The Hidden Self

by Bee Williamson, Naomi Downie

Overview

This collection of art and poetry from Bee Williamson and Naomi Downie is a beautiful book for yourself or a gift for a loved one. The eight colour plates and other black and white images are, like the poems, evocative of female sexuality and spirituality.

Bee Williamson, a Melbourne-based artist, chooses photography, mixed media and illustration to explore and celebrate the female form, particularly through dance. Bee likes to explore her own femininity, with a special affinity for flowers. She says "the process of making art is as important to her as the finished work itself. Art for her is meditation-in-action."

Naomi Downie, an artist from Newcastle, has selected works from her collection that trace the journey of her search for meaning. She uses photography and mixed media to dive deep into the themes of myths, love and mystic visions gathered from her meditations. She says, "I love the mystery in the process of artmaking, the joy of being a part of the universal creative force. A gift of gratitude and communication for that which has no words."

Both Bee's and Naomi's poetry have themes of intimacy, sexuality, identity and nature, and look at the deeper truths and legends surrounding women and spirituality.

Bee has been writing poetry since she was fourteen and this book includes her first love poem! Poetry has always been her first response to the hardships of pain and trauma as well as to insights, the joys of friendship and a deep relationship to nature.

Naomi is a performance poet whose work can be found in many magazines and Internet sites. "Poetry for me is a soul landscape, a continent to travel and guide others who dare across the scars and secrets of the heart's chamber. Poetry has been a vehicle to share with others the many faces of God I have seen and lived to tell the tale.

"We hope you cherish this work and it inspires you to reveal your own hidden self."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780646507767
Publisher:	Bookpod
Publication date:	02/08/2022
Pages:	66
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x 0.18(d)

About the Author

Bee Williamson comes from a family of artists - poets, painters, musicians and writers - and is passionate and committed to her many artistic expressions. She graduated from the VCA as Bachelor of Visual and Performing Arts in 1998. While still a child, Bee grew up going to The Street Poets gigs around Melbourne. She remembers all the regulars at Cafe Jammin', Middle Park. In 2006 she began organising the lineup for Roarhouse spoken word gigs. In 2007, she was involved in Woman's Word and their publication 'Woman's Word - New Works by Ten Women Writers'. In the same year she received a Cultural Development Fund from the City of Port Phillip for a reading of her play 'Hamlet's Angel' at the National Young Writers' Festival in Newcastle. Since 2004 she has had 12 exhibitions of artwork around galleries in Melbourne. She was also published in C.R.O.P. Harvest; People's Performance Project Bubbles of Resistance Rising: Beyond Borders and Binaries; and reviewed 'Camille - La Fille du Cirque' for Melbourne Stage online.books: www.beesboutiquebooks.bizart & design: www.hive.id.au

Naomi Downie studied Diploma of Art Therapy at Phoenix Institute in Melbourne and regularly gives workshops using meditation and music to inspire people to create art. She has also studied Fine Arts at Newcastle TAFE and has a Bachelor in Psychology. Naomi has been a part of group art exhibitions at Newcastle Regional Gallery, Gilbert Street Gallery and Tafe Gallery, Lovett's Gallery and Ron Hartree's studio. She has performed poetry at Peoples Performance Project 2 & 3, Dan O'Connell pub, Roarhouse at Esplanade Hotel with a harpist and at South Melbourne pub with a belly dancer and drummer. She has published her work with the Woman's Art Register bulletin, the Woman's Room net zine, Moment's zine, Woman's Word anthology and Newcastle Poetry at the Pub Anthology 2007 and 2008. Written a play and performed "No Think" with Art House Five, 1997. Part of the poetry committee organising the Multicultural Literature Night and co-editor 'Poesis' book, 1998.https://www.redbubble.com/people/naomimdownie/shop