One Woman's Art

Seeing More in the Great Outdoors

South American Adventure from Margaret Gurney

Last October I went for ‘the trip of a lifetime’ to South America. I travelled with an organized tour for company and safety. We visited Buenos Aires and Iguassu in Argentina, Rio de Janiero in Brazil, La Paz & Lake Titicaca in Bolivia, Cuzco, Machu Picchu and Lima in Peru and finished with a sail up the Amazon River in a canoe! It was absolutely fantastic!

The amazing art I saw on my travels were the extraordinary Inca design and weavings of the Peruvian and Bolivian women. Spun and woven from Lama Wool (alpaca). The hand laid stones that built Machu Picchu that are fitted together so masterfully that a piece of paper would not slide between them. Carvings of gods in coloured stones found by the native people, classical Spanish and Portuguese architecture in the most unexpected places, sensational dancers of the tango and samba and their accompanying musicians.

In Buenos Aires I found a European styled city. It has a number of art galleries and I was able to spend the afternoon at one with a very good guide. It was particularly interesting to see the work of South American artists who had followed similar artistic developments to Australian artists during the 20^th century.

One outstanding artist who had a retrospective there was Carlos Cruz-Diez. He started painting, became more abstract, his paintings then developed into dimensional work and onto sculptures and finally to light art. We hear of only a few of our world’s art stars when others are doing extraordinary art in other places of the world. It was a very interesting visit. Another place in Buenos Aires I found some beautiful art was in the huge cemetery which has the best sculptures I saw during my travels. It is where Eva Peron is buried and people lay flowers there every day.

Inspiring places I found were the massive Iguassu Falls in Argentina. I have never seen so much fresh water before.  A multitude of waterfalls cascade down fringed by jungle, birds fly in and out of the spray and apparently nest in the rocks.

Machu Picchu or the lost city of the Inca’s was a destination I had only dreamed of seeing. My first visit was during the day and it was sunny and clear. The next morning I went at sunrise as the sun came into the sacred valley and watched the mists rising to reveal the city.  A truly magical experience.

Now it will be interesting to see what will filter through me into my art!

Florence Biennale

International Contemporary Masters IV

They are my pages from the newly released book International Contemporary Masters IV.