Posted on 19th Apr 202119th Apr 2021 by downoncoriobay

Steve’s latest stories on Medium

I’m going to post periodic digests here with links to some of my latest stories on Medium. The ‘Down on Corio Bay’ stories are not included in this digest as they are reposted right here on this site.

Creativity

I’ve always been creative in one way or another. In my late 20s, my main creative outlet was as an amateur artist and sculptor. It was fun to look back on that time in these two articles:

Bare Paper

Here I write about the life drawing classes I used to attend, with many examples of my work.

‘Julia in Bed’ © Steve Williams 1994

Posted on 10th Feb 202126th Feb 2021 by downoncoriobay

Wood carving

Back in the day, I was a keen amateur sculptor. I was lucky enough to live in Oxford, England, where there is a strong tradition of carving and sculpture going back to the Middle Ages. There was a broad spectrum of adult education classes in the visual arts. I used to take my entire annual leave in Wednesday mornings, so that I could attend life sculpture classes. (Yes, I was still an employee — that’s how long ago it was.)

My favourite medium was wood. It is such a wonderful material for carving. The sculptor has to go with the flow, follow the wood’s infinitely varied nature – a product of its species-specific characteristics and the environment in which it grew as a tree: the cycle of the seasons, flood and drought, heat and frost, trauma from fungal and insect attack, etc.

Posted on 7th Feb 202126th Feb 2021 by downoncoriobay

Jewellery making

Most of my life I’ve been involved in creative hobbies of one kind or another: drawing, woodcarving, sculpture, ceramics, music – and these days, writing fiction, of course.

Jewellery making is another craft that I wanted to try. A handcrafted piece of jewellery is a small thing, but potent with meaning. All the more so if you make it yourself, or if someone you love makes it for you.

I now have the chance. A new art and craft space has opened up in Drysdale, offering classes and workshops, and one of the artisans is John McAleer, a master jeweller with nearly 40 years’ experience.