Kyla Cresswell Workshop and Volunteer Fridays March 24
Kyla Cresswell Workshop March 2024 at the Southland Community Nursery
Our goal was to create postcard sized prints using the drypoint etching technique. This entails incising marks onto a piece of rigid clear material. We were encouraged to explore our surrounds with birds, insects and plants close at hand to inspire.
Our group included beginners through to art graduates, all intently focussed on learning from our patient, thorough and experienced tutor, Kyla. So much experimenting, comparing, trying again and wishing the day was longer. The chocolate bars and home baking provided energy, with sharing knowledge and enthusiasm the impetus. The process of recording impressions of our individual interests is difficult to hurry, requiring intense quiet concentration, then moving about to apply inks, prepare paper and holding your breath as the print comes through the roller. Our workshop room in the Education Cente was perfect, Kyla an engaging and generous tutor, participants enthusiastic and creative…… so yes I had a great day. Now to keep practicing and look forward to more art workshops!
Linda Jackson
Volunteer Fridays Mornings at the Nursery Jan-March 24
Friday mornings have been busy with lots of people and the usual jobs – pricking out, potting, moving plants, weeding, watering and now seed collecting and seed cleaning. We are probably half way through seed collecting with a reasonable amount of seeds still to be collected. Last Friday’s horrible weather was a good opportunity to catalogue and process the seeds already collected so Chris gave a talk on the process to date and volunteers set to work on the quite laborious (or mindfulness, depending on your attitude!) job of processing and cleaning seeds, all in the relative comfort of the Nature Centre. The whole process is described at this link on the website - https://www.southlandcommunitynursery.org.nz/restoring-your-patch/get-growing/seeds/ and it also describes the type of seed you are looking for and roughly when it will be ready for collection in Southland. Be aware that if you miss that seed collecting opportunity then you have missed it for the whole year ahead. Also, not all plants seed well each year so it pays to be vigilant and always on the lookout. The next few weeks will continue with seed collecting and processing and then mass sowing of all the seeds before the “cuttings” season is upon us in June and then closure for winter in July. It feels like the season is hurrying on, but we can still enjoy the good autumn days when we get them. See you sometime on a Friday morning!
ngā mihi
Chris
Posted: 19 March 2024