FEATURE ARTIST:
CATHY HEERY
of INTRINSIC DESIGNS
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Prepare to be blown away!
We are travelling all the way over to Australia for our
January 2014 Feature Artist, Cathy Heery ...
Not only an accomplished wirework jewellery designer and
maker of sublime suncatchers, but also a fabulous mosaic and
all round highly talented multi-media artist!

Here's my latest interview and catch up with Cathy ...

WHAT'S YOUR BACKGROUND?
I was born in Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia and stayed put 
until I was about 11.  Then everything got crazy with the family
throughout the rest of my younger years ... I was a wild child
(got up to a lot of mischief) and stayed that way until I had my
first son at the age of 21 ... Seventeen years later, I had my second
son, who is now 17! Yes, a lifetime of single motherhood has had 
its ups and downs for sure!!

 

















I have just moved to Diamond Beach (has a nice ring to it, don't
you think?) which is in a beautiful part of the East Coast of
New South Wales.  I work full time in admininstration for a
large Frame and Truss Company, which I REALLY wish I didn't
have to do!

I spend as many hours of my weekend as I can muster, designing
and creating (it's my therapy).  I have been collecting beautiful,
quality Gemstones for years, which is my absolute favourite
pastime, buying them from all over the world.  I started out as a
Mosaic Artist with glass and mixed media and used to incorporate
gemstones and different media into my designs ... I also dabble
in Pebble Mosaics, Woodwork, Hebel Carving, Concrete Moulds,
Glass Art (too expensive to maintain!), Textile Art ... and my
latest obsession is, Encaustic Art. 

My favourite pastime
is Wirework with Gemstones and I love working
in pure Bronze andCopper wire incorporated into
either jewellery or suncatchers (those stones
really sparkle in the sunlight!)

I can't seem to stick to one form of Art, as I love to
learn new techniques (isn't 'Google' a wonderful
thing!) and experiment to make it my own original
(which is pretty hard to do these days!).

 

                                      

DO YOU HAVE A FORMAL TRAINING?

I have never done any workshops (as much as I would have loved

to!).  I have bought many PDF tutorials online and watched a lot

of You Tube videos, scrutinsed other artists techniques and spend

many,  many hours learning the hard way ... all through trial and 

error!

 

DO YOU WORK FROM HOME?

Yes, I have a spare room that is chock-a-block full of my

gems and wire and 'stuff' and the garage is set up for

all my other hobbies.  In there, I have every tool known

to man!

WHAT INSPIRES OUR DESIGNS?

My main inspiration comes from our wonderful Mother

Nature and there are many brilliant artists out there

that also inspire me to keep pushing my boundaries to

achieve a higher level of technique.  Unfortunately, I am

a perfectionist and a major procrastinator, which is

pretty frustrating at times!

DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE DESIGN/TECHNIQUE

AND WHY?

There's nothing more relaxing than doing something that

you have done before, but that isn't in my vocabulary ...

I think that my Suncatchers are my favourite, as I know

that each one is completely unique and so much fun to

create.

 

WHERE DO YOU SELL AND PROMOTE YOUR WORK?

I have an ETSY STORE called Intrinsic Designs for now, as there

isn't enough time to have loads of items to sell (due to work

commitments).  
I also have a FACEBOOK page.

WHAT PIECES ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?

As I have just had 3 wonderful, relaxing weeks on holiday over

the Christmas period, I have managed to make a few pairs of

earrings.  I have also spent a lot of time melting coloured

beeswax and heating it to manoeuvre it around the board ...

So unpredictable and fun!

 

HAVE YOU ANY ADVICE TO PASS ON ...

The only advice I can give is to challenge yourself

every day and never feel like a failure!  Keep hard

at it and most of all ENJOY creating something that

YOU would LOVE ... not what might sell, or others

might love, otherwise ... it becomes a chore!

 

WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE PLANS AND ASPIRATIONS?

Well, as I've only just moved house locally, I am thinking of moving

again already ... to Warialda, New South Wales (a one horse town)

so that I can be closer to my sister and possibly, set up my own

Gallery and Workshop!  That's what I aspire to do one day ... and

hopefully, it will be sooner rather than later!

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THANK YOU, CATHY HEERY for showcasing

your work!  We hope that your dreams of opening

your own Gallery and Studio come double quick, as 

your craftsmanship and artistry is very unique and 

completely stunning!