Arrowtown Art Escape - 3rd May 2012

Art Escape in Arrowtown:

The conditions were perfect as we drove from Dunedin to Arrowtown for the inaugural Arrowtown Art Escape.
The weekend had been planned to co-incide with the spectacular russett colours of Central Otago in Autumn.
Seven artists had planned to meet from points all over the South Island of New Zealand to enjoy a weekend of work and play in spectacular surroundings.

No time was wasted getting down to work:

No sooner had they arrived than the paints and easels were out and the artists were capturing the Autumnal glow on paper.
Adrienne Pavelka had positionned herself outside our base of Burnbank Cottage, and was creating a beautiful pen and ink wash of our temporary accommodation.  Ron Esplin was out on the Main Street of Arrowtown surrounded by the glow of the late afternoon sun filtering through the trees and doing a watercolour of the iconic scene.
Sue Simpson had arrived with her husband Bob and they were unloading their gear in eager anticipation.
The evening was spent in the convivial surroundings of the spacious modern additions to the back of the cottage and hidden from the street. The fire was blazing, the pot luck dinner and wine irrigated the conversation, and we turned in that night satisfied with the efforts of our first day.
The following day was Saturday, and activity began early as Don and Annie Offwood, Adrienne, and Sue wanted to catch adjacent Lake Hayes in the still of the early morning. Ron and Julie spent the day in the spectacular surroundings of the cottage in Arrowtown and practiced their crafts in the comfort of home.

Sing along Saturday night:

Saturday night was an even more social gathering, comparing the artistic efforts of the day, exchanging information on the process and business of art, and later singing all the old favourites with Ron on the guitar and Julie with the melodica.

An event to be repeated:

For Julie and I, Sunday was the day we returned to Dunedin, still basking in the warm glow of good company, superb weather, and honest effort..
The success of the weekend has set the scene for a repeat in 2013 and the hope that we can enjoy similar experiences, surroundings, and conditions.

To view the pictures click on this link: Arrowtown Art Escape

Balloon Flight over the Kapiti Coast - 19th Apr 2012

Documentary prompts visit to Feilding:

Documentary makers Mel and Tom Edmon live in Feilding and after hearing an interview with Jim Mora on National Radio  featuring Julie, they decided they would like to do a documentary on her.
So it was that at the beginning of April Julie and I flew to Wellington, then took the train to Waikanae to be picked up by friends and driven to Levin to meet Tom and Mel.

Fancy of flight follows filming:

After a day of filming inside, we drove with Tom and Mel to Feilding for dinner, then to their superbly situated rural property overlooking Palmerston North and Ohakea.
Much of the next day was taken up with more interviewing, during which Julie mentioned ballooning was on her bucket list. As luck would have it our friends in Levin that had picked us up the previous day had connections with a local balloonist.

Painting opportunity not missed: 

Ballooning being very weather dependent, Dennis the balloonist asked us to call him at 4.30AM the following morning to confirm the conditions were suitable for the flight. I spent the afternoon painting the superb local scenery on a perfect still Manawatu day and hoping the same conditions would prevail in the morning.

Conditions perfect and all go:

So it was at 6AM on the Sunday we were crammed into a four wheel drive with Tom and Mel and a load of filming gear driving to rendezvous with Dennis and his crew in a field near Levin.
The surreal experience of witnessing the giant envelopes unfold and expand against the blue sky was unforgettable. After safety instructions we tumbled into the basket, just Julie and I, Tom, and Dan the pilot, with Mel choosing to stay on solid ground to film us.
Our flight of 25 minutes climbing to 1200 feet and sharing the sky with flocks of white birds and cattle below us and Kapiti island in view beyond the coastline was memorable.

Soft landing:

 The silence was broken only by the roar of the burners every so often, and all too soon we were drifting to a remarkably soft landing in the paddock of a sleepy looking lady farmer, still in her pyjamas to see the spectacle of her unexpected visitors.
 After packing up the gear, we all congregated at a local cafe for a welcome breakfast, voluble and exhilarated after our adventure. 

