Arita 2014 No.7

I went to Fukuoka on the weekend and had a nice walk around the Asian Art Museum. There was a beautiful sandy river nearby (it was low tide I think) along with so many curious buildings and shops. I'd love to come back and check this city out some more when I have the chance.

Arita 2014 No.6

I had a chat this morning when I was out walking with a few local people around where I'm staying. I was explaining why I'm in Arita when one guy said to me, "I'll lend you some design books" and popped into his house and returned with two very delicate looking notebooks filled with drawings - one was Meiji Period and was 136 years old, and the other was 125 years old. 

He said, "just put them back in my postbox tomorrow" and I said "I'll definitely knock on your door". Arita is an amazing place!  

My Asialink Arts Residency Project is supported by Arts Queensland

Arita 2014 No.5

I spent some lovely time in a nice little cafe in Arita on Friday afternoon - this is a great place if you are a fan of handmade wooden cutlery and plates - all made by the owner's husband (no photo, sorry!).

We also took a lovely drive on the weekend to Sasebo and Karatsu - it was a rainy weekend and that created even more special and mysterious views.

Arita 2014 No.4

The rustic walls that can be found throughout Arita are made of old kiln brick called "Tonbaibei" - they're very beautiful, and the ones outside our guesthouse are filled with bees! 

Arita 2014 No.3

This is my work space at Happy Lucky Site this week. It's lovely to be able to see outside to the beautiful Spring weather. I dropped by Arita dam this evening on my way home - the water was a beautiful colour and it was such a peaceful place. I loved it!! 

Arita 2014 No.2

I feel like I've already learnt a lot after spending just a couple of days in Kourakugama. Tokunaga-san and Shin Koyama have introduced me to a number of impressive local people in Arita...I'm excited!  

Hello again Arita!!

I'm very very happy to be back in Arita to start my Asialink Artist Residency with funding support from Arts Queensland! It's still quite chilly here, but the cherry blossoms are nearly over and the new buds of spring are popping out. It was great to see Tokunaga-san from Happy lucky Site Arita today and to talk about how we're going to make the artist residency meaningful.

This is an Asialink Arts Residency Project supported by Arts Queensland.