Sydney Ladies Artists Club

SLAC ABROAD

2007-02-07T16:21:00.000+11:00

Just as this thread was going off I had a weird Sydney Ladies experience - but as the other's are SLAC members I can't claim it as a SLAC event.

I went to the Femininst future Symposium at MOMA which was like a MEGA SLAC - it was BIG - and full of famous old feminists and famous young ones and lots of artists.....

It was awe instpiring - even the nutty bits. Even the really lame 'vagina dialogues' imporomtu performance reading of bad irigarayan style dated angst by two chelsea curators wearing pink fluffy boas and pink tulle shawls. that was so lame it was AWESOME. and very nutty. Orlan was there, but she left at that point....

and at the cocktail soiree afterwards I met Tania Chaly - who was at artspace smae time as new day project and Eugenia Raskopoulos -and we had a very Sydney artie feminist moment.

so I reckon SLAC lives - it's in that spirit of female artists coming together to gossip, network and make crazy plans and there's lots of us doing that - and when people get over the summer slackness there'll be more postings and events...

and I'd REALLY Like to get a big fat female/feminist sydney art herstory shebang happening sometime when i'm stressing a little less about my thesis.....

VENT (what's wrong with the Sydney Ladies Artists Club?)

2007-02-06T09:31:00.000+11:00

Theres nothing wrong with SLAC, look at what its name potentially implies, we do nothing.

This is great. History is full of woman doing everything. Tilling the fields, childbirth, etc...

I like the idea that we have formed this massive network of woman, who might do something and don't. I like the tension of that. We don't have to do anything, don't have to prove anything. SLAC is a monument to that. If we feel like it, we will reassemble for an activity, if we don't, we dont.

There you go. My thoughts on the politics of slackness.

Best, Bronia

VENT (what's wrong with the Sydney Ladies Artists Club?)

2007-01-27T08:56:00.000+11:00

My disillusionment with the Sydney Ladies Artists Club began when I realised there would never be a secret club handshake. I mean, all the great clubs of the world have something yet we don’t have a thing! No badge, t-shirt, membership card. All we have is the virtual ‘newsletter’ blog that I’m sure most of us now trash when we see it in bold in the inbox.

Yes, I agree that maybe we had different expectations. Some loved the concept of an elite group, others opened the doors to many new members. Some ladies preferred arty activities, others jelly wrestling. It became the ladies choice as it should well be. However, I believe the clubs failings began from the start. We need things like a handshake to build upon.

Ladies, I encourage you to remember those most fantastic nibblies, fine alcohol and girlstrous laughter we experienced. The scintillating conversation, adorable fashion and proud attitude we all contributed to our early meetings.

Voice your concerns, be pro-active! It’s not slack, it’s SLAC!

Anon

VENT (what's wrong with the Sydney Ladies Artists Club?)

2007-01-24T11:32:00.000+11:00

THE SYDNEY LADIES ARTISTS CLUB MADE ME THINK I MIGHT BE A WINNER,
BUT SOON AFTER JOINING I REALISED I WAS NOTHING BUT A MEMBER.

A.G.S.
Member S.L.A.C. April 2006 - January 2007

VENT (what's wrong with the Sydney Ladies Artists Club?)

2007-01-22T09:11:00.000+11:00

Nothing happens/nobody posts anything/the rules aren’t followed/I don’t like feeling obliged to attend events/I haven’t met the new members/there are too many members/nobody’s in charge/it barely exists/the Artspace exhibition opportunity went badly/what’s the club for?/I hate it being called ‘Slac’/no-one knows anyone else/it’s just an idea/more people should know about it/it’s too exclusive/it’s too inclusive/it’s too tightly controlled /it’s nothing like I originally thought it would be

SLAC Q & A (IV)

2006-10-20T17:45:00.001+10:00

WHY ISN'T ANYTHING HAPPENING IN THE CLUB/ON THE BLOG?

I don't know - without asking each member of the club I couldn't really tell you, but I could speculate.

Perhaps it's the fallout from the abandoned Artspace exhibition opportunity?

Perhaps nobody feels inspired to continue with club activities? It can be tiresome to feel obliged to attend events, when one is busy with one's own life/career/projects/whatever else.

As for the blog, perhaps blogs aren't so good when set up to represent a group - like, maybe they suit a single voice better? Although other groups seem to manage to make equal and democratic contributions to a single blog.

Ultimately, I'm wondering if the slow-down/complete cessation of activity may be due a lack of focus for the club - what is the Sydney Ladies Artists Club?

