Sandra Darling

http://www.SandraDarling.etsy.com/
http://www.sandradarlingvisualartcreations.com/

by SandraDarling

My background and training as a visual artist came from not only "a good art school education" but the greatest teacher of all - Life! I grew up in North Queensland which is both coastal and tropical; a precious and unique place where the rainforests meets the sea. It provided me with a rich tapestry of geographical as well as social exposure, and gave me my foundation as a young adult discovering my place in the world. I originally trained as a painter but I have always had an interest in all art forms and I expanded my canvas (literally and metaphysically) to beyond this medium. Since then, travelling to Europe, Asia and across Australia has enriched my outlook of the world and people around me.

It was from here that I found my platform for a visual language that has led me on the journey that has bought me to where I am currently at today. Through my art work, images rich in layers and textures, I explore all that is intrinsically human and in particular feminine. The quote "the present is just a moment passed" sums up our fragile and changing existence and I think it also gives a glimpse into the world of what my art work explores.

My Art has always investigated issues of the psyche and how we portray and protect ourselves through layering and masking our true inner self as a means of adapting and protecting our wellbeing in the world and environment around us. As well as this, how we make our mark on an ever-changing and transient world, through our habits of memento; a vehicle of grasping time, place and proof of our existence, methods of remembering and establishing our collective heritage. Being an avid collector myself, I enjoy researching to discover the origins of objects and their history and then apply this knowledge to contextualise my own work.

My influences are first and foremost everything I see, feel and experience, but I've always had a great love of the Decorative Arts and Crafts; the Art Nouveau and Art Deco period; the great 20th Century Artists; and I have a great admiration for the artists of the Renaissance period, my favourite from this period probably being Botticelli where images of mythology and flora are in abundance.

I see myself as a bit of a Bowerbird (distracted by “sparkly things” since 1968) picking and choosing what applies to me.

My best advice for anyone looking to buy art as an investment is to buy what you love, because a happy heart is the best investment you can make, and the eyes are the window to your happy heart. Immerse yourself in what pleases you whenever your can as I personally believe that it is the journey and not the destination that is the so called meaning of life in this crazy world!

Excess Baggage Solutions

Excess Baggage Solutions strive to bring you a growing selection of fun and affordable homemade bags that can be used for "anything from carrying school books to making a trip to the beach, to just being an everyday bag or purse." Have fun visiting her Etsy shop http://www.seville83.etsy.com/ . She is offering *********Free Shipping On Everything Until Tuesday September 8!!!*********.

My mother has been sewing since she was a small child and sewing was always something I was into. Another passion my mother and I share is photography. So naturally I gravitated towards this as well. Recently I was on a family vacation and wandered into a quilt shop with my mother and found these awesome bags that were basically leftover quilts I guess you could say, but they had been turned into tote bags.

I bought two of them and decided "these are pretty easy to make, I can do this" and Excess Baggage Solutions was born right there. As time went on I thought of other things I could offer as well and started trying to get those out there.

I've had people ask me about buying my photographs before and was always very flattered so I decided to offer some of them here on Etsy. I take pictures of a wide variety of things and I've been toying with the idea of auto-related photographs as well because I do have quite a collection of them.

Everything that I sew, I sew right in my own dining room and I get a lot of feedback and commentary from friends and family and all that only helps to make me put out a better caliber of product.