I've never been to New York, Ohhhhhhhhhh I dream, I can't wait to one day visit this inspiring city!!!! I've even looked on Google Earth to see Central Park, 5th Ave and my favourite shops from an above view, I'm crazy I know! But there are so many things about this city that I love and I haven't even been there yet. The street fashion is an obsession of mine, but I also love seeing inside New Yorker's homes, particularly old warehouse apartments! They all seem to have these amazing brick walls, covered in art and photos, which becomes a wonderful backdrop for modern and contemporary furniture! this is what inspired me to strip back the white paint of our brick wall in the lounge room, leaving bits of old paint here and there, exposing the original brick. I've never been a fan of painted feature walls, but for some reason I LOVE the idea of having a feature wall of old rustic bricks. I haven't started it yet, I've been to the paint shop, the can of paint stripper awaits to be applied! LITTLE NERVOUS! This could end up a disaster! I'll let you know how I go! (click on photos to see enlarged detail)

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As I've said I'm no art expert, but that's the thing with art, everyone has their own opinion and that's what can make art so controversial! So, I thought I'd see what you think about the recent scandal with Sam Leach. The 2010 winner of the Archibald (portrait) and the Wynne (landscape) prizes. He is only the third artist to have won both prizes since Brett Whitely in 1978. He certainly has been in the hot seat in the last weeks over his winning landscape 'Proposal for landscaped cosmos'. Sam is from Adelaide and is known for his stunning rendered paintings that are referenced from the technique and motifs of 17th century Dutch paintings, and traditional Baroque techniques. These paintings were done to inspire landscape gardeners to appreciate those idealised forms. HOWEVER, this painting seems a DEAD RINGER of Adam Pynacker's 17th Century Dutch landscape 'Boatman moored on the shore of a lake' (click on images to see detail)


Well, for me, my opinion (we all have our own) I'm just not sure and confused? The NSW Gallery states that the winning entry for the Wynne is chosen for having "the best landscape painting of Australian scenery in oils or watercolours or for the best example of figure sculpture by Australian artists" When I look at them both, OMG!!!!! I can't help but think they come from the same family. I'm sure it's a stunning painting with mind blowing detail, but it certainly isn't an original.

PLAGIARISM? FORGERY? DOES IT DESERVE THE HONOUR OF WINNING SUCH A PRESTIGIOUS AUSTRALIAN ART AWARD?

WHAT DO YOU THINK?..............................


P.S. Sam Leach I think loves a bit of controversy, check out another Archibald entry he did, self portrait!!!!!

'Keep calm and carry on' has always interested me as a graphic, when I see this poster and read it I seem to actually calm down!!!! So I've been thinking I might buy one, frame it and strategically place it some where in our house, in the hope that it will make me a calmer mother and wife (do miracles really occur???!!) I actually didn't know the history behind this poster and found it fascinating to read it never really was officially printed, and was created in 1939 after the outbreak of war, the British Government designed 3 morale boosting posters to display in public, to basically cheer people up during such testing times. The plan was for this poster to be released upon the invasion of Britain by Germany, which never happened, so it didn't go ahead. It wasn't until 60 years later when a bookseller stumbled across a copy in some books he bought at auction, that it re-surfaced! Such simple words and such basic graphics, but amazing we still find it so appealing and reassuring in our modern times!!!!

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