REPORT: Artspace Exhibition planning meeting

2006-07-17T17:59:00.000+10:00

waiting for the meeting to start

Held: 16^th July 2006, at Loose Projects (thank you to Loose for hosting the event)

Present: M Mayhew, J Brown, L Kelly, S Goffman, P Aitken, Wild Boys (T Fry, T Hilton, R Gurney), S Coombs, J Polkinghorne, A Kay, J Cavallaro, N Saad, P Veitch, S Diamond, L Andrew, E Pulie, B Ivancek

Meeting commenced at 3:30pm

Minutes:

Introduction to and outline of project delivered by L Kelly; discussed ‘brief’ of exhibition/dates/what is involved
Discussed nature of club, in regards to the way in which the exhibition is being run/curated
Question was raised as to how all members can be involved in show
It was determined that L Kelly is co-ordinator of exhibition
S Goffman’s outlined her project
A Kay & J Cavallaro outlined their project, plus discussed extra ideas they’ve had
Talked about setting up a discussion board online for the exhibition in order to aid communication about the show’s planning/progress
We should put the Wild Boys on Yahoo Group in order that they may be kept up to date about show
Existing club blog will be used during show for reports/announcements/documenting events, etc
Desired ‘collaborative’ nature of show was emphasised; questions raised as to how this will eventuate in actuality
P Aitken raised ‘social club’ nature of SLAC, and the importance of making this apparent via the exhibition
Wild Boys outlined their project and ideas
L Kelly talked about the Artspace catalogue and the idea of producing a separate publication for exhibition as well
The idea of ‘interventions’ was raised, a la The Guerrilla Girls
The idea of staging of an ‘Annual General Meeting’ for the exhibition was raised
Many further ideas were raised and discussed
The ‘exclusive’ nature of the club was raised, versus its inclusiveness – these notions to be discussed further in the future
P Vietch talked about her ideas for the show; also addressed the idea of the show being ‘anything goes’ in nature, versus issues of control
The issue of funding was raised, in relation to the way it determines a ‘free-flowing’ versus a more ‘controlled’ manner of organising the show

Meeting dissipated slowly into many separate conversations at 5pm approximately

REPORT – Club activity

2006-06-13T13:33:00.000+10:00

CONES OF ZONTACT
Loose Publication contribution

Lisa Kelly invited the club to contribute 2 – 4 pages and 2 covers to her chapter of the Cones of Zontact alternative Biennale publication, which was organised by Loose Projects (http://looseprojects.net/index.html).

I decided we would take up her idea of asking members to design a logo for the club – not that I felt the club needed a logo necessarily (and I certainly didn’t want to have to judge the logos and pick one), but because it seemed like an interesting creative exercise.

Twelve logo designs were received and laid out on 4 pages. The complete set of logos can be seen above in the cover design for the publication.

Thanks to the members who contributed logos. The club’s pages from Cones of Zontact can be viewed on the Flikr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/73024149@N00/

REPORT: Reading Group Event

2006-05-22T09:57:00.000+10:00

Afternoon Tea

On Saturday the 20th May, the first SLAC reading group event took place at 3pm at E Pulie's house. Eight members attended.

The reading was an edited transcript of a short film made by Luca Babini in 1992, wherein the author and academic Camille Paglia held a conversation with the actress and model, Lauren Hutton, about matters such as feminist thought, date rape, and the difference between the sexes. (Transcript printed in 'Vamps & Tramps - New Essays' by Camille Paglia, Viking 1994).

Not all members were enamoured with the points of view taken by Ms Paglia & Ms Hutton in the transcript, and I tend to feel we didn't really get to the bottom of these differences of thought within the hour or so of conversation that we had about the reading. Still, it brought up some interesting points and conversations around these subjects.

The next reading was handed out by L Day (date for discussion to be confirmed).

A future exhibition opportunity for the club was raised for discussion with the group by L Kelly.

For 2 more photos of the event, go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/85395737@N00/

REPORT: Jelly Wrestling

2006-05-17T01:12:00.000+10:00

beer swilling Feminazi & SLAC member J.Polk, ringside at the Oxford

Jelly Wrestling at The Oxford Tavern
10th May, 9pm

Notwithstanding the slender turnout from the SLAC/Bilateral Petersham contingent, the hot topic of female spectatorship at raunch events like live jelly wrestling was spectacularly and disturbingly foregrounded during last week's excursion to The Oxford Tavern.

