volume 1 november, 2025
the DOLLhouse dispatch
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known-to-fantastical-unknown
textural details - scratchy pencil on acrylic
known to fantastical unknown (study)
moment of musing
known-to-fantastical-unknown
welcome to volume 1 of the DOLLhouse Dispatch- a free, monthly digital publication that connects a growing circle of creatives, artists & collectors who value intensity & odd insights, as well as moments of structure & serenity.
our november 2025 volume gazes out from the known-to-fantastical-unknown
an invitation to pause at the threshold between memory and fantasy; to skirt the bright edges of unreality and peer into spaces where flights of fancy shimmer- vivid & bright- hosting fondly (and yet, perhaps falsely?) nostalgic notions.
I hope you enjoy making-believe & reminiscing with me.
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BRZA DOLL
studio senses
one is encouraged to generate unconventional responses
or- reflections on abstraction, transformation & creative optimism
Over the last few years, I have moved towards creative practice and curation- both in my studio and the broader art-community spaces I inhabit. This process has involved developing a deeper understanding of authenticity, somatic cues, and how to make more intentional, timely decisions.
With an oddly eternal optimism and a genuine passion for problem-solving, I am inclined to meet most challenges with a peppy;
“Of course things can be different- here’s how!”
however, making more conscious and informed decisions about the things that can be different- things that actually make a positive difference- has really made… all the difference!
which is to say, I’ve spent the past few years exploring a mix of long and short creative practice & art courses that helped refine my instincts and direct my creative output ever-t’wards authenticity & intentionality.
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this month, I’m reflecting on the NAS short courses I’ve completed over the past two summers- each one entirely focused on abstraction, and each led by a brilliant teacher-artist who shared their own approaches to process and perception.
In 2024, I studied with Dr Christine Dean, and in 2025 with Tonee Messiah- two experiences that were, for me, rich and transformational. In a future volume, I’d love to spotlight these contemporary Australian queens in full- their work, perspectives, and contributions to the vibrant world of abstract art.
to embody this curatorial intentionality I aspire to achieve- I want to briefly revisit my studies with Tonee Messiah in her 2025 online course Colour, Abstraction and Expressive Painting. This is where we dip our toes into the shallows of what is the known-to-fantastical-unknown.
the course opened with core technical elements- shape, colour, texture and composition. As Tonee asserted, “Abstraction is a practice of interpretation- like any genre of painting.” Her opening lessons were about the ‘basics’, yet were anything-but. Tonee’s tasks centred us in the formal properties of painting, yet the emphasis was placed on experience over explanation.
Tonee reminded us that; “Abstraction does not explain itself through reference to recognisable objects and symbols. A viewer cannot read or understand the painting in the conventional way, but rather recognises an impact on their senses or nervous system.”
each exercise was a quiet provocation, asking- how might this mark/emotion/colour alter the overall impact or response?
as we progressed, two questions kept coming up for me during the 1:1 feedback:
what feels resolved and unresolved in this piece?
have you looked at it upside-down? - just for perspective
Turns out all those formative years with Mr Squiggle ensured not only a lifetime fascination with the moon, but a proclivity for unexpectedly upside-down painting. In the sing-song words of the man from the moon & his friends; “UPSIDE-DOWN! UPSIDE-DOWN!”
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the flow between these musings and our end goal- a personal, individual body of work- became clearer each week as we moved through various stages of deconstruction, reconstruction, and reductionism. Tonee is no reductionist purist (perhaps unlike Thomas Nozkowski), yet her approach revealed that reductionism can be expressive, meditative, and literal and this process of realisation sparked the core of my individual work- before I even realised it.
one key exercise asked us to select a memory, identify the feelings it evoked, and find words for each.
from there, we chose a colour to represent each word and dove into deciding what marks were essential vs superfluous.
