Hello!
After last week's wintry weather, it has been unseasonably warm today...
but be warned: the cold winds will return later in the week..
Now you all know I love a bird, and enjoy the lorikeets who visit every day..
so you can imagine how captivated I was to find this fascinating installation in GoMA this week:
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| Madeleine Kelly, Spectra of birds' 2014-15 |
The artist, Madeleine Kelly, has recreated a series of Australian birds using Tetra Pak drink containers. The whimsical creations are easily identified, and it is a fun piece, with an underlying message of ecological awareness.
The artist recycles used containers, coating them with encaustic (heated wax with coloured pigment added).
The work is accompanied by a list of endangered birds which she would like to see in her area, and recreate as art.
The good old Aussie Galah..
Blue fairy wrens (we have these at our place)
These are part of the exhibition GomaQ, featuring local Queensland artists..
and speaking of birds, you might remember I started a couple of succulent gardens.
Well, the other day when we were out, we were visited by a flock of these naughty guys:
I returned to find my plants broken to pieces, all over the floor of the deck!
They don't eat them, they just do it for entertainment!!
I have salvaged what I can, and popped bits back in the tray to start over.
I don't know if these odd petals will shoot, but it's worth a try.
And it's a good thing I like birds, or I'd be out there with a slingshot....
Went to the Queensland Opera the other night:
'Candide' by Leonard Bernstein - (remember West Side Story?)
The Overture of Candide is often played and I love it - but had no idea of the story. It is a fun version of Voltaire's philosophies and the Enlightenment,
as Candide looks for the Best of all Possible Worlds..
Here's another version from YouTube:
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I hope your week is also the Best of all Possibilities..
XXXX
It would cheer me up seeing those lorikeets too. We've got the fire on here and it is supposed to be summer!!!
ReplyDeleteLorikeets always bring a smile, Jenny :)
DeleteThe world's climates have all gone crazy - hot one day, cold the next. I can't plan ahead what to wear any more..
The lorikeets are so pretty. We don't have any birds here in western Canada with such stunning colours. That's so disappointing to have come home and found your succulent garden destroyed. I would have been furious. Is there anything you can put out to discourage them?
ReplyDeleteYes, great colour scheme in the lorikeets plumage, Kristie. I guess it is a tropical thing. I was rather furious about the succulents, having nurtured them for months. Nothing discourages the cockatoos, but I have moved the succulents to the other side of the house where they don't seem to go. Fingers crossed!
DeleteThe lorikeets are sooooo colorful, Trish. I can see why you love to see them. I'd bet the leaves from the plant will root and grow.
ReplyDeleteBreakfast with lorikeets is very nice, Linda. I just have to remember to put out their seed. Sometimes they call out to us, if we are not quick enough. Fingers crossed for the plants.
DeleteWhat an interesting exhibit. My husband adores birds and he would love to see that. I can't believe you have so many wild lorikeets there! I love them. I once visited a zoo exhibit where you could walk through and feed them from cups of nectar. It was really fun because they would dive-bomb you for the nectar! It was even a little scary at times but I loved it. I hope you have a good week, Patricia.
ReplyDeleteI saw the tetra pack birds again today, Jennifer, and I still love them. They will be very popular with the public. Your husband would surely enjoy it. We actually have a couple of zoos in our location which do the nectar feeding of the lorikeets - however, they fly free and have just learned to come to the zoo at feeding time. Thank you, let's have good weeks all round :))
DeleteHow fascinating is the art installation. Those cockies can be very wicked. Hope your remnants shoot for you xx
ReplyDeleteAt least once a year, we have a dedicated cockatoos attack day! It happens when we are not around to chose them off, and they have quite the party. So far so good with the little plants. xx
DeleteThe bird exhibition is very interesting isn't it! So many different birds and all very recognisable too. Sorry that your plants got mischieved by the birds! I hope they will be OK - the plants that is! xx
ReplyDeleteThe group of birds is very popular. It is intriguing how the artist can colour and shape the boxes just enough for people to see both the original package and the bird it represents. Very clever. The plants are doing their best, and as for the birds, I am casting dark looks at them, and giving the occasional rude shout! xx
DeleteWhat naughty birds you have Patricia, but so do we. H puts places compost on the borders, we go out, and return to find it scattered absolutely everywhere. Your succulents should regrow they will put out little roots from the petals.