Actually there WERE a lot more ladies in attendance at the Oxford this time than last time. Our own party of six plus a fair smattering of women and a spunky boi or two acclimatised in the front bar before the wrestling commenced. The only hitch was that there were a WHOLE lot more men in attendance as well. Jolly big gaggles of them, and this time markedly younger. The energetics of a room packed with early twenty-somethings was quite different to the contained & dour vibe of the middle-aged council worker set from a fortnight before. Testosterone gathered like storm clouds. There was no way this gig was going to be stackable, but there we were, along for the ride.

Trooping out to the back room for round one with our drinks, it became even clearer what a different evening we were in for. The room was jammed, with rows of folk standing as well as seated, blowing out the ‘intimacy’ - if that’s what you’d call it. The MC had absorbed the quirk of women being present in the audience and committed it to his obnoxious auto-commentary (“good to see the ladies along tonight, and we look forward to seeing a few of you in the ring yourselves later on!!”). And lo & behold, Claudia was in the ring! Some of us were already privy to Claudia’s power-packed performance style, having admired her sassy striptease dance routines & astonishing muscle control on our first visit. This was promising!

And indeed on this night it was Claudia single-handedly putting the ‘wrestling’ back into jelly wrestling. The coy smiles, psuedo-holds and general saucy slithering were out the window as menacing grins, flexed biceps and commando rolls were precision wielded in Claudia’s efforts to psych out her valiant opponent, Teagan. Likewise she was putting the ‘SEX’ into the sexy play. It goes without saying that the whole spectacle of jelly wrestling hinges critically on a heterosexual male fascination with lesbian lovemaking. And even more critically on its simulation, so that audiences might glean titillation without having to entertain the actuality of an empowered female sexuality. Typically this is hammed up by your garden-variety wrestler with a repertoire of bottom-slapping & breast-jiggling gestures, with some occasional groin snuffling in a vague semblance of cunnilingus thrown in. But here was Claudia really making a meal out of her opponent’s jelly moistened, bikini-clad crotch. From several innovative angles. Even more interestingly, when it came time to spotlight an audience member for some special jelly attention, Claudia chose the only woman seated in the front row, diving playfully for HER crotch. Yep, it was ladies night all right.

At the close of round one we chatted with another party of ladies who’d read about the SLAC excursion here on the blog care of a cross-posting by Sheilafest (very cool!). Back in the front bar we shared our observations whilst watching the strip shows. Lucy rightly pointed out that despite all the girl-on-girl ‘action’, the wrestling scenarios all inevitably ended in hair-grabbing, rear-mounting simulations of penetration ultimately catering to the male imagination. A number of us decided that stripping was clearly the fall-back mode of employment for classically-trained &/or professional dancers, much like café work for actors or education for artists. And Josie reckoned she’d cracked the insufferable fact that the dancers seemed not to own a skerrick of cellulite, having spotted a give-away wrinkle that suggested some sort of specialist hosiery. We spent a good while peering but the verdict was inconclusive.

From the outset of round two it was obvious that from here on in the evening’s events would be inextricably linked to the presence of a particularly Spirited Lady Spectator also along for the ride at the Oxford that night…

stay tuned for second installment!

SLAC Q & A (III)

2006-05-07T14:47:00.000+10:00

HOW DO I BECOME A MEMBER OF THE SYDNEY LADIES ARTISTS CLUB?

Someone called ‘Lady Penelope’ left this question in the comments somewhere on the SLAC blog – strangely, I can’t find it when I look on the site, but it did arrive in my inbox.

This is a difficult question to answer – if you look at the description of the club at the top of the blog page, you’ll see it’s ‘A social and support organisation for invited female artists based in Sydney’. When we set the club up, S Goffman and I simply ran through the female artists we knew in common, and in a sort of hurried and top-of-mind way listed them and invited them to join. Most accepted the invitation; a few didn’t. Then I think we might have added one or two members subsequently.

I thought of this club as something that couldn’t just be open to everyone that came along, mostly for reasons of simplicity of organisation (there's a bit of work involved getting everyone organised and on the blog, keeping them in the loop, etc), but also because I think of the club as a kind of real-life art performance, in a way; it’s like a group show that exists over time, and when you invite artists to participate in a group show, it’s normal to have to limit those numbers.

Another more practical reason to limit the number of members in the group is that many of the activities are held in members’ homes, which aren’t normally huge venues. So far this hasn’t been a problem, and the number of chairs available and the size of the room seem to just accommodate the number of ladies that turn up to each event.

