A trapdoor in every room.

Where, oh! Where do I live? Where, oh! Where did the week go? Like a shepherd without my mob of sheep, I’ve lost all track of the past week and, unlike my paper animals, I have no reason for my recent hiatus from life high up in the trees. I have not stood in the morning light with two ladies from Turčiansky in the Žilina Region of northern Slovakia…

{I had lain a present at your feet.}

And I have not been to Stockholm either, like this harp seal, reclining.

{She pays me no attention, none whatsoever.}

(A little note: Whilst he remains unseen by those keen on smelling the roses, he is thankful not to be in Canada… Carnage on the ice? - Please, be warned, this is not an uplifting link and contains graphic images.)

With a sorrowful shake of the head, I can tell you that I have not stumbled across this “most charming place” in Tellskapelle, Switzerland, with a yellow mud turtle as my guide. Mrs W.P.Smith was fortunate enough to on the 1st of September, and she told S.Giles Hill all about it for the cost of a stamp. Nor have I been to the London Zoological Gardens in recent days to meet this odd couple behind bars... a polar bear and a fossa from Madagascar.

{The yellow mud turtle arrived on the Wednesday.}

{This is not the home of the lace maker.}

(A second small note: Did you know that yellow mud turtles have been known to spend the cooler months, amongst other places, in the den of muskrats? Should you ever come across one in your travels, they are usually very shy and are not known to bite. I can't say the same for the muskrats though.)

It will come as no surprise to you then, to learn that I have not been idle in Russia nor Budapest either.

{The lock was broken but the door still worked.}

{They formed a circle and I knew not what to do.}

What have I been doing? Well, I’ve been drawing and collaging, and noticing that the spider on the passenger side of the car has her work cut out for her with autumn. Her web on the side mirror is littered with leaf debris, poor soul. No tasty insect morsels just a host of leaf matter to contend with. And when you can’t find me here, I’ll more than likely be kitted out in my finest Green Crusader cloak over at Sew Green.

And now, friends, I’d like to invite you all officially to -
A TRAPDOOR IN EVERY ROOM
Gracia Haby & Louise Jennison

2nd of May - 27th of May, 2007

Opening celebrations
Saturday 5th of May
2-4pm

At
IMP
above Greville St Bookstore
145 Greville St, Prahran
Wed/Sun 12noon-5pm

Now, I am off to see When the Road Bends: Tales of a Gypsy Caravan, for "You cannot walk straight when the road bends..." - Romani proverb. (See a little more here.)

Wishing you all a brilliant or relaxing weekend (or both, if you choose), you pick, it's up to you.

(Before I forget, thank you, Cally, for alerting me to Nikolai Sutyagin's 13 storey dacha... will you "look at that view"! LJ & I are planning to make a collaborative drawing based on this very structure. Thanks, again ♥)

Comments

[louise]

That harp seal is mighty comfortable, he's a much luckier chap than so many of his cousins in Canada. Why does such cruelty still exist? Thank goodness for your collages and the chance to escape for a little while.

Thank you Cally from me too.

xo lj

[julie]

Very happy up in your trees Gracia with wonderful new collages!! And i love how you described the web woven on the mirror - made me smile!
I adore your new invite - wish, wish...oh, you know!!!
Cant wait to see your collab drawing related to Callys fab link - it has to be magical!!

p.s. thanks for your lovely comments too xxx

[risa]

i've missed traveling with you dear grache! i've always wanted to travel in eastern europe but never did i imagine having the opportunity to travel with an australian gem and her menagerie!

[Emily]

I'm in the middle of a horrible day, but your beautiful collages really eased the strain. Thanks for sharing your gorgeous art & know that you cheered someone up all the way across the world.

[comfies]

sounds wonderful. wish i could be there...

[lisa s]

it seems as though we are all missing moments and time galore...

oh how i wish i could slip through a trapdoor and end up at your show....

big hugs!

[fanja]

hi gracia, love that seal craving for attention.. wish I could honour your invite to your exhibition, sounds great.. have a great weekend too!

[shari]

thanks for the invite grache! love the new collages. the little mud turtle is so sweet. i would love to join in and help but since we have yet to find a magical time machine or a super trapdoor, i am just sending along inspiration...hopefully a little package from the states will be on your doorstep soon. xox

[Tiffany]

Good luck with finishing everything for the instillation!

:^) Tiff*

[Veronica TM]

but you have been busy making beautiful collages and then taking us on a trip with them!
how i would love to see your show!

[Maditi]

I´d love to descend the trapdoor and view your exhibit!!
your invitation is fabulous and I just totally fell for those little black guys :)

[sally j]

It looks like so much fun & the invites are beautiful. Wish I could be there!!

[wendy]

oh oh so fun...this post your show.
I love your sense o f humor!!

