it. Many people took a lot of interest in what I was selling  at the markets, mainly small items like key rings , book marks and just a handful of belts.....I was even more surprised when they started to place orders.

I still have my early 'attempts'  and my mistakes at leather craft in a box under my workbench , and I do occasionally  compare those pieces to what I can do now, and  boy, what a difference. With the knowledge of leather that I have now accumulated , I can make myself whatever I please....and I love it!!

Over time , I took every opportunity to increase my   knowledge of leathers and  obtained a lot of books, patterns, tools and contacts  etc. and all I wanted to do is  learn and create more . Years later, I now have my own workshop and my own business , ........and my Mother has got her sewing room back.

I see art everywhere, and it's ironic that I hated art class in high school, but I think that was more to with the teacher than the art itself. Art engages the mind. , and like leather, no two items are the same, no matter how hard I try.

A lot of   my creativity comes from my Mother's side, as she was a seamstress by trade in the UK, even sewing for royalty. She  also made and taught pottery, taught spinning,  as well as making her own wool  and later with our own sheep and making  knitted garments for us as well as for others. Although she doesn't do pottery anymore, she  still sews, knits  and makes an assortment of handicrafts for the markets. That creativity still flows between us. We  often bounce ideas off each other. 

One of the sewing machines I use, a Pfaff 60 approx 60 years old, (now in my workshop), is what she once used to make our clothes on  when we were kids and during her seamstress days, a good indication of how strong and reliable the machine is.

I have found that 'word-of-mouth'  and some simple flyers and business cards  would have to be my most  successful means of advertising, and obviously, working hard making a good product, which has also created a good reputation for me. It still continues to keep me quite busy.

I have tried some online and newspaper ads, but that doesn't seem to work as well for me. I do a lot of craft markets ( its over a 1000+ now) , and I have learnt that people  are very tactile and like to see and feel the product, and even smell the product.The 'smell' of my stall could  be advertising in itself eh?

I do sometimes go on a website forum  called 'leatherworker.net' , which is very helpful if I get stuck on something or I need help with my machines, or I sometimes help others. It helps anyone from the absolute beginner to the advanced and experienced leather workers. Its a great way to show off, share ideas, troubleshoot, and no question is a 'silly question' .

I make a wide variety of items like belts, bags, tool cases, book marks, keyrings,wrist bands, just too many items to list. But belts are my biggest seller, my 'bread and butter' so to speak. The cheap and nasty imports are the biggest complaints amongst my customers who prefer a handmade item.

I do get a lot of joy from turning a blank piece of leather into something really beautiful that will hopefully outlast me. I can do all the hand carving , tooling,  and hand stitching and every item is all handcrafted. I don't always use sewing machines. Hand stitching is quite therapeutic and has a more traditional look. 

I also do a lot of assorted custom work and some harness work for horses. I also do horse rug repairs. I took advantage of a hole in the market in my area. I would love someone to teach me how to make or repair saddles , and I'd especially love to learn how to do the fancy  harness work, with all the 'bling' on draught horses one day. 

There have been so many favourite pieces that I have made over the years, but most recently, I have a couple of pieces. One is a stubby holder with a beer logo stitched in on one side ( one of my bright ideas), and a carved horse on the other. Horses are often difficult for me to carve and I practice doing them as much as I can , but on this occasion, I think I've almost nailed it.

My other favourite at the moment, is an old handbag that was in dire need of some love.

I made something old  new again. There was no set plan as to what to do with it, my 'creative juices' start to flow .

I  just see an image in my head and go with it  and that was the end result. But I do set myself a challenge with old leather bags. I can't cut the original  leather in any way. All main leather components have to be kept in the original shape or form. I can add extra trim,  add new hardware , change colour if I want to, and I've achieved just that.

My hobby , my love of art , hard work and perseverance has now turned into a seven day a week small business that I am so proud of.
You can see so much more of my work  on my photo page :  http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=ohpwa  and no doubt you'll see it grow in the future.