'Seeds of Transformation' Exhibition at the Malvern Art Society Gallery

Open - Thursday 3rd until Sunday 6th November
Hours – Thurs & Fri 11am – 6pm *  Sat & Sun 10am – 5pm

Official Opening & Artist Talk – 2pm Saturday 5th November
 
Gallery - Malvern Artists’ Society
Address -1297-1299 High Street, Malvern

Contact – Ri Van Veen 0439 353359
Email – ri.v.creations@gmail.com

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My life and art have had periods of metamorphosis and I perceive cocoons and seeds as referencing the stages of creating – solitude is needed for contemplation, then a period of confusion as the ideas, skills and knowledge come in staggered and in stages before finally transforming into something new and this also relates to healing. When I first became sick with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in 2004 my life was completely changed forever; the outer me was no longer physically capable of doing much more than get out of bed and my inner self was struggling to comprehend and was fighting what was happening. As I grappled with the physical, mental and social fallout of this illness, I had to go within and I asked myself what did I have to learn?  I tried to focus on what it gave me rather than all that it had erased. I had been forced into a cocoon state, I felt vulnerable, I was in the dark about what lay ahead and it was only through surrendering that I was able to find a new path.
I found clay and it saved me, it transformed my life, saved my sanity and nurtured my soul.
Clay is still my safe space, my play space, where creativity flows and grows.
 
Clay is the miraculous mud that seeds ideas ready for transformation.

This exhibition was supported by the Creative Victoria - Sustaining Creative Workers Initiative Grant