Collographs and olive oil

Another bright sunny day with not a cloud in the sky: I certainly picked the right time to visit MR. I finally got to visit the Open Studio of Emily Jackson, whose work had impressed me in the brochure. She lives close to the centre of MR, but in a back street verging onto woodland. I asked her lots of questions which she was happy to answer. Originally from Lincoln in the UK, she trained in graphic design in Kent before coming out to Australia. Much of her work is in collographs; she collects material from the wild (such as seaweed or seeds) and glues it onto hardboard which is then used in printing.

Entry via a back lane

Table runner; printing press behind

On the wall of the studio

A design made up of bottle brush seeds,
varnished and ready for printing from

This is what I bought:

http://www.emilyjacksonart.com.au/portfolio-items/hidden-gnarabup/

Printing board

Work in progress

Veggie patch

There's an octopus in the shower

Later, I drove north to visit Olio Bello, an olive farm. I was inspired to do this having watched a TV documentary about food fraud. Minced beef used in fast food can contain horse meat and “extra virgin”olive oil can be adulterated with canola or worse! If I went to the farm I could be sure of the genuine article; but I had to be willing to pay triple the price. Olio Bello has a bewildering number of olive oils to try, plus lots of other goodies like tapenade and onion jam. They have also branched out from olive production to set up a gourmet restaurant and some glamping tents down by the lake. No dogs allowed, though.

Part of the olive groves

Olive oil tasting: spoilt for choice!

Restaurant area

The way down to the glamping tents