And we have received another report on the last Southern Hemisphere Felters Convergence, this time from Pru Durrant, a wonderful texture felter, who loves wearing green.
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Pru Durrant - Sept 2013
“My Experience at the 12th
Southern Hemisphere Feltmakers Convergence, hosted by the Illawarra Feltmakers
at Stanwell Tops in New South Wales” …
The
Tops Conference Centre is located 70kms
(1 hour’s
drive)
south of Sydney, and is situated on 200 acres of bushland overlooking
Illawarra's northern coastline. It was awesome to be there, and
to experience the generous hospitality of the Australians, especially the
Illawarra Felters Convergence Committee.
There were comments from some Australians that by
hosting the last Convergence in NZ at the Copthorne Hotel in Masterton, NZ
Felters had set a very high standard of venue an accommodation – a hard act to
follow, in other words. The Tops may not have offered such comfort, luxury and
choice of food as the Copthorne, but I enjoyed sharing a room with two
Australian women. There was easy access to separate loo and shower.
It was rather chilly at night in September, but the
bunk-beds were warm and comfortable. We were glad to get out into the sun in
mornings before breakfast. The food was good, although fairly basic; there was
plenty of it, three times a day. There were complaints from some, who were on
special diets and may have been a little picky.
It was great to share in the exchange of techniques
and ideas, and to join in the fun. To see the high standard of most of the work
on display.
To take part in the hands-on felting with guest
tutors:
Leiko
Uchiyama
Anna
Gunnarsdottir
Martien
van Zuilen.
They demonstrated some amazing felting techniques,
and were very generous in sharing their ideas and showing us examples of their
work. For access to some of their work, check out the following sites:
The daily programme included many
felt-knowledge-sharing sessions every morning, involving a large number of the
attendees. Some of the shared felting methods were original and fun; for
example ‘felting by bike’ with Melissa from the USA.
A highlight of the week was a visit to Wollongong
University for the opening of the exhibition “Feltportation”. This was curated by Anita Larkin and show-cased
contemporary felt works by 13 artists, including one from NZ. We travelled in
three buses down the coast, and enjoyed some spectacular scenery.
Check out a selection from the photos taken during
the Convergence, covering all aspects, on this blog-site.
On the final evening the Fashion Parade, followed by
a Party with dancing to the band took place. The week finished with an
hilarious and successful auction of left-over items – thanks to the highly
talented and amusing auctioneer!
Roll on the next Convergence in NZ 2015 …
The very tactile bag and wine bottle holder below are by Pru Durrant.
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Thank you Pru for your great report!
We really like to hear and share peoples' experiences in this World of Felt.
Below are some links that you can follow to some amazing photos of the last convergence.There are far too many for us to publish on this blog, so have a look yourself. Don't forget to "like" their facebook page!
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