Denise Daffara
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blog : another
​'sip of my tea'

Courage to Create

30/5/2014

 
Is this my 'poor neglected blog' .. or just been waiting til I had something artful to say.  I have another blog space I use for my 'anything-i-want-to-say-at-all' wonderings… (A Sip of My Tea . com)  but I think I've designated this one to be … just art… as it's on my 'Artist website' … allowing for a variety of personality options is also fun for me :)
So today… I am sharing something that began yesterday… and I desire to bring in through all of June… and I'm not promising anything further than that, it only creates too much angst for me. I am joining in a little collective project, thanks to one of the lovely artists I met in Christchurch New Zealand earlier this month.  Ruth Reid is instumental in the creative project called JOIN US IN JUNE FOR 30:30 that's a link to the facebook page.  The idea is to create something each day for the 30 days of June. Anything… a painting, a page, a cake, a quilt square… anything creative … I'm going to focus on painting, whether that is large or small, or in my art journal, anything so long as I paint every day in June, and try my best to complete something every day in June too.
"Create something each day for the 30 days of June"
So… why do I think it takes courage to create?
Well it's one of my primary ways of expressing myself - and thereby there has been many 'strings' I have attached to it for some years… but THIS WEEK… thanks to a dear friend I had some help, clearing some of those attachments that no longer serve me, and this allowed me a way in that was seemingly difficult / nigh impossible for me to bridge before. I can tell the truth loudly in the pages of my art journal, but to be loud and open on my canvas (when the need arises, inside of myself that is) maybe for the world to see.. feel.. judge… can take courage.  
The thing (think / thought) I have to remember :
It doesn't matter what other people think of me …
It matters what I think of me.

It matters what you think of you.

So… here's what happened yesterday… when I asked for couage to create inside just this one day 
(taking it one day at a time was also very sage wisdom from my healing session the other day) 
thanks whole heartedly to you Raelene Byrne. (Medicine for your Spirit) 
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I love the difference it made when I opened her eyes… that took courage from her too. 
We're a team.. 'my wise inner self, my artist self, inner child, muse… ' it's take a bunch.
This painting will be going to an exhibition in Brisbane in June 'Celebration of the Female Form' you can find out about tickets to that here. 
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That's it for today… I better be off, to gather the 'Courage to create inside this one day'. 


love Denise xo

art from the heart

2/12/2013

 
Over the weekend I had several paintings in an exhibition "ART FROM THE HEART" for The Lady Musgrave Trust.  Even though my exhibited pieces didn't sell.  I am happy to say my donated painted sold, raising $1,000 which will go towards accommodation and support for young women in need. 
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Peace for Me by Denise Daffara
 A message from the President to those attending the auction and exhibition.
Your contribution to this weekend event will enable us to further our work in providing accommodation and support for young women who are homeless or at risk of being homeless..
The Trust has been undertaking this work since 1885 with only the support of generous members of the community such as yourselves...

I LOVE this message in the catalogue by the Arts Minister
Art has the power to transform lives and bring positive change to individuals and communities . . .
I wholeheartedly believe this to be true.   I am also donating a painting to a local Women's Shelter on the Sunshine Coast, because I believe in the power and love behind the art.  I'll share more on that in another post.

with love
Denise. xo

those ones that went to Brisbane, how did they go?

27/6/2012

 
so today... I thought I was going to pick up all 5 of the unsold pieces I took down recently for the ACT for kids exhibition.  Well after driving through the rain and taking much longer than anticipated I was greeted by the wonderful surprise that 2 had sold and I was only picking up 3!  I love that !

So I took myself to a little organic cafe in West End to have a hearty lunch before the 2 hour long wet drive home.
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There were some rather random pictures all over the table I sat at . . .  
My Mother gains a lot of strength from Mother Mary, I'm heading over to see her (Mum) for the month of July ... who knows... Mary will probably be there too .
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You know what? . . . I really lOVE randomness... but its something I find very hard to do in my artwork.. and even life in general, perhaps in conversation I've nailed it... but not in art.  So at least in blog post... this might be classified as... random.  i like that. 
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I especially liked this last one, the little figure standing on top of the cresent moon caught my attention... and made me wonder.  I did an art journal page recently, inspired we were by the tutorial.... make a page about WONDER.  You might like to try it... 

bye for now
love Denise xo

Overcoming Adversity,

28/6/2011

 
Several months ago I read a blog post via facebook of a local photographer inviting Women in the community to share their stories of overcoming adversity in their lives.  A selection would be chosen and a photo shoot organised culminating in an exhibiton of the photo's at the end.  Something about this sparked me into action, I wrote a brief passage of my experience and sent it of to Robeccer at Adori Studios.  I received a very warm response and we made a time to meet, I turned up for my shoot some weeks later, not knowing what to expect, just that I was being fitted out by a lovely local boutique for my dress, and borrowed some divine wings from a friend - thank you Johanna.  
I won't share the details of the story just now, this will form part of the exhibition, but I am delighted to share a link to Robeccer's blog showing her recent entry into the APPA'S (Australian Professional Photographers Awards) where one of the photo's she took of me and another beautiful forest water-fall shot both won her Silver Awards!!  Congratulations Bec!
The exhibition will be held on Friday 12 August at Adori Studios in Mooloolaba.

View Adori Studio's blog here

Free Spirits....revisited

28/5/2011

 
Yesterday I made my first little video... I had a bunch of photo's from my second solo show back in 2008, that were waiting for me to get to them.  As I worked my way through it's creation I was moved by the smiles on the faces of my family and friends and visitors to the opening, it was an incredibly celebratory day for me, and the gallery in which my work is represented shines beautifully thoughout the pictures.  

On a more personal note... I felt like I was making a movie about someone else... someone I actually love and admire, but have not been so in tune with for the last 18 months or more, with the global financial crisis in late 2009 came a bit of a jolt and a personal artist/life crisis as well.  Various things have contributed to bouts of depression and the fact I had allowed myself to become anemic once again, have brought me to a big check point where I am taking a long hard look at my life and health and wanting very much to clear out the rubbish and embrace my true self once again... with renewed strength and clarity.  

I’m not quite there... I’m somewhat confused about my work... but more ok about that lately than I have been these last months... after all, beating up on myself for not doing enough, not being enough, and not having enough is really the most unhelpful I can be for any kind of progress to come out of that same scenario.

This little video actually made me feel genuinely happy, the music by Frou Frou is such a gorgeous accompaniment to the feeling I had for the artwork.  It is my pleasure to bring something joyful into the world.

 Love Denise xo
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    “There are very few human beings who receive the truth, complete and staggering, by instant illumination. Most of them acquire it fragment by fragment, on a small scale, by successive developments, cellularly, like a laborious mosaic.” 
    - Anais Nin

all images copyright Denise Daffara 2021
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