[amisha]

i too am wondering where the time is going... april is skidding to an end so so quickly. looking at your new work, though, a chance to slow down for a moment... my favorite... "this is not the home of the lace maker." i always love the chance to travel a bit with you... and searching, searching for the trapdoor that will land me at your + louise's show! xo

[alyssa]

Hi Gracia,
Oh your show looks so wonderful! I really wish that I could see it.
I love the last photo of you looking out of the soon to be archaic car. Cobwebs do add a layer of mystery. Speaking of archaic, I too was smitten with that crazy construction that Cally linked to. It made me think that it would be a great addition to the Dickens theme park that just opened.
http://boingboing.net/2007/04/20/dickens_world_a_dick.html
Take care

[simple me]

Once upon a time there was a little spider who took residence on the side mirror of my car. For months she traveled a lot looking out into the country roads happy to feel the warm wind on her little feet.
I wish I could so the same with all those seals and carry them on the back seat of my car (which I no longer possess).

Best of luck with the exhibition.

[gracia]

Hey there LJ,
I’ve just seen the finishing touches you’ve added to your 13 storey dacha… it’s coming up a treat!

Thanks Julie,
Louise will be unveiling our collaborative drawing on her blog very, very soon. I hope you like it… we’ve made seven in total though not all are finished yet. One also features a polar bears den inhabited not by a polar bear but by two other strange animal guests.

Hey there Risa,
Here’s to hoping that one day we really can travel around Eastern Europe together. See you in Slovakia after tea? Look for the girl with the gold wolf on her ear.

Thanks Emily,
I’m happy these latest postcard collages lightened your day. I promise to swing by your blog sometime soon… just as soon as I finish polishing the trapdoor and placing a landing cushion nearby. Yes, a trapdoor isn’t always to snare, it can also provide a much needed escape.

Thanks Comfies,
I wish you could too. You and all my other dear blogging chums.

You can, Lisa S, you really can. I’ve dusted it in readiness, and as mentioned above, there is now even a large floor cushion placed nearby to soften the landing. Don't forget to bring your torch, should you get tangled along the way, and your polaroid camera too.

And to you too, Fanja. Those harp seals love a little affection and extra kindness.

It’s here! It’s here, Shari. Your package arrived safe and sound, and unopened by Customs this time. Wow, what a haul, what a pirate’s bounty you sent to LJ & I. Thanks again, my friend.

Thanks, Tiff.
Does that good luck also come with a small side of sleep? I’m longing for a few zzz’s on the couch or curled up on the floor in a ball.

I wish you could too, Veronica TM. How great would it be to all meet up in the one place one day? I promise to take my camera along to the opening this time and I’ll post a few humorous (and potentially candid) pics.

Thanks, Maditi,
Hee, hee… hope to see you soon then. And I promise your back will no longer ache (http://www.flickr.com/photos/gracia_louise/344538282/in/set-72057594068257592/ ).

Me too, Sally J… me too. I'll send an invite your way via snail mail as well, if you like?

Thanks, Wendy… mind your way down. It’s beginning to sound like that trapdoor and accompanying tunnel is going to be quite busy. Perhaps you ought bring a cut lunch and a box of pencils, just in case you get diverted along the way?

Wandering pickpockets and crooked houses, Alyssa, you really do send such fantastical links my way. And, yep, it’s been awhile since the car received a clean, much to Miss Spiders contentment.

I love the visual imagery your words conjure, Paula. I can just see what was once your car, laden down with a spring of seals.

Thanks again, everyone… LJ & I are both charmed and greatly warmed by all your kind and super encouraging words.
Take care, g xo

[elaine haby]

Wonderful new works.... especially that circle of women in Budapest....beautiful.....e

[lisa s]

you are the cutest darn shepherd i've ever seen.

add my wishes to the pile of goodness. i can dream of the day when we'll stand face to face surrounded by your works! big hugs to you and L!!

[bugheart]

my comments
never seem
to get recorded
:(
but i will
try again...
the show
looks amazing
and
perhaps
you should
offer the spider
some little
insect treats!

[Marieke]

Thank you for the invitation Grache. I start here to read you posts but I noticed some lovelyness posted above. Will check that now! x

[gracia]

Hee, hee... thanks, Lisa. Now where did I leave my stout stick to aid me as I walk the fields in search of my many lost sheep?

Oh, dear, Bug heart! Missing comments... ah, this is no good. Where could they have gone... have they been gobbled by some typepad glitch perhaps? I'll look into it. As to the spider, he or she must be mighty peckish for I've yet to witness a catch in the past few days.

Thanks, Marieke. I'm hoping to do the same over on your blog later on today (with a bit of luck). I'm sure there is much beauty to catch up on!

see you, g