Newsletter vol. 6, December 2008
Dear friends and friends of my work,
This is the last newsletter for the year and it will be short and sweet as I bet everyone of you is busy with Christmas preparations.
Baby News
I guess the biggest event for the Longhurst family in this quarter if not in the whole year will have to be the arrival of Maia’s little brother - baby Jay.
He safely arrived on Friday the 21st of November weighing a healthy 3.95kg (8.11lbs for you imperial people) and measuring 50.5cm. The whole family is very excited and we are all settling in nicely.
With the new baby came a very well deserved break from painting and we are expecting to be back in the studio in the next few weeks as there are a large number of empty canvasses waiting to be worked on. I am hoping that we will settle into some routine quickly as we did with Maia four years ago.
What else is new and the ANIMALS are back!
Having had a stand at ArtSydney again this year has been a lot of fun. We’ve met a large number of art lovers, collectors, critiques and gallery owners. Luckily sales made it worthwhile again this year despite all the hype.
My enormous belly was a great talking point and attracted quite a bit of attention, people trying to guess at what time during that weekend my waters would break. My hormonal, prenatal state also contributed to a fabulous new and fun series of works that draws inspiration from works I created about 10 years ago.
People that have known me that long will remember my hilariously silly and bizarre animal people and I get continuously asked when they will be back. I used to paint Rembrandt and Old Masters inspired bodies and then put animals heads on them.
The new works are based on characters I have met in my 30 odd jobs I had since high school, everything from kitchen hand, hotel room cleaner, cocktail waitress, substitute teacher, assembly line worker in a pea factory as well as in a female hygiene factory to call centre chick, junior sales rep, to account manager in the corporate world. Creating these paintings has been a great break from taking myself too seriously and adding too much significance to my usual works. Having kids sometimes reminds you to have fun every now and then.
The painting to the left is called “Senior Account Manager” – based on the consultant who always knows 
what’s best for the customer, whether the customer wants it or not.
My animal hybrids are currently exhibited at “Paddington Contemporary” together with some of my floral works. For information on the current show please visit their website www.paddingtoncontemporary.com.au/index.php or just drop by the gallery which is on Five Ways in the middle of the Paddington gallery district.
Thank YOU!!
Finally I want to thank all my friends for their generous support during this busy year. It has meant the world to me. I am the luckiest person to have the family and the friends I’ve got and cannot thank you enough for sticking around.
My family and I are wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a fabulous, prosperous, creative and healthy 2009. Wishing you all an awesome Christmas time!!!!!
With warmest regards,
Kathrin