MORUYA HEADS - Viginia Aland

 is the artist and owner at Ibis Beads. In her lovely settler style cottage studio near Bingi, she basks in the sunlight while threading her hand-made beads together to create intensely coloured exquisite jewellery.  

All her beads are rolled and fired by hand using ancient techniques, and these are so special that could not be shown photographically as they are trade secrets (we all have to have some secrets!!) 

It is no secret however, that the colours are fantastic, alluring and deeply rich! as you can see, there is a colourful feast awaiting you. Scroll down within each image, below.  

Virginia's workspace is eclectic and full of personality. Along with several million hand-made beads, the studio holds items that were personally collected by virginia. Items handed down, items with meaning, items of interest, items that were gifts... All had a story and I was keen to know all the stories.

  I feel that I could just live in this studio!! And I am sure I would continue to find new details to go ga ga over each visit.

Virginia will be at the local markets in the warmer months so be sure to visit her stall!

MARK GALTON - GLASS BLOWER

I have a soft spot for all things hand made,  but more than that, a real appreciation for traditional trades, ones steeped in history and where valued as a necessity of their day.

I have been working towards finding more and more of these to show everyone as I am just fascinated. With every image that I take I look to find the story behind it so that I can take you on a journey around their studio too.

Mark Galton Burrill Lake studio is a converted garage on the main highway, I am always travelling this way always look intently when going past to see if the roller door is up, or, for the inevitable impromptu viewing gallery on the footpath that magically appears when it is open.

This day was no different with a tight little space Mark works away, heating, colouring, blowing, shaping, cutting, curing all with a crowd formed not two mins after rolling up the door.

With kids in the crowd mark forms a shape and asks the children to guess what he is making "can you see what it is yet"  and as he works he calls out "How about now" and they shout out "a bird" "a flower" totally in aw of it all they too are fascinated with what he is doing.

Mark does run workshops every so often and has a studio off to the side where you can purchase goods he makes.  If you have seen the car ad with the glass crash test dummy with glass internal organs you would have seen his work as he made the heart.

Here is a few selected images from my morning at his workshop.

my two favourite shots

tennis with pasta? anyone?

Table is stainless steel and Mark rolls the hot glass over the powders to colour the glass.

I wanted to create the effect that the furnace was blazing away in the background of this portrait so I used an orange gel on my speed light and placed it to the side of him inside the studio. Mark listens to music as he work normally so I asked him to get his headset for this shot because it let you the viewer know  a little more about him.