Baby monkey study in Central Park Launceston

This little guy loved interacting with the children through the glass.

Creative Quote of the day
I learned the way a monkey learns, by way of watching its parents.
Prince Charles



 

Launceston, a morning spent in town

 We went into town to have a look around to have a good coffee, photograph  the architecture and to City Park to see the Macaque monkeys and trees.
 .

This city has one of the best collection of intact  Georgian and Victorian architecture in Australia.

 

 The beautiful detailed artwork and craftsmanship makes you yearn for these places in your own city.
How could anyone living in this elegant place not have an appreciation for art and culture and creativity?

 This park has formal plantings of trees and garden, heritage fountains and of course the monkeys which they obtained in the 1980's.

This  is a bronze sculpture of a botanist, bronze sculptures are everywhere in Launceston.

 

The detail on these types of works is awe inspiring.  

This is a fountain that is shaped like a bird cage was gifted to the park by Queen Victoria.

 

Sculptures are everywhere in this city.

Tasmanian Tigers in bronze

 Women are honoured as well, it's a beautiful thing to see female  figures as part of buildings.

Creative quotes of the day

Sculpture is the art of the intelligence.
Pablo Picasso
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/sculpture.html#tCJWvJvtetqljLKe.99

Sculpture is the art of the intelligence.
Pablo Picasso
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/sculpture.html#tCJWvJvtetqljLKe.99

Sculpture is the art of the intelligence.
Pablo Picasso
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/sculpture.html#tCJWvJvtetqljLKe.99

"Sculpture is the art of intelligence"
Pablo Picasso

"What sculpture is to a block of marble, education is to the soul"
Joseph Addison.

 

Tasmania

 As I write my poetry and blog, this is the view that I have from our Country club Villas in Launceston.

 

 It's a golf course and it goes for miles.

 It is a home of many birds.

So far I've counted magpies, plovers, ducks (white, mallard and grey), miners, lorikeets, Tazzie native hens, swallows, a kookaburra, cockatoos and  crows.
Plus many rabbits and one kangaroo.

Kangaroo

Magpie

 

Magpie

 

Magpie coming for bread I've laid out

Loving the bread

Miner

Miner  twins

Looking into the unit wanting more bread

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's so peaceful which is conducive to creativity.

So green and beautiful.
The Tasmanian people are friendly.
The water is really soft and it makes your hair and skin feel fluffy.

We went for breakfast up to Links Restaurant which is part of a casino and part also of this complex.
The buffet breakfast was varied with lots to choose from and one of the nicest I have had. The view was of a lake, trees and a large  series of fountains.
 It was bordering on luxurious. I felt like a high roller.
 I'm tempted to go back tomorrow morning

The weather as I predicted is coldish and rainy.
But we didn't come for that and it's why I have always refused to come here in winter.
It's  bad enough putting up with the cold in Rotorua,
 let alone having your mid year holiday full of it and it's why we often go to Ivory Palms in Noosaville Queensland in July/August.

We came for the nature experience, adventuring and the bird and animal photography.
There is so much to do you'd need at least 6 weeks to cover it.
We are going to do as much as we can because we have a hire car but we don't want to be racing around exhausting ourselves so it's going to be quite relaxed.

There is a pool and a spa in the complex so we can get some  extra exercise and relaxation at the same time.
The room is really cozy.
Painted yellow which induces a sunny disposition.
 It has a TV in the bedroom, a nice big bathroom and kitchenette where we can cook dinners etc.
It has a double bed that you can roll down in the living areas and a bigger TV .
So things are really comfortable the heating comes down all the time so it's not cold.

 

Art and Mosaic lessons for gifted children

 

                              Children's book illustration

 

 

 

This illustration was adapted from the book Willie the Witch  

I have a lot of really lovely children's illustrated books to gain inspiration from. This improves their literacy as well so is ideal for ESOL as well as mainstream people. Children are encouraged to make up and recite their own stories.

 

present, a bird to reflect your loved ones interests. 

 

 

Mondays to Wednesdays after school 3.30 to 5pm , Fridays 3.30 to 5.00pm
One hour lessons
$25.00 per person including materials.
Enrolling now email jkeen@clear.net.nz to reserve your child's place in 2014.
Each person has their own programme which is tied into their interests and personality.
No two people produce the same creation, which teaches them to use their initiative and to validate their own ideas.
Home work is encouraged in the form of illustrations in their visual diaries.
Each pupil is encouraged to learn techniques of being a children's book illustrator.
At the end of each year they will have a book of work they can refer to for ideas of making into bigger paintings.

Adult painting and mosaic lessons also available.
Monday to Wednesday Mornings and Friday mornings.
$50.00 for two hours plus materials of which I will provide a materials list to you after your creativity  consultation
Watercolour, acrylic, oil and mixed media painting lessons available.
come for four lessons or 52, it's up to you.

Email jkeen@clear.net.nz to reserve your space.

 

 

 

 

How To Be Alone (+playlist)

Art (+playlist)

Thoughts On My Bike (+playlist)

How to Be Alone (the book!)

Hanxi and Hanwei pupils of Janet Keen Mosaic and Painting

Goal setting for 2014, Increasing readership on blogs

Previous posts have been placed on this blog in order to bring some different media in so that I can gauge whether it's increasing my readership. 
Results are inconclusive at this stage. 

I had some good luck yesterday and if it comes off, it will be very interesting. 
A French art student who is attending an exclusive University called ENSAAMA Paris contacted me and asked if she could have an internship in June/July of next year, as she saw my mosaic work on the web and liked it. 

 
 Gorgeous facade of this prestigeous looking university in Paris.


 I have plans for some largish projects, making sculptures, then mosaicing them for my sunken garden during winter months. 