However, the idea of making the club exclusive is not a particularly attractive one – the art world has enough exclusivity (or perceived exclusivity) going on within it as it is, without adding another whole new club to which only a few people can belong. The unfortunate use of the word ‘club’ in the group’s title I think also contributes to this sense of exclusivity (it’s only really there so that the acronym spelt out ‘SLAC’ – this was important to me).

I suppose the short answer to this question is, ‘you can’t’; that is, no one else can become a member of the club. That being said, however, I have been considering putting it to the ladies that we have a member drive sometime, where each existing member can invite one more lady to join – not because we need more members, but because it may provide some of the ladies with a friend to attend the events with, making the club more comfortable and relevant to them. Also, some members are less active than others, so there may be some room for more...

Jelly Wrestling!

2006-05-02T23:55:00.000+10:00

It's wet, it's wild, it's the contentious gender spectacle of live jelly wrestling!

SLAC joins forces with Bilateral Petersham for a second round of soft-porn sightseeing at the infamous Oxford Tavern. Soak up the view (& flying jelly) from front row in the back room. Enjoy strip shows between rounds by consummate performers with truly impressive command of their hamstrings. But best of all, be there as we collectively effect a subtle intervention in the event dynamics and displace the primacy of the heterosexual male gaze... we're going to stack the joint with Sydney Ladies, Artists or otherwise!

where: The Oxford Tavern, corner New Canterbury Rd & Crystal St Petersham
when: Wednesday 10th May 9pm
$7 door charge

bring your lady friends!

image courtesy of Sex Bomb Promotions

Sew-Off

2006-03-17T16:45:00.000+11:00

Sewing and eating in the afternoon
Anything you want to mend, attach, barter,
do it yourself or have someone else do it,
sew, staple or superglue it
or just eat and talk
I have velcro, needles and a sewing machine
and whole lot of yarn...
Saturday, April 8
12-5
20 Henderson Road, Alexandria
9690 1780

Ladies ladies ladies

2006-02-17T11:45:00.000+11:00

Lets take over the Hotel Alexandria!
Actually it was my 40 birthday last week and if you feel like getting together there'll be a do on the corner of Henderson and Garden St. in the beer garden at the back of the Alexandria Hotel on Saturday 18, 2006 from 8:30-12.
Hopefully we'll be screening dvd's on the cine-screen as well!
There is a restaurant there, with yummy food, and of course all the drinks you could ever want.
Partners/offshoots welcome!

REPORT - Opening Event

2006-02-17T09:37:00.000+11:00

Opening of 'Never Never' by Sophie Coombs at Yuill/Crowley
Thursday 16th February 2006

Approximately seven SLAC members were present. The opening, held on a humid and steamy evening, was classy and low-key; and the exhibition stylish, varied and fresh.

To see more photos from the event, go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/85395737@N00/?saved=1

SLAC Q&A (II)

2006-02-16T09:09:00.000+11:00

WHY AN ‘ARTISTS CLUB’?

Clubs for artists don’t seem to exist so much any more. There are co-operatives, and collaborations, but clubs? Not really.

It seems like in centuries past there were lots of clubs, or groups of artists, which formed due to a shared sense of feeling left out of, or misunderstood by, the mainstream art world. Contemporary Art Societies were formed by artists whose work was so cutting-edge that it wasn’t recognised as art by the establishment, and they provided exhibition and discussion opportunities for artists of like-mind.

I don’t think of the Sydney Ladies Artists Club as being a refuge for like-minded artists necessarily, or as a place where artists who are unrecognised can go for mutual support. In this sense the club may be almost a simulation of those artist’s clubs of earlier years, borrowing the framework, but not necessarily arising from the same impulse.

Rather, perhaps, the Sydney Ladies Artists Club provides the artists involved with the chance to emphasise their activities and socialisation as artists, their lives as artists, over their art.

SLAC Opening Attendance event

2006-02-03T13:51:00.000+11:00

There will be a SLAC Opening Attendance event for the opening of Sophie Coomb's exhibition, Never Never, at Yuill/Crowley Gallery (5th Floor, 4-14 Foster St Surry Hills) on Thursday the 16th February, 6-8pm.

(Obviously you don't need to RSVP or cater or anything, just show up if you can/want to)

REPORT - Slide Night II

2006-02-02T17:02:00.000+11:00

I am going to take the liberty of montaging some of the comments recently added to the posts below to make a report for the second SLAC Slide Night (I really hope the comment-makers don't mind me doing this...)