Ron presents a watercolour of the Roslyn Health Centre to the Health Professionals: - 23rd Mar 2012

New Painting of Roslyn Health Centre by Ron Esplin:

The charming and prominent Roslyn Health Centre building prompted Ron Esplin to use it as a subject for one of his watercolour paintings, and he had great pleasure in presenting the finished painting to Doctor Peter Borrie.
The historic Villa at  271 Highgate, Roslyn, Dunedin was built around 1921. It was once quite isolated because access to Roslyn from the City was via the winding Littlebourne Road and Highgate.
 Roslyn was named after Roslin in Scotland. Many street names and some district names in Dunedin derive from similar features in Edinburgh and its surrounds.
The suburb of Roslyn, where the Roslyn Health Centre is situated, lies atop a crest which forms part of the inner ring of hills around Dunedin. It is one of Dunedin’s premier suburbs to live. Excellent sun and views of the inner city can be gained from the Roslyn overbridge, which is 2.5 kilometres northwest of the city centre, and 150 metres above sea level.

Cablecar part of Roslyn history:

Roslyn was in earlier times served by two separate cable car lines, one came up Stuart Street from The Octagon, turned half right at York Place into what was then called Albert Street, continued on past the end of that street through a short section of the Town Belt, past Otago Boys' High School, across the bottom of Littlebourne Crescent, and up to Highgate at School Street, then dropped down to Kaikorai just before Nairn Street, where a turntable in the road turned cars through ninety degrees and sent them south-west into their shed if it was time to go there.

Stuart Street extension links Roslyn to Central Dunedin in 1953:

The route was eventually turned into a four-lane highway in 1953, cutting Littlebourne Crescent off from Littlebourne Road, going under a new bridge and undergoing considerable widening on the Kaikorai side, restricting access to Ann Street and Oates Street.
In the past couple of years Roslyn has gained popularity, as it undergoes something of a renaissance as a dining and shopping hot spot, away from central Dunedin.

A commanding view over the City:

The Roslyn Health Centre overlooks the City of Dunedin, and Roslyn Village which has two Supermarkets, two restaurants, cafes, a takeaway store and designer clothing stores, all of which are just walking distance apart.
Today the Roslyn Health Centre boasts three doctors, Dr Peter Borrie, Dr Marj Copland, and Dr John Wood plus nursing and administrative staff.
There is a roomy carpark at the back, and a comfortable waiting room looking out onto the City.
They can be contacted at Phone: 03 477 6471, Fax: 03 479 2582, or email: roslynhealth@xtra.co.nz

The Papatowai Challenge 25 February 2012 - 5th Mar 2012

The 16th Papatowai Challenge 2012:

On Saturday the 25th of February Julie and I went to the Catlins in the South of the South Island of New Zealand  for Julie and her friends Jo Stodart and Margaret Jones to compete in the Papatowai Challenge.
This is a 15.5km walk or run in the beautiful coastal surroundings of Papatowai, approximately two hours South of Dunedin..
This was the 16th Papatowai Challenge and was Julie's sixth and Jo's fifth time to tackle this event which is a pre-season fun run and walk from the holiday home of Bev and Wayne Allen in the Catlins and is held annually.

A varied bush beach and hill course:

It begins outside the holiday home at the south end of Tahakopa River Bridge,crosses the bridge over the Tahakopa river, leads through native bush before emerging onto the beach for a refreshing beach walk or run before climbing a steep track to winding unsealed roads over the tops of the hills through farmland . The road then descends through native bush with tantalizing glimpses of the sea, the beach, and the finish. A gritty three kilometers on the flat along the riverside finally takes the exhausted competitor full circle back to the holiday home in Papatowai. 

