Exhibition piece sold on the opening night

Today it was take down day for the NZ Art Guild Annual Members Exhibition. I was thrilled to learn that my mosaic artwork 'Our Future', created specifically for this exhibition, sold on the opening night.

Close-up of my panel in the 'Light of my Life' collaborative project

NZ Art Guild Annual Members Exhibition 2011

This evening was the opening night of the New Zealand Art Guild's Annual Members Exhibition. I have two polymer clay mosaic artworks in this exhibition, as well as having done one of the 56 panels in the collaborative project 'Light of my Life'. 

'Light of my Life'

My panel is on the bottom row, second in from the right (see next post for a close-up picture). This large artwork will be auctioned on TradeMe and all the proceeds will go to the charity KidsCan, supporting disadvantaged Kiwi kids.

Our Future – mosaic artwork is now complete

Here is the finished piece.

“Our Future” by Claire Fairweather

30.5cm x 30.5cm, polymer clay tiles on canvas

Designed for the NZ Art Guild Annual Members Exhibition 2011

This mosaic tile artwork has been designed to show the different phases of love during the course of a lifelong relationship – the future for a couple in love

Key to the meaning behind each tile – start at the bottom left hand corner and work round in a clockwise spiral to the centre

5	6	7	8	9
4	19	20	21	10
3	18	25	22	11
2	17	24	23	12
1	16	15	14	13

1	The heart is a universal symbol of love, which is something most people want to experience during their life-time
2	The script style writing reminds me of old fashioned hand-written diaries, where young women often write about their thoughts and feelings for the future
3	The butterflies represent that feeling you get when you first fall in love, along with the dreams, hopes and wishes of how you would like the future to be
4	Is Cupid really responsible for the initial attraction to that special person in your life?
5	Flowers are often given as a gift of love
6	Romance – the word can be written with a flourish and it certainly brings happiness and excitement to everyday life
7	Your heart seems to be bursting with joy when you are in love
8	The blooming rose symbolises a growing relationship
9	The lace texture is evocative of lingerie, worn when a relationship becomes more intimate
10	Passion – this phase in a relationship can be very intense
11	The lips symbolise a kiss, which is often given with great passion
12	The tying of two ribbon ends into a bow, symbolises the joining of two beings as one
13	This tile bears my signature seal, which is incorporated into a pattern of hearts, hugs and kisses
14	Love – the word is impressed into the tile with strength like the emotion it conveys
15	An engagement ring symbolises the beginning of a lifelong committed relationship
16	Commitment – as defined in a marital relationship
17	Wedding bells ring out the joy of marriage
18	The linked hands represent the joining together of two people in holy matrimony
19	A loving background forms the basis of a stable, long-term relationship
20	Shelter and protection are symbolised by the house
21	The different layers within the heart reflect the different types of love
22	The tiny hand and foot prints represent a new arrival
23	Having children makes a family
24	Caring for your partner and family never ceases
25	Into grey, old-age two hearts should still be entwined as one

Invitation to the NZ Art Guild 2011 Annual Members Exhibition - "Our Future"

Completed piece for NZ Art Guild Collaborative Project 2011

Selected portion of my contribution

to the 2011 colaborative project

- Light of my Life

I have completed my part of this collaborative project and posted it off today. Made of large polymer clay 'mosaic' tiles, this is a small portion of it, when it was in progress. I cannot reveal the whole piece until it has been unveiled at the Annual Members Exhibition - Our Future, in July.

Sketch for trial mosaic style

This is a sketch for one of the trial mosaic styles I am working on, in the exercise referred to in the previous post. However, I have had to suspend work on this while I concentrate on my piece for the NZ Art Guild collaborative project. I want to get this done and posted back before I go on my trip back to the UK at Easter.

NZ Art Guild 2011 Collaborative Project – Light of My Life

Last week I received all the instructions and my piece of board for taking part in this project. I am looking for inspiration on the theme ‘Light of My Life’ and still thinking about how my little piece will take shape. One thing that I have decided is that I will make my design out of polymer clay mosaic tiles and stick these to my piece of board. I do not expect any one else will be using polymer clay, so it will stand out as being different – I just want it to look really good, as this is an opportunity for polymer clay to get some publicity and, hopefully, some good press.  

Collaborative opportunity

This year I have decided it would be good to take part in the New Zealand Art Guild's annual collaborative artwork. I have submitted my 'expression of interest' and hope I will be selected to be one of the 49 artists taking part in this years project.

Opening night – and missing brooch

Here are a few photos from the opening night of the “Anything Goes” exhibition.



The highlight, or should I say lowlight, of the evening was discovering on arrival that one of my Art-Brooches had been ‘stolen’. (It must have disappeared sometime between the hanging of the exhibition on Saturday afternoon and Monday evening). The canvas was still there on the panel but the brooch was missing. I guess I should be flattered but it was disappointing that it was the brooch I had made especially for, and named after, the exhibition ("Anything Goes"). So now there is a little notice stuck on the canvas, apologising for the brooch not being there (just visible in the top centre of the photo above).


This is the missing brooch - any help in locating its whereabouts would be greatly appreciated. The design is a one-off original, with the Design Number CF036 on the back.

Hanging the “Anything Goes” exhibition

Today, I went to hang the thirteen pieces (4 small paintings and 9 Art-Brooches) at the Bruce Mason Centre, Takapuna. Here is a picture of my panel, which is well positioned, being one of the first ones you see as you come in the main doors.


I am really looking forward to the opening night, on Monday 3rd May

Invite to opening night of "Anything Goes"

I am proud to have two of my pieces featured amongst the images at the top of this invitation - my 'Seascape with Yachts' Art-Brooch and painting of 'Rangitoto Island'. I will be showing a total of thirteen small pieces of work, four paintings and nine Art-Brooches. This will be the first time I have exhibited work with the New Zealand Art Guild and I am greatly looking forward to the event.