Monday, June 18, 2012

Side by Side at Sydney HQ

'Side by Side' is the philosophy of BIG Kids Magazine to feature the work of kids and artists on the same page, disrupting hierarchies and provoking new ways of seeing.

Twyla and I often work side by side collaborating seriously on images, or singing and making playful marks on a shared page. We don't usually decide what we are going to draw although very often we create some kind of figures or characters that can inhabit the stories we make up. Often the beautiful traces of our paintings end up being lost underneath the sudden fall of night and a whole page covered in black paint, or someone's hair grown so long that it covers up everything that has come before. Other times I whisk the work away while the characters are still visible and we begin a second and third piece continuing a meandering story line or dipping in to make believe tales of long lost brothers and ogre's from bad dreams. 

If you would like to try collaborating with your child you could try the following to get you started:
  • Draw a circle for a head and invite your child to draw the face. Talk about ears and eye brows and hair, hats and bow ties, wrinkles and ear rings and rosy cheeks. 
  • Draw the body slowly so your child has time to jump in and add arms or legs. 
  • Concentrate on details like patterns on shoes or clothing that your child might like to extend or design in their own way. 
I love finding ways to say 'yes' to all the marks that Twyla makes on our shared page rather than trying to direct or curb her impulses. We have been collaborating on work since she first held a paintbrush and have a shared vocabulary now that has accumulated between us.  


Hopscotch Character in response to Game On!
By Lilly Blue and Twyla, age 3
Mother and Child
By Lilly Blue and Twyla, age 3

Friday, June 15, 2012

Picasso to Warhol - get a BIG discount!

The Picasso to Warhol: Fourteen Modern Masters exhibition opens at the Art Gallery of Western Australia tomorrow. It is the first of six major  exhibitions to be shown from The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.  The exhibition features work by a collection of artists who transformed the art and culture of the twentieth century including Henri Matisse, Louise Bourgeois, Marcel Duchamp, Piet Mondrian, Jasper Johns and Jackson Pollock as well as Picasso, Warhol and more.  


The gallery is offering 20% off general admission tickets just by mentioning "BIG Kids" on booking.  Enjoy!  For those (many of you!) outside of WA, we will be teaming with our senior ed to bring you a BIG review very soon :) 


Monday, June 11, 2012

BUZZ Dance Theatre

What kind of treasure do you look for in a dancer? 
"Somebody who can tell a story. It is not about how high they can kick their leg!" Cadi McCarthy, Artistic director of BUZZ Dance Theatre.

In the current issue of BIG we interview the artistic director of Buzz Dance Theatre, Cadi McCarthy who is now days away from giving birth to 'twins' - one a real live baby and the other a new dance production called "Fragile". The BIG boys - senior ed and his sidekick - will be at the Perth opening on Saturday night and are looking forward to the puppetry and animation aspect of the dance. Fragile deals with issues of bullying and how game play can help to find a positive way forward and features dancer Peter Fares who shares a bit of his BIG life as a dancer here:

Peter Fares, photo by James Welsby
First ever dance? Breakdance/hip hop routine in the middle of a Wildcats (Basketball) game in front of a huge crowd!

When did you know you wanted to be a dancer? I was in year 10 at Rossmoyne Senior High School and saw all kids having heaps of fun. Charise Parnell used to have session for boys at lunchtime and we ended up performing what we made.  Then I did one year of Business at uni while dancing with Steps Youth Dance Company before moving to study dance at WAAPA.

If you could grow up again and be something different what would it be? A visual artist even though I am really bad at drawing!

How do you manage your Dancing days? I am very good with how I plan my lifestyle as a dancer. I always make time to do my own thing. Lots of dancers keep their mind on dance 24/7 but I back away for a bit and enjoy the holidays!

What do you treasure most in your life? Friends and family and especially my mum.

See Peter perform in Fragile from June 16. We can't wait!


Bravery is being a strong person in your mind.
Imagination is experience.
Generosity is love. 

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