'Reg' said - 'Thanks to all who attended, ladies and guests. Another interesting evening, highlights include Phillipa's desert prison, Sarah's pussey finger and of course, Carla's installation slides of work only she had a problem with. This was suggested as an idea for another slide night - your own loved and hated work. Another thought was to offer a theme/subject to the ladies for exploration in slide form - may be technically difficult for some? Thanks again to Ron & George for the venue loan, and Anna for arranging that. How about another night in March?

'S Goffman' said - 'We talked about posting some of the recipes on the blog. I really hope we can share! My rice rissole things: Brown rice, cooked the day before with spinach and coriander pesto and parmesan mixed through it, and an egg; then I made 'balls' which had to flatten into patties so to stay together, whilst frying. I fried for nearly an hour, that's why they were so crispy, but I think had I had more egg and then rolled them in flour I would've had better results. They are based on some of the tasty treats at IKU wholefoods, but are nowhere near as healthy. Thanks, Lisa for the halva, and waiting on Kate's sausage roll recipe!

* To see more images from Slide Night II, go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/85395737@N00/

Slide night 2

2006-01-30T13:03:00.000+11:00

After attending Slide Night 2, I agreewith you Liz - sometimes it's just easier to keep the sexes apart. I would like to suggest we stick with our kind for these events. After all it is a Ladies Club. I much prefer comments, such as at the Slide Night, from the Ladies, I think the discussion can really then grow. I see this as a meeting with some people rather than a public showing. I love Regina's rules: 4 slides only, and on the other hand found all the images presented that night fascinating...mini icebergs for exploration. More! And with the audience we have chosen , so we can fart and complain as much as we want ( metaphorically)
I posted this acouple of times-exploring all avenues...

Slide Night II

2006-01-18T10:43:00.000+11:00

The Sydney Ladies Artists Club is holding its second slide night on Friday the 27th January 2006, at

MOP Projects
Room 16, Level 2
617 Elizabeth Street Redfern

at 7pm.

As for the previous slide night, please bring four slides of any subject matter to present a (maximum) four minute talk, and bring a plate of food and/or a bottle of your choice.

Again, please bring a cushion or chair or something to sit on, as there is limited seating at the gallery and the floor is hard.

SLAC Q&A (I): Why a ‘Ladies’ Club?

2006-01-13T17:33:00.000+11:00

This is probably a contentious area to speak about, and one that’s certainly open to debate, but – sometimes it’s just easier to keep the sexes apart, isn’t it? Segregation of men and women used to happen all the time in past eras (and still does in certain cultures) – ladies retiring to the drawing room leaving men to smoke their after-dinner cigars and drink whiskey; ‘Ladies Only’ sections in pubs. As post-feminists, we haven’t experienced this sense of formalised segregation in day to day life, so perhaps it’s time to experiment with it?

It can seem as though men and women are very different creatures at times – who hasn’t looked at their partner/friend/associate of the opposite sex and wondered just what it is that goes on in their head when they make the bed that way/say those kinds of things/behave like that in public?

Men should be more like women, and women should be more like men - but sometimes it’s just so much easier to stick with our own kind, so we can relax, be ourselves, understand each other, feel that we’re coming from the same place, even for just a short while.

(All that being said, the Ladies Club is open to the involvement of men in various events and contexts, this being at the discretion of the organiser of a SLAC event).

SLAC Q&A

2006-01-13T17:24:00.000+11:00

I feel there needs to be more posting on the blog, otherwise it gets boring - and event reports just aren't frequent enough to fill this need.

So I thought I'd write down some 'SLAC Q&A's, where I discuss issues associated with the Ladies Club - and perhaps explain some of the ideas behind it. I couldn't really call it 'SLAC FAQ's, because nobody's asked any questions at all, (let alone frequently), so it's 'SLAC Q&A' - me answering imaginery questions that people might ask, silently, without actually asking.

(I have to stress that the ideas I put here about what the club is are solely my own, and not necessarily representative of every member of the club, who may disagree with what I say entirely).

REPORT - Slide Night*

2005-12-20T10:31:00.000+11:00

The SLAC inaugural slide presentation night was an enjoyable one, with a variety of subject matter including found slides, art work documentation, foreign locations, Sydney events and a dead dog. Thankyou to Stephen Mori for the use of his gallery; members and guests (Luke Parker, Christopher Dean, Robert Lake and Roy). Members found it difficult to choose such a limited number of slides, so Iwould like to plan another slide night for early next year. I think we've only scratched the surface of some brilliant archives. We could possibly find another gallery venue - any suggestions? I personally would enjoy ever-changing locations for these events. I've got the slide projector and esky ready. Thankyou to all members & guests once again for an interesting evening.