I am going to a workshop on dargit (paperclay and concrete) sculpture making in the middle of January, so I'll have at least one sculpture ready. 
It's labour intensive mosaicing 3D things so I really need help but  because it's not income producing I won't be paying anyone. 

This could be a way of achieving this goal. 
I will be able to document her visit in the form of  newspaper article writing and blogging. 
I may be able to take her around to the Catholic Schools that I have helped design mosaics for.
  It may be nice for her to meet the art teacher at John Paul College and see what their students are doing.
 I will need to seek permission for this.

Now I  just want to attract someone who can help with my bookwork, housework,  newsletter writing and database formation and all will be well. 
An Italian woman for an internship would be great in the future. 

If you set up good networks with these people it could help in getting residencies on other countries. 
Residencies are a great idea for professional development. 

At the moment I'm flat out trying to get everything finished before the holidays. 
 I haven't made my Christmas cards yet, so I'm running late.
I might make them New Years Eve cards. 

 I've given my Christmas presents to my  parents when they popped in for lunch today and now I  am looking forward to a lovely, peaceful, relaxing Christmas and holiday with just Graham, (my husband) and me.
 He has a stressful job and is not really into making small talk or socialising so for the past two years we have elected to have Christmas by ourselves in exotic locations and I can tell you that I absolutley adore doing this. 
It's so relaxing.

There are no disagreements and you don't end up feeling bloated and crabby. 
We usually combine it with lots of walking and quite often I will do some little arty project.
There are long silences, you don't always need to be talking flat out to communicate. 

 I always find that the best relationships and friendships I have are enjoyable when there are only two people at a time in it.
 It's so satisfying not to have to put up with group dynamics.
I'm ok  if I'm a group as long as I'm teaching it. 
If I'm with too many people for too long, I start to feel exhausted.

I am envisaging a crayfish or prawn salad for Christmas dinner with perhaps an oyster mornay for a starter and for dessert, fresh berries and plain unsweetened yoghurt.  

A picnic would be nice followed by a swim and reading my book on how to write better poetry.  I may write some haiku. On holiday I usually do a visual dairy about where I am.

We don't want anything fattening or unhealthy to eat because it takes too long to work all that stuff off and you just come back from holidays feeling tired, depressed and unmotivated. 
I don't drink alcohol so I won't have a fuzzy head. 

I may go to midnight mass. I'll definitely be going to mass on the Sundays as I like to see what churches are like in other places.

I bought the Booker Prize winner novel by Eleanor Catton; The Luminaries a couple of weeks ago. 
I have had her book Rehearsal for several years and loved it. 
I've read that twice.
It was very mysterious and beautifully constructed. 
 I read one chapter of Luminaries and I had to put it down because it gave me a headache plus an arm ache because it was so heavy. 
 I read another chapter but I still couldn't engage with it so I  gave it to my father when they visited and he was wrapt. 

I know his reading taste and I'm sure he won't like it either but I'm pretty sure my mother will. 

I read a lot of non-fiction and so does my father.
 Fiction has to be really well constructed succint and  snappy to engage me.
 I just become agitated with repetition or sloppy construction.

Anyway I know I'm having an unorthodox Christmas and holiday because it's supposed to be a time with lots of family, eating, drinking, laughing and lazing around. But I'm  super happy with what we have planned which will be exciting and adventurous. 

 







 

06 Bill Burr - Emotionally Unavailable - Rednecks

LiveLeak.com - U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan Do Call Me Maybe parody

LiveLeak.com - U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan Do Call Me Maybe parody

Mosaic and painting classes for Esol students to help with their English through creativity, (painting and mosaics) music and reading children's picture books.

Mosaic and painting classes for 2014 Barack Obama Singing Call Me Maybe

Mosaic and painting mosaic mural classes for leading schools and community organisations.
Email me for a quote on jkeen@clear.net.nz
Call Janet Keen  on  07-346-3435

Creative quotes of the day
Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
Barack Obama


Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential.
Barack Obama  

Morning Mosaic and painting classes for women. Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders "Call Me Maybe" by Carly Rae

This interpretation was done by a group of American Cheerleaders which was copied by American soldiers in Afganhistan 
Look it up on U-tube.
 It's hilarious.

If you want to get creative next year and cheer yourself up with painting and mosaic classes, call me on 346-3435 or email jkeen@clear.net.nz

 Classes run on Monday to Wednesday mornings  and Friday mornings from 9.30am to 11.30am

Weekend workshops on a case by case basis, depending on numbers.

Call me on   07 346-3435
or email   jkeen@clear.net.nz

Creative Quotes of the day
"Cheer as hard as you can, be the best you can at what you do because remember if you don't think you're good there's always a little girl looking up to you thinking she wants to be like you." Author Michelle, Bulls Gap, TN, USA

"If it's in your heart, it shows in your spirit." Author Brookie-woo, Edmonton, AB Canada

 

Get creative, with mosaics and painting classes in 2014 Carly Rae Jepsen - Call Me Maybe

It's brilliant  how creative people on the internet are interpreting each others songs. 
Here is the original by Carly Rae, I just love her, she's so sweet and happy. 
 The following posts are two more interpretations.
 Enjoy them and have a laugh.

Make a new years resolution to get more creative, have some fun  and enrol in one of my mosaic or painting classes.

 Call me Janet Keen (07)  346-3435
or email      jkeen@clear.net.nz

Creative Quotes   I've never been an all-black girl. I like pinks and blues and greens. If you come over to my closet, you'll be able to find a rainbow of things to wear.

 Carly Rae Jepsen



My music is bejewelled, it's colourful, it's romantic, it shines.
Carly Rae Jepsen