Donna Caffrey - Mixed Media Art

Artists Residency - Oatlands, Tasmania
Romance with Sandstone
Oatlands is a town with convict history, plentiful sandstone buildings. The marks and stains on the hand quarried blocks of stone fit perfectly into my brief to myself to build up grounds onto which to stitch

Romance with sandstone
Not all the sandstone blocks bore pick marks of of the quarryman. Some were smooth and eroded. Wonderful lines of colour and texture were apparent. The red stains are iron oxide

Landscapes
Oatlands is set in open plain and rolling hills. At times you could be forgiven for thinking you were in England or Ireland

The old gaol wall
The Old Gaol walls were originally a bit over 6 metres (20 feet) tall. The colour of the sandstone blocks vary dependant on their mineral makeup, growths such as algae and fungus and air borne pollutants.

The old gaol wall
The sandstone blocks in the old goal wall were varied in colour and markings. Some had eroded over time. Sandstone is formed from layers of sediment. Some of the blocks showed the layers as they aged.

Airspace Residence & Studio
This marvelous opportunity was made available by the Southern Midlands Council, Tasmania. They host many artists in a 1860's sandstone dwellinh