To see more images from the slide night, go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/85395737@N00/

*(this report was written by the organiser of the event, Reg)

Fantasy las Vegas at Marrickville RSL

2005-12-18T22:29:00.000+11:00

I am going to Marrickville RSL for XXXmas Eve to see the fantastically taudry "Fantasy Las Vegas" strip show.
This includes a special guest appearance from Australia's Pole Dancing Champion, (her name escpaes me) who is pretty amazing in an athletic circus act kind-of-way.
I think the first show is at 8pm (but I could be wrong) and the second at 10pm.

I can't think of a better way to enter into the XXXmas spirit! A night to remember!!!

jpolk

Netball Bonanza

2005-12-15T11:57:00.000+11:00

A fantastic review and photos by E.Pulie of the competitive ball game gala day, netball.
As another member of SLAC I've added here a few remarks:
It was an afternoon filled with sweat, small heart attacks from some bodies that wern't what they were when young, competitive streaks and one bloodied knee. Four teams of differeing skill and fitnesses took to the seethingly humid concrete courts, our team, which comprised of two SLAC members being myself and E.Pulie were fortunate to have some alcohol fuelling our unbridled enthusiasm for the game. Unfortunately eskies were not common place around the courts so Wild Slacks were fortunate to be able to call for emergencey refreshments after the 1st brutal and energy sapping netball round. It was indeed tough, rough, highly competitive and all down to bodies and one ball. Umpiring was strict for most games except for one half which a young fellow yuri controlled... this half was much more layed back which made for a more freeflowing game... to the shock of some. The days that followed made one almost curse that netball afternoon as musles I never thought I had began to become concrete heavy and filled with ache. These ailments passed a few days later and amusement at the afternoon began to shine in the memory. Good to meet and bond with the other Wild Slacs team mates all of whom put in a corageous and heart felt effort.

Comments

2005-12-14T11:33:00.000+11:00

Initially I made it that comments weren't allowed from the public on the blog, because when I first set it up I received a spam comment almost immediately.

But now I've found out how to ensure automatic robot spammers can't leave comments, and have changed the blog settings so that anyone can leave comments, after entering a woozy, coded word.

Hopefully people use our comments facility wisely.

Grammar

2005-12-07T15:55:00.000+11:00

It has been suggested to me that the apostrophes I had placed within the club's name - Sydney Ladies' Artist's Club - are not necessary, and are perhaps grammatically incorrect.

While I had put a lot of thought into the name and its need for apostrophes (and felt fairly certain that it was correct), the idea that it may be wrong led me to investigate further.

I tried the name both with and without apostrophes within Microsoft Word, and it was fine with both versions. I asked my friend, a coypwriter, his opinion, and he agreed with the suggestion that the apostrophes weren't needed. Also, without apostrophes the title looked cleaner and more modern - so I have removed them.

If any members of the club have any further opinion on this, or some expertise in the area of grammar, I would love to know what you think.

2005-12-06T20:45:00.000+11:00

Guacamole

This woman showed me how to do it. I double everything and put in extra garlic, onion and whatever looks or smells like an onion from chives to shallots to things with long green stalks (i.e. coriander).

Combine 1 or two or more avocados, 1 tablespoon lemon (or whole), 1 tablespoon grated onion, 1 teaspoon salt ( I put a quarter) and a teaspoon of cumin instead of chili powder.

Spread top with 1/3 cup mayonaise (or more)

( I use either that Norganic Soya mayo or the Best Foods American stuff) .

Chill.

At serving time, stir in mayoniase.

CLUB RULES

2005-12-06T18:06:00.000+11:00

Not so much rules - these are more like guidelines, to indicate how the club will run and what it is, so that everyone is clear on what’s going on, and so that the club is as open and free as possible...

Meetings/Events

* All types of activities/meetings can come under the SLAC umbrella
* Any member can organise a SLAC activity
* The organiser of an event is obliged to invite all members to the event, via group email & blog
* Activities/meetings must have a report/minutes posted on the blog by the organiser, not too long after the event
* Members are not obliged to attend any/all activities
* Membership remains current, even if a member attends no functions/never posts on the blog – unless (of course) the member resigns from the club
* Members will be advised in advance/in the invitation if a meeting/event is to be recorded electronically
* Members are not to be offended by any other member’s non-attendance at a meeting/event that they have organised
* A total of two members (including organiser) must be present if it is to be an official SLAC event
* The organiser of an event makes their own decision as to whether it will be a ‘members only’ event, or whether other people (including men) will be invited

Blog Objectives

* To act as a record of SLAC’s activities/minutes of meetings
* To inform members of upcoming events
* To post useful information for members
* To be available for the public to look at
* Can be posted on by any member, but members are not obliged to post on the blog (unless they have organised an event, in which case they are obliged to report on that event, see above)

There is no central organising committee for The Sydney Ladies’ Artist’s Club; rather, individual members are to take responsibility for organising events, either on their own or in conjunction with other members.

