‘There was once… the collected fairy tales’ in the State Library of Queensland

This week I was happily surprised to learn that There was once… the collected fairy tales (2009), the first book I ever wrote and the first ever Moth Woman Press publication, is part of the permanent collection of the State Library of Queensland. The book is on display in the Australian Library of Art Showcase on level 4.  

The ALA Showcase is currently focusing on fantasy literature, nonsense and fairy tales. My book is paired with the catalogue of The enchanted forest - new gothic storytellers (2008), a NETS Australia touring exhibition curated by Jazmina Cininas, who wrote the catalogue essay, as well as participating in the exhibition, along with Louise Weaver, Milan Milojevic, Louiseann Zahra-King, James Morrison and me. The works I made for The enchanted forest were the catalyst for the first of my fairy tales, beginning with The Story of the Moth Masks. 

Installation views: Christene Drewe, Specialist Librarian, State Library of Queensland. Click on images to enlarge.

MWP publications at THE BALLARAT IMAGINARIUM

As of this week, MWP books There was once…The collected fairy tales and Fallen Women are available at the splendid Ballarat Imaginarium. 

Adjacent to historic Ballarat Mechanic’s Institute Library in centrally located Sturt Street, Ballarat (pictured top), this new kid on the block is set to be the go-to gallery and retail outlet for locals and visitors alike. What sets it aside from the rest is that it’s the only retailer in Ballarat that exclusively carries works by local makers, including visual artists, sculptors, ceramicists, jewellers, clothing designers, musicians, writers and more. 

The Ballarat Imaginarium is the result of the remarkable vision of local artist, Melinda Muscat, pictured above. 

The previous occupant of the shop was another notable MWP stockist, Playing in the Attic, which still carries our books and zines, but has relocated to nearby Talbot. It is due to reopen in March. (More about this in a future post). 

Click on images to enlarge. 

For regular updates, visit the Ballarat Imaginarium’s Instagram page HERE and on Facebook HERE.

The Ballarat Imaginarium

119A Sturt Street, BALLARAT, VIC 3550

Open Tuesday to Friday 10 am - 5 pm

Saturday 10 am - 5 pm

Sunday by appointment 

For further information about The Ballarat Imaginarium and views of its luscious interior, visit my Art Blog HERE.

New zines at Playing in the Attic

We’re delighted to announce that the four MWP zines recently launched at the 2020 Sticky Institute Festival of the Photocopier Zine Fair (pictured top) are now available at Playing in the Attic in Ballarat. The shop has also stocked up on new copies of two old favourites, our books There was once...The collected fairy tales and Fallen Women.

Playing in the Attic
119a Sturt Street
Ballarat (VIC) 3350

Phone: 0428 580 309
Hours: Wednesday - Saturday 10 am - 4 pm

PRINTS 1987 - 2016

 

Thalaina macfarlandi Moth Mask (2009, hand coloured linocut, 15 x 15 cm) 

Thalaina macfarlandi Moth Mask (2009) is one of four Moth Masks linocuts (1) selected by curator TJ Bateson for my solo show, PRINTS 1987 - 2016 at Tacit Contemporary Art. 

The exhibition launch is this evening, 14 September, from 6.30 – 8 pm. 

The Moth Masks series was the inspiration for one of my first fairytales, The Story of the Moth Masks, (2) and several of the moth-masked women appeared in my artist book, Women With Wings (2010). Moreover, the Moth Women were precursors to the dark and dangerous Moth Women Vigilantes, already the subject of numerous Moth Woman Press publications.

Tacit Contemporary Art

312 Johnston Street,

Abbotsford, Vic, 3067

tacitart.com.au

Phone: 0423 323 1888

Hours: Wednesday - Friday 11 am - 6 pm
Saturday - Sunday 11 - 5 pm

PRINTS 1987 – 2016 runs until 2 October.

(1) The other three are:
Cyana mericki Moth Mask (2009)
Birthana cleis Moth Mask (2009) and
Scoliacma biclora Moth Mask (2009).

(2) First published in There was once... the collected fairy tales, Moth Woman Press, 2009

Your Invitation to the APW Print Fair

Pictured top: Enchanted Hair Ornament #3, 2009,
hand coloured linocut, 30.5 x 23.5 cm, ed. 30

As previously noted, the characters dominating my prints at this weekend’s APW Print Fair, namely the moth-masked women, the butterfly-winged women and the eight sisters whose elaborately coiffed tresses are adorned with enchanted hair ornaments, all appeared in my first fairy tales.

This has prompted me to include one last work in the Print Fair: the Special Edition of There was once… the collected fairy tales, which includes a small linocut, Lace Lepidopteran. It is limited to an edition of 20. Moth Eaten, another fairy tale contained in the book, was the inspiration for the print.

To preview the rest of the work, scroll down to our last blog post, Saturday, 4 October.

Special edition of There was once... with linocut
Lace Lepidopteran, 2010,
16 x 10.5 cm, ed.20

My prints and I will be at the Print Fair on both days; we hope you will stop by.

APW Print Fair
Australian Print Workshop

Fitzroy, 3065

T: 03 9419 5466

E: auspw@bigpond.com

www.australianprintworkshop.com

Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 October

Hours: 10 am–5 pm each day.

Melbourne Launch of 'There was once... The Collected Fairy Tales' at Chapman and Bailey Gallery, Melbourne, December 1, 2009

Images from top:

Shane Jones installing the exhibition of the works that inspired the stories

Deborah Klein photographed during the installation on the morning of December 1

Doug Willis (print layout and co-designer of There was once...)

Mark Chapman, Director of Chapman and Bailey, listening to Robert Heather's reading of the fairy tale Just Dessert, one of the evening's highlights

Deborah Klein, Mark Chapman and Robert Heather

Deborah Klein with Damian Kelly, General Manager, Print Council of Australia, and Shirley Murdoch

Foreground: Bill Reid and Lisa Sassella, General Manager, Marketing, National Gallery of Victoria; Background, left to right: Damian Kelly, Robert Heather, and (far left) Brian MacDonald, editor and proof reader of There was once...

From Left: Madeline Say, Picture Collection Librarian, State Library of Victoria, Adrian Saunders, Des Cowley, Manager, Rare and Printed Collections, State Library of Victoria, Alice Parker and Gerda van Hamond

From Left: Ann Holt, Euan Heng, Caroline Durre

Click on images to enlarge