To all members
Hi every one
There is some very exciting news to share!
The possibility has come up to hire
workshop space in the Tannery-complex in Woolston.
You may have seen an announcement in the
paper about this development. The plan offers space for crafts, artists,
retail, another coffee-shop... and more
over the coming months.
The committee inquired about opportunities
and were told that there are spaces available. At this stage it is most
important to hear from all members if there is enthusiasm and interest, to set
up a permanent place again for all of us.
You may not be quite aware of our former
situation at the Arts Centre. The rent of our space there was shared with
Connexions. Because of that we were in the unique situation of having access to
the workshop 7 days a week between 10 and 5
and you had the opportunity to come in and work there. In addition we
had the weekend workshop-activities and night-courses on the premises. We would like to thank the members of Connexions for
making this possible.
As you may know, we are temporarily using
using space at the Southern Institute of Technology; we only pay rent for the
actual hours we are using this space.
We now have to come up with a plan how we
would like to use a space at the Tannery and be able to finance it.
For this to happen it is very crucial to get a
response from all of you.
Some
questions:
* Would you come to use a workshop-space during day-time, in evenings
or at weekends?
* Would you be willing to pay a contribution towards the rent....(your
membership contribution alone will not be enough to get the finances sound)?
* We hope we can run 2
evening-classes per term, that will bring in finances as well.
* Would you be interested in taking part in a co-operative to run a little retail outlet connected to
the workshop-space?
Many questions!! But what a chance to make the Guild flourish!!!!!!
We hope our phones will ring and
emails will pour in with your response to this news.
Please ring, send messages, give us your ideas and questions over
the next 2 weeks until the 25th of March.
Contact. Arthur Harrison 03 382 1332 or 021 995 836 craftyart2002@yahoo.co.nz
Solvejg Ruarus 03 329 9887 or 021 161 3626 solvejgr@gmail.com
Diederic Ruarus 03 329 9887 or 027 7797 456 diedericr@gmail.com
Jo Crompton 03 981 8061 or 021 281 0656 joannacrompton@gmail.com
Noeline Walker
03 322 4131 or 027 293 7026 noelinew@xtra.co.nz
Summary of Committee Meeting 5th March, 7pm
Arthur, Solvejg, Diederic,John O, John W, Jo present
Apologies given, Minutes accepted, and Treasurer's report given and accepted.
Thankyou: Thanks, John and Anne, for putting on a splendid barbecue on the 19th February. There was a good turn out and lots of talking, eating, and fantastic desserts! This was the first time some of us had seen each other since the Feb 22nd earthquake so there were a few stories shared too.
Classes Report: Classes are going well with lots of creative people learning new skills and making lovely things. There are some issues with soldering copper and brass together, which we will address by not doing that! It is not a beginners' skill and is disheartening to struggle with when trying to encourage learners to be confident!
Two students have enrolled for the 2nd term so far, and putting advertising the Coffee News is going in soon.
Membership: Stable
Some minor changes to the wording of our constitution were discussed, and a couple of additions to state quorums required before either committee meetings or AGMs can be conducted. Updating to include electronic payment options.
AGM: This year's AGM date was set at July 2nd
Studio Developments: Solvejg has been following up possibilities for having a SSG studio and retail space at the Tannery in Woolston. There are plans for several different groups such as the spinners and weavers, and the embroiderers' guild, and another cafe being set up in the buildings being refitted at the moment. This is exciting with lots to consider. Some consensus must be obtained from our members before we proceed as it will be a lot of work to set up and work out how it will be run.
Discussion around possible funding that we could pursue to help with re-establishing our workshop after the earthquakes, replacing workbenches, soldering station, storage, meeting space, etc
A Sub-Committee to concentrate on this work was proposed.
Members' Studio Time:
We have decided to make the workshop at SIT available every Saturday morning, starting from March 17th. It will be opened at 10am, and if no-one turns up will be abandoned at 10.30. In some part this will give us an indication of members' enthusiasm and support for the Guild, and tell us if there is a desire to move forward as a group at this time. We are hopeful for a positive response and plenty of discussion as members work on there jewellery making.
Meeting closed at 8.45pm
Next Committee Meeting is at SIT, April 2nd, 7pm.
We would welcome anyone to attend and share their ideas for the future!
Chain Making Workshop Report:
Arthur Harrison gave about eight of us a comprehensive, well-planned workshop on chain-making last month. It was good to see everyone again for a sociable afternoon of jewellery-making. The Saturday class covered how to make several different types of chain such as bone chains (sometimes called bar chains) and money chains (also known as loop-in-loops). Arthur brought in his collection of chain samples for us to compare and so did John Ogilvie. Both John and Arthur are real craftsmen and artists and their work included unusual examples of bold and modern designs and also some very delicate and traditional-looking chain jewellery made using wire jigs. I found it inspiring to look at so many well-made pieces and to talk about how they were executed. Most of us decided to tackle bone chains since we had a chance of finishing one during the workshop.
The bone chain design starts out with a straight wire that is flattened in sections, drilled and then cut and joined up with round chain links. The clasp is very cleverly designed to blend in with the bone links. Arthur has a nifty vise attachment that does the flattening but it still needs human power and my arm was sore for days after the workout on the vise. The drill was playing up again but Arthur managed to subdue the beast enough for us to get our wire drilled. Several people used hand drills and the pendant drill so we made it work. I made it through the cutting stage and took home the bits to be cleaned up and joined with small round links. My chain is still in that condition, unfortunately, but I did see Crystal Mathieson's finished bone chain bracelet at the Guild BBQ and it looked fabulous. She used a very chunky wire (maybe 3 or even 4 mm) and ended up with a very clean, bold piece. Thanks, Arthur, for another really good day in the workshop!
Karen Atherton
So, lots going on at the moment. As always, anything anyone wants to contribute would be welcome. I may have missed a couple of suggestions from around Christmas time but I really am keen to hear from you!
Cheers
Jo
