It's Just Me and My Brain Today..Yes I'd Like to See the Menu... Thanks!

Greetings once again beautiful people..I trust we have all had a week full of missions and milestones?...It was brought to my attention that in fact I did not really introduce myself last week...the intent was there, but I guess life got in the way, or was that art?

So here we go then...

I am a South African Australian woman/mother/artist...Natalie M. Adams ... Nat to my Friends and Natalie M. in artist mode. My parents are both of mixed ethnicity including anything from African to Italian to Chinese and at various points in my life I seem to cling onto at least one and explore that side for a momentary month or two (I'm now 31...think about it).

My four sisters, who are all extremely crazy but equally lovable, refer to me as the hippy of the family. All because I love to dance and burn incense?...eh-hem...'Guess what ladies? It's normal!'...This is what I've spent most of my life saying...one would think that even I would believe it by now...would you ask me again later please? Many thanks.

So yes...moving right along... I was born in Grahamstown, South Africa to an Anglican Priest and the daughter of an Anglican Priest in the last decade of the Apartheid. As a family we travelled to live in United States, New Zealand and Australia in early life, and Europe and Queensland Australia in more recent years on my own.
Now I seem to have this unavoidable life ethic evident of exposure to people, cultures, politics and art both locally and globally.
My dysfunctional family and relationships affects how I see the world. Both make me feel raw love and absolute wrath but I cannot live without either. This might also have something to do with my son, who I can love and instantly despise in a second. Why are boys the way they are? is this really my debt owed to my parents? I was not this bad, SURELY!!!!...ahh, but I do love him...because at the end of it all, my son is the only person in the world who reminds me that I am not alone...in this chaotic world where war is livid and a baby is born every minute...he reminds me that...

... am woman, I am friend, I am laughter, I am sex, I am mother.

I am peace and war, love and disregard, warmth, comfort, anger, irrational thought, angsty female, crazy mother and in need of happiness.

I am normal.

Oh come-on.....Do you really want to hear more??? I don't want to tell you about my life...you will be looking at your computer for hours wishing you could beat the screen with a carrot whilst infusing an animal tranquiliser into the hard drive!

However, I can talk more about my art...and myself as an artist.

So yes... I have a great fascination with the relationship between contemporary culture and human norms expressed through art and the constant rebirth of traditional methods that enables the communication between art and human understanding.

I love ...and I mean looooove to play around with :mixed media drawings – Japanese ink and recycled print ; sculptures – wood, metal, materials bought and found ; printmaking processes – mainly etching; jewellery designs - usually one offs from bought and found materials; clothing design and textiles - definitely one offs as they are all hand made.

Currently I am working towards a body of work that communicates Addiction and Redemption.
I guess it's because I look at human life and it seems to me that we find solace in the act and the ritual of addiction and redemption because it allocates
a renewed approach to the situation..….which is what life is, birth..death and rebirth.

We all seek a form of escape that redeems towards a feeling of comfort and certainty whether it be mental, emotional or physical. eg. Addiction being chocolate and the Redemption found in a 6 km walk.

Even if you are a Van Gogh or a Julia Gillard, all of us at one stage or another in our lives, will experience this...we will experience devilish pleasure and pious apology.

Be easy on me my friends...I am still really trying to solidify this concept .... can an Addiction and Redemption be the same thing? I think so. Or can it? You tell me! My own brain can be very argumentative with me you see.

I think this is enough for now.... I will surely return to enlighten you all on the stylings of Natalie M. in the next few weeks and indeed, what I really think about addiction and redemption.

Until then..... stay safe and remember Art is Life is Art.....nothing but love people.

Natalie M.

If you would like to see some of my past and current work you can contact me via: natalad@yahoo.com , I will be more than happy to share 'my life through my art' with you :)