ReplyDeleteThe bird exhibit is fun, and I suspect that Little Aussie would enjoy seeing them too and perhaps emulating them himself.
Oh, I am surprised that you have naughty birds too, Rosemary. I think of English birds as polite little red robins and blackbirds! Yes, I think Aussie will like the birds. He was interested when I showed him my photos, and asked me to take him to the gallery to 'talk about the art'. There is a Children's Art Centre with good activities, so we will organise to go some time soon.
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ReplyDeleteOh Tricia, I have never seen lorikeets, but now you have seen a real red cardinal! So there's hope for me. Nothing beats Mother Nature for vivid colors!
DeleteOh your garden was so lovely. I hope you save it! My father had similar naughty feathered boys who tried to eat his tomatoes. But at least they were eating and not just amusing themselves. He outsmarted the birds by roping the tomatoes off with kit string, then putting pieces of aluminum foil on the rope, so that the reflection of the sun would scare the birds off. I believe it worked. I wonder if your naughty birds are too sophisticate to fall for it.
I wonder if there are lorikeets in any zoos in America? I did see them once in a zoo in New Zealand. Or you will have to fly over here for a visit, Debra!
DeleteI like the idea of the trick with foil, but alas I suspect our naughty birds would just find a way to play with that too. We also have black crows which steal stones or shells from the garden, fly up on the roof, and have fun rolling them down the slope! I think they know just whose house to go to for playing games :)
Mmm, those cockatoos will have a go at just about anything...
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed for the succulents, and for your new ideas!!
Hello!
ReplyDeleteI love that you call your blog "Red Cardinal"! When my English mother in law saw our cardinals on our deck, she was amazed and even more so when I told her we see them everyday!
I love birds too and I would love to see your birds there! Love the art that you have shown us here.
Also, I see you were a fan of The Sulky Kitten blog too...I miss her! So funny!
Hello Kay, and welcome to my blog. I am happy that you found me, and envy you the cardinals on your deck. Recently we visited our daughter in Canada, and I saw my first red cardinal one day flying through her trees. That was my only sighting - for me they are quite beautiful, and mythical.
DeleteI'm glad you enjoyed the bird art, and love that you love birds too!
Ah, Sulky Kitten - I miss her too. I live in hope - maybe she'll come back one day :)
Another lovely visit my dear! I so love seeing glimpses into your life in Brisbane … and always enjoy learning along the way! xox
ReplyDeleteThank you dear Tamera, I love to see your Californian life too - especially those wonderful date nights at the beach! xox
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DeleteI cannot imagine you having cold winds there, Patricia! Your flowering shrubs and the lorikeets are too beautiful. And as for the 'container art', they are wonderful!
ReplyDeleteYou'd be surprised how cold the west winds of August can be in Brisbane, Val. Bitterly cold, and as they only last a few days we are never really ready for it. We just shiver and make do until they go away. Lorikeets send you greetings!
DeletePatricia, you really do have the most exotic looking birds. I can't tell you how fascinating they are to me. That would be such a sight if I saw those lorikeets in my front yard, and that soft, white feathery bird is gorgeous. The opera sounds delightful. I've never been to the opera and it has always interested me.
ReplyDeleteHave a splendid Friday.
love, ~Sheri
Ha, the soft white feathery bird is deceptively cute, isn't he? They really are Very Naughty, Sheri :)
DeleteYou must go to the opera, one day - it is a great combination of all the arts! Splendid Friday to you too. xx