SongBird Still - textile nature bird

Listen closely and you will hear
The sweet music of your dreams
Lulling there waiting
To be heard and seen
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Artwork Title: Songbird, still
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A colourful and textural artwork with loose silk threads. The bright cheery yellow and orange canary represents my inner canary encouraging me to follow my dreams. The artwork is inspired by my journey of self-discovery and self- acceptance.
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I am an avid seeker and my lived experience and research feeds my art.
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Inspired by the work of English speaker and therapist Marisa Peer whose practice revolves around self esteem and American researcher and story teller Brene Brown who explores vulnerability, resilience and self worth.
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The box template is a motif derived from a flattened prescription medicine box which is representative of the societal box we try to fit in and also comments on the increasing use of prescription medicine in current society.
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Hand stitched into paper – a meditative and healing process as I remind myself that I AM ENOUGH.
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The cheery canary brightens your day and the textures draw you in for a closer look.
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The canary sings I AM ENOUGH.
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Medium: hand embroidery silk & cotton thread on paper, professionally framed
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Dimensions: 57(H)x 44(W) x 3cm professionally framed in white wood with glass
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Ready to hang
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Artist: Tracy Stirzaker

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In high school I had to choose between art and economics, and you guessed it economics won.
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Fast forward though career and kids, I was sitting in the car park after my weekly art class and I turned to my friend and said, ‘This is it, my youngest is starting high school and this is my chance to follow my dream of being an artist.'
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I realised I was missing out on loving myself and when I make art if feels like home.
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I secretly applied to art school, as I was scared that I wasn’t living my true life but wasn’t ready to tell my loved ones.
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Art connects with the real me and now I express myself through emotive fibre artworks combining my love of textiles and art.
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A bit more about me...

My artwork is very thought provoking, personal and honest. I explore my lived experience with themes around the emotional body and positive affirmations. I am drawn to working with everyday domestic materials including old garments, found objects, household packaging and reclaimed linen.
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Employing painting and textiles techniques including text, hand stitch, applique and embroidery my artworks analyze and critique my life and thus reflects today’s Australian society.
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I use recurring motifs in my artwork - the words ' I AM ENOUGH', the canary and an abstracted box shape.
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The words I AM ENOUGH are at the core of self-worth, I acknowledge the yearning for something and recognise that the acceptance of self-starts with I AM ENOUGH.
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The canary motif is drawn from the concept of the miner’s canary and the idea of listening to your inner canary – follow what makes your heart sing.
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The flattened prescription medicine box is representative of the society box we try to fit into and also comments on the increasing use of prescription medicine to medicate people, to fit into society.
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Bio Background

Tracy Stirzaker is a Sydney based artist, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Distinction) from Art & Design, UNSW. Stirzaker has previously exhibited in group exhibitions including UNSW Art & Design 2016, SWAP Ryde 2017 and In Time at Gallery Lane Cove 2017/18. In February 2018 Stirzaker curated and exhibited in A Fragile State at 107 Redfern. Following a 3-month artist residency, her first solo show Recalibrate was at Gallery Lane Cove in March 2018 and included a successful panel discussion on the role of the arts in mental health. Stirzaker was a finalist in the Hunters Hill Art Prize 2018 and the Ravenswood Women’s Art Prize 2018.

Exhibiting regularly in group exhibitions, Stirzaker had a solo show Songs of Myself at White Rhino Artspace in 2019, culminating in a yoga and meditation class in the art gallery. A recipient of a Willoughby Council Arts & Culture Grant in 2021, Stirzaker's third solo show MORE MYSELF A Journey of Self Love included a International Women's Day Panel discussion on the Journey of Self -love, Self worth and Creativity.