REPORT - NETBALL GALA DAY Sunday 4th December 05

2005-12-05T16:06:00.000+11:00

Our team - S Shera, A Rowell, Yuri, E Pulie, Tim Hilton, Nori, Sam

Photo: L Kelly

The Netball Gala Day was held at the Moore Park netball courts, in the searing heat of Sunday afternoon. Two members from the Sydney Ladies Artists Club attended (E Pulie & S Shera), and combined with team members from The Wild Boys collective (Tim Hilton and Nori), to form a team called Wild Slacs. Since this still only made up 4 members (a netball team needs at least 7), 3 guests completed the team: A Rowell, Yuri, and Sam. Two other SLAC members were in attendance: L Kelly (in the role of supporter/photographer), and D Coonan (who organised the Gala Day and played for Team Australia).

The competition from the winning team for the day, The Mary Pipes, was fierce – captained by Christopher Hanrahan, they turned up in formation and in uniform, with theme music and choreographed moves ready to go. Unfortunately Wild Slacs played this team first and lost. I can’t remember the score. Netball’s hard, and The Mary Pipes were aggressive and talented.

The second game we played was against the team known as Nancy. The eventual score for this game was 2-all, (although I suspect there was mild objection regarding this result from the Nancies). In this, Wild Slac’s second and final match, we seemed to reach a good level of team co-ordination, and it was generally agreed that further practice as a team could yield good results.

Thanks to DJ Lakey for appearing at half time with a slab of beer, thanks to D Coonan for organising the day, thanks to L Kelly for support and photographs, and thanks to The Wild Boys and guests for making up the team. It was a really fun day, and a fitting occasion for the first official event of the Sydney Ladies Artists Club.

To see more pictures of the day, visit: http://netballgaladay.blogspot.com/

or: http://www.flickr.com/photos/85395737@N00/

events ideas

2005-11-30T15:44:00.000+11:00

* SLAC tennis meet ... dress-ups, sporty paraphernalia, play as well or as crap as you want. Camperdown tennis courts (behind bowling club) are fun & old style.

* SLAC book/music exchange ... members donate unwanted books/cd's to create a floating mobile exchange system (could be good courtside at the sporty events for the non-sporty types?). Could design a SLAC 'book plate' to identify items as property of the exchange.

* open members SLAC emblem/crest/motto design 'exhibition'... could put them on the blog, or show them in someone's house, not necessarily a gallery. Could hook up with FAG Press & have the popularly voted design printed up as a poster? http://www.squatspace.com/fagpress/ Or make t-shirts or other ephemera good for raffling & fundraising.

* SLAC cake stall/bake-off ... also suggested by birdmonkey, sell by the slice to fundraise for other events. Hold in a park, carpark or on the street?

* jams/preserves/homebrew! FAG press also doing a beer label print run, see http://www.squatspace.com/fagpress/?p=3 , we could get a SLAC special brew label in there. Eatables & drinkables all good fodder for the SLAC fete! (props to A.Doig)

* SLAC sewing bee ... design & make a run of SLAC bags (shoulder/shopping), stencil/ screenprint/stitched... more fun fundraising.

* SLAC end-of-year/mid-year/summer/winter (whatever) FORMAL ... school formal dress flashback, bring a date, scary (but subverted) partner dancing like they made you do at the formal, music, bands, performances. SLAC raffle to raise funds for venue hire etc

* SLAC skillshare tutorials ... members can share tech skills & run intro's to Powerpoint, Photoshop, web design, video etc (cred to anne raven & jpolk for brainstorming this in the past).

* SLAC Erotica short story/composition prize ... short-stories, poems, visual 'compositions'? Celebrity judges (Linda Jaivin? Kathy Bail?), readings, compile texts as a booklet/zine.