Finishers rewarded for their effort:

The finishers and spectators then tuck in to well deserved platefuls of pancakes smothered in jam and cream, and hot saveloys from the pot doused in tomato sauce. Wayne and his sponsors then give out spot prizes to competitors and awards to placegetters.
We were happy to learn that our friend Margaret was the second placed walker, and Jo won a spot prize
The event on Saturday was notable in that it poured with rain soon after the start but this did nothing to deter the more than 400 competitors who saw it through to the finish, and the rain stopped before the festivities.

Ron presents a framed print to organizer Wayne:

At the prizegiving at the end of the event, Race Organizer Wayne was proud to display a framed print of Papatowai bridge that had been painted by Ron on a previous Papatowai Challenge.

Ron finds painting a less exhausting pursuit:

I had not been idle while the runners and walkers were battling the elements, I had taken my paints and brushes and completed a watercolour of Papatowai Beach between showers, "draw a line a day" as my Dad used to say.
All this meant that we were unable to hear The Arty Farty Hour on Otago Access Radio at 11AM, so for any of you who went to Papatowai or were otherwise unable to hear the programme, here is the link.

http://ondemand.wizz.co.nz/media/ondemand.php?uid=1316750203-413-13

Video of Ron Esplin in his Art Gallery and Office in Dunedin - 24th Feb 2012

Ron explains where he is based and what he is about:.

SADDLE HILL IN SPOTLIGHT - 22nd Feb 2012

Saddle Hill exhibition at Mosgiel Library:

Saddle Hill is the focus of an exhibition in Mosgiel in the last week of February on show at the Downes Room in The Mosgiel Library. Ron Esplin joins more than forty artists to pay tribute to the Saddle Hill landscape in the exhibition which is open from 1PM February 22, 23, and 24, and from 10AM to 11AM on Saturday 25 February. 

Well known artists represented:

As well as Ron Esplin are other other well known artists including  Heather Maxwell, Scott Drummond, Marie Bowden and Fay Mitchell who organized the event together with Marjorie Orr.

The majority of the artworks are for sale:

Entry is by a gold coin donation to cover some of the costs associated with mounting the event, and most of the works on display are available for the public to purchase.

Photo of page from "Learn World Calligraphy" - 1st Feb 2012

The photo referred to in the latest Newsletter can be accessed via this link. Apologies for the omission. Ron Esplin

American Calligraphy expe ... e artwork in her new book

American Calligraphy expert includes Ron Esplin tactile artwork in her new book - 27th Jan 2012

Margaret Shepherd calligrapher and author:

Margaret Shepherd is a well-known calligrapher and author, whose many books have helped make calligraphy accessible to a large public worldwide. She has researched, taught, written, freelanced, and exhibited extensively. She lives in Boston, where she created the Boston Calligraphy Trail.

Discovers Ron Esplin's tactile art work while researching latest book:

 While researching her latest book, "Learn World Calligraphy", she came upon the websites of Ron Esplin and his blind wife Julie Woods. She was intrigued by the story of the collaboration of this couple to produce tactile art works that are accessible to both visually impaired and sighted viewers.

A page dedicated to Ron Esplin and Julie Woods collaboration:

As a result of contacting Ron she chose to devote a page to the work that he and Julie had produced together with illustrations of two of his pieces and narrative to explain the concept. 

New look Newsletter:

As you can see, the Newsletter has a new swept up look, and you can now share pictures such as the one included here of the page in the book "Learn World Calligraphy". The illustrations feature a tactile art work named "FOCUS" that combines the written word and the braille for the word. The other art work uses Julie's braille biscuits to spell the word "INSPIRED" which is surrounded by all the words that can be derived from the word inspired. Can you identify any that have been missed?

Another string to the bow of Julie Woods  "That Blind Woman":

Ron's wife, Julie is acknowledged for her contribution to the art work in the book, and referred to as "Blind artist and Culinary expert".....Go Julie!