Aldi

I've joined a band and we're playing at Visual Bulk in Hobart this Saturday...

Aldi was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946 when they took over their mother’s store in Essen, Germany. Deeply influenced by family friend Walter Benjamin’s experience of the Parisan arcade, Aldi rose to success through a policy of experimentation and continuous revision of its product choices.

In 1960 a rift between the two brothers over the sale of cigarettes brought about a split in the Aldi enterprise and its separation into the the Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd. In doing so, further dividing West Germany along cultural lines in what came to be known unofficially as the Aldi-äquator.

Now years later Aldi fans Hayden Stuart and Robert Domanski joined by avid shopper Jennifer Rooke hope to heal this rupture with a view to using this exaggerated feud as a space in which to imagine a 1) chain of artworks and unpopular pop songs and 2) present a musical stocktake and an audit of their practices.

Art Vs Merch

I'll have my Synths of Desire colouring books on the merch table at Art Vs Music tomorrow night. If you would like to buy a colouring book but can't make it to the gig I also have them available on my very basic big cartel.

Moving

Thinking about writing and how I have been avoiding it lately.

Finding drawing hard. Finding the idea of drawing harder.

Keeping a diary everyday and then not keeping one.

Feeling annoyed at the thought of reflecting on past work.

Not realising how habits and work have shifted and continue to shift.

Untangling myself from doubt and finding new ways to work with writing and drawing.

Reaffirming writing and drawing as my necessary process.

Colouring books

I have three colouring books at the Festival of the Photocopier tomorrow 12-5pm at Melbourne Town Hall. I'm selling them for $18 each. They include A Walk in the Garden, The Bloomsbury Group and Synths of Desire. If you can't make it to the fair but would like to buy one, send me an email at jennifer.eb.rooke@gmail.com

~Now available at http://jenniferrooke.bigcartel.com~

This is the Forest Of No Return

Bedroom/studio

Playing around

Semester two...

Been feeling very up and down over the last few weeks - it's probably a range of things that are twisted up with the umbrella of Winter. Second week back at uni and it's really nice to be around the energy of other artists again. I feel like I need to be kept busy and distracted at the moment. I'm ready to make things and read and think and maybe write a bit (and maybe stare out the window for a while).

I've been working on this sad bedroom/studio setting for the last few weeks. Had an urge to put a bed under the window and paint the wall rose pink. Also an urge for paper draping down and quick drawings. It's all progressed from those initial urges. It feels good to trust those ideas and see them through. 

Not sure where I'm heading next. I want to keep making quick drawings and larger drawings. I'm enjoying working with space; thinking about drawings in space and how drawing may compose a space. I'm a bit baffled with art theory at the moment. I'm more keen to research literature and biography as that is what feels relevant to my work. It will be interesting to see how things develop over the semester.