Donna Caffrey
My interests are eclectic. My art practise involves study and experimenting with paint, clay, collage, textiles and threads. I am still chasing my art voice. When possible, if the subject/theme permits, I will combine different mediums and methods of presentation.
The tactile experience of clay; the tearing, cutting and laying of papers, the feel of fabric in my hand and meditative stitching takes me to my happy place. Through these mediums I capture a time, a moment, images and feelings of a place and of my place in the world. Social comment, elements of space, horizons and distance (be they urban, rural or outer space) – variously appear in my work.
Pivotal to my development are classes and workshops taken with British embroiderer Jean Draper and Australian artists Carolyne Sullivan (textile artist), Lex Sorrentino (contemporary clay), Susie McMahon (doll maker) and Helen Parsons (contemporary embroidery). More recently residencies have given me space to consolidate, focus and develop further.
I am interested in areas of abstraction and surrealism. I do this largely by way of reading and Zoom opportunities I find online through art galleries and tutors.
I am a member of RE-create Collective, a group of local artists with a focus on exhibiting textile and mixed media works. We meet regularly throughout the year. I also belong to and participate in activities and meetings of the Embroiderers’ Guild NSW, Wagga Wagga Group and the Albury Wodonga Branch Embroiderers’ Guild Victoria.
Membership of the Creative Practice Circle has been pivotal to continued learning. Engagement in the regular online discussions with CPC has been key to my developing a more mindful and focussed approach to my art making and investigation of ideas behind the works I make.