Netball Gala Day

2005-11-29T16:49:00.000+11:00

Slide Night

2005-11-29T15:56:00.000+11:00

There will be a slide night on Friday the 16th December, 6:30pm, at :

Mori Gallery
168 Day St
Sydney NSW 2000

Bring four slides of any subject matter to present a (maximum) four minute talk

Bring a plate of food and bottle of your choice

MINUTES - Meeting #4 28/11/05

2005-11-29T13:45:00.000+11:00

Drinks at E Pulie’s

Present: 17 members; honorary ladies present: J Balbi, M Balbi
1. Chatted generally about unrelated topics
2. Brief description of club by E Pulie
3. Individual members introduced themselves and their blog pseudonyms to the group
4. Questions and discussion about nature of club; membership, activities, next meeting/events
5. Decided that level of exclusivity regarding invitees to SLAC events would be decided upon by the organiser of that event; for example, if a member wishes to make the event open to the public, they can do so, but if it’s a ladies-only event, that’s fine as well. Also if it’s a members-only event, etc, is up to the organiser.
6. Added further suggested activities to the ‘A – Z of suggested activities’ (see entry for 11/11/05)
7. Loose discussion about making up a SLAC team for the Netball Gala Day (4th December, Moore Park), which is being organised by D Coonan (7 members are required for the team).
8. Slide Night to be held on Friday the 16th December 2005 at 6:30pm (see entry above)
9. E Pulie to make a web-based group site for mailing to and communication with all members
10. Photographs taken of group
11. Loose discussion and viewing of blog, etc.
12. Meeting dissipated, last member left at 10pm

Sweet Nothings

2005-11-22T11:25:00.000+11:00

I'm so thrilled to be on! It feels so serious and official, as compared to just commenting on blogs. I'd better watch my writing, maybe start checking facts too.
Anyway, first things first. I'm sad that other ladies haven't gotten to experience our first 2 meetings, but I guess they serve as trial runs. Dress rehearsals for the real thing. We certainly discovered that Stephanie Alexander has no idea how to make a cucumber sandwich. Seriously, it may be a great book, but everyone should know that 1. the crusts need to be removed and 2. salt and pepper are required. I'll bring along Su Cruikshan's masterpiece next time, for some searing hot Sheila action. Anyway, otherwise the spreads have been magnificent, and we can work on the iced tea (it still tasted great).
I am very excited about the events we've been talking about and I hope my absence does not halt the momentum. I just ask that we hold off with the tennis match till I get back, as I really want to play.
Also, maybe if there are people interested, I was thinking about a wrestling team for Marrickville Jelly Wrestling???

MINUTES - Meeting #3 11/11/05

2005-11-17T11:15:00.001+11:00

Afternoon Tea at EP’s

Comment EP: Wish the iced tea weren’t so cloudy

Present: S Goffman, E Pulie (honorary lady present: M Balbi & later J Balbi)

1. Chatted generally about unrelated topics

2. Decided that EP will organise welcome drinks and invite all suggested members, as well as invite them to join blog, via email

3. SLAC Blog viewed.

A – Z OF SUGGESTED S.L.A.C. ACTIVITIES

2005-11-11T21:37:00.000+11:00

A – Afternoon Tea
B – Badminton/Bowls/Beading sessions/Bushwalking/Bake Off
C – Croquet/Clubbing
D – Dancing/Dress Ups/Dinners/Discussions
E – Etc.
F – Forums/Fetes
G – General Meetings
H – Happy Hour/Hair Advice Mornings
I –
J – Jamming
K – Kultur sessions/Karaoke
L – Lamington mornings
M –
N – Netball/Natter
O – Opening Attendance/Open Studio
P – Pubs/Palm Reading
Q – Question & Answer Sessions
R – Recreational Workshops
S – Slices/Séances/Swaps/Soap Opera from the people left over from the Mormon's and the Jehovah's/Slide Nights/Slumber Parties/Surfing Lessons
T – Talks/Tennis/Tarot Readings
U –
V –
W – Whatever
X –
Y –
Z –

MINUTES - Meeting #2 26/9/05

2005-11-10T16:19:00.000+11:00

Lunch at EP’s

Comment SG: I love that dijonnaise spread! Very, very nice

1. Decided on nature and characteristics of club, initially: Primarily a social group, a place where you can speak your mind, and a support group.

2. Membership

-membership by invitation only
-members must be Sydney-based female artists
-membership invitations will be made to immediate associates of EP and SG
-members can invite other SLA’s to join, provided they are accepted by the majority (?)
-membership numbers are limited, within reason, therefore we decided on having chapters. Ours will be the Inner West chapter.
-members can bring lady artist guests from interstate and overseas

3. List of activities A-W produced - NOTE needs revision

4. SLAC Blog: open to members to add content; discussion next time as to named members or not (?)