I now trace the origins of this body of work back to that moment.
that exercise became a gateway- a foundation for my process of ideation and body-of-work development. It also led directly to my self-funded artistic residency in Scotland, where I spent a month immersed in painting, journaling, and research. More of that adventure will unfold soon, as we traverse new lands- both real and imagined.
known-to-fantastical-unknown is an investigation into the sensation of being transported to other places. my personal obsession with this phenomenon originates with classic portal fantasies, think;
the Pevensie children hiding in a wardrobe and accidentally discovering a doorway to Narnia (Chronicles of Narnia)
one Dorothy hitting her monochromatic head during a hurricane, and waking up with Toto in a technicolour dream-world (The Wizard of Oz)
young Bastian escaping bullies in an old bookshop, and becoming the hero in a neverending story (The Neverending Story)
my childhood was dominated by books and reading. I loved the way they played out like movies in my minds-eye.
from escapism, I thought about isekai - originating in Japan- the genre of anime that deals in portal fantasy and travel between worlds and planes. I recalled Chihiro in Spirited Away, working at a bath house for demons and gods to pay her parents' gluttonous debt.
I felt my thoughts and imagination traverse new depths of consideration- the nostalgia and idealism of escapism & the portal fantasy genre, and yet, there is a flip side. The contrasting uncertainty and cynicism that the very journey through worlds embodies.
you don’t really escape- your problems just transform. The means of solving those problems can seem more interesting or “fun” because solutions are often magical ones (though grounded in logic and a new set of 'rules’.)
I wanted to explore these tensions through gesture, colour and layering. Working from feeling and memory. The joy of nostalgia, my love of these stories- but also the way that this ‘remembered joy’ shines slightly too bright.
below, my body of work is digitally exhibited - in a collision of nonsense and logic.
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Of leaving a world with known problems, for entry into fantastical otherworlds to negotiate a new unknown.
Of feeling a deep connection and sense of joy that verges on painful- amplified by leaving, or perhaps by returning.
Of the bright and muted moments between chaos and calm. The soft-edged inner reflections and the harshly absent ‘good bye’.
escapist impetus (2025), acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A5, 300gsm
the forming, once hidden (2025), acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A5, 300gsm
certain nostalgia (2025), acrylic paint on canvas, 76cm x 101.5cm x 1.6cm
ecstatic othersphere (2025), acrylic paint on oil sketch paper, standard A1, 280gsm
field of dreams (2025) acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A3, 300gsm
awaken! (2025) acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A3, 300gsm
when you get to the end- STOP! (2025) acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A3, 300gsm
I didn’t want to finish (because I knew what but not how) (2025) acrylic paint and coloured pencil on paper, standard A3, 300gsm
under Tonee’s guidance, there was a connectedness, yet never coddling. She encouraged taking risks and engaging intuition. Her own obvious enjoyment of aesthetics, memory and experience were contagious, and her pattern recognition is so attuned that I’d bet many students mistake it for mind-reading.
her method was profoundly focusing for me- especially in refinement. I feel far more capable of editing and curating an overwhelming abundance of ideas when approaching an artwork. I feel most proud of implementing feedback and fine-tuning my ability to sense; aesthetically, somatically, intellectually & emotionally, when a painting has finally chosen resolve.
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monthly creative prompt
flights of portal fantasy
in pursuing the Known-to-Fantastical-Unknown- and in homage to Tonee Messiah’s short course on abstraction- I’ve adapted a few documentarian snapshots from my visit to the National Gallery of Australia earlier this year. These works act as creative reference points for imaginative play.
to me, they encapsulate this month’s Studio Sense title: one is encouraged to generate unconventional responses. As I viewed them, I experienced tensions between fastness & slowness, expansion & deflation, fixed stares and averted glances- sensations that still feel alive when I revisit them.
portal prompts:
these can be completed in order, or not-
perhaps you prefer to muse on a topic, but aren't inclined to grab an art material, and that is also totally fine.
in any case, let's shall:
1. the 9-square grid:
create a 3x3 grid on any size paper you have available.
view the nine documentarian-style artwork vignettes and choose the ONE mark or gesture from each to include on your page.
record each essential element- one per snapshot- in your grid.
(I tend to record these marks as line-drawing outlines, but you can do this step in a way that is natural and makes sense to you. This is deconstruction in action- it's the reduction of each image to one essential element, and you might enjoy thinking about or journalling 'why?' you chose each mark.)
1.1: you could stop there and enjoy your series of abstract grid-markings - you could imagine that, when combined in a certain order, they lead you through a portal to... where?
1.2: perhaps you capture your imagined portal. Perhaps you recreate it in 3 different media- acrylic, cut paper/collage and charcoal. Or perhaps you combine all of the marks using just one colour, but 9 different art materials.
1.3: see where I'm going with this? In the beginning, these are all the steps that are known. But there is so much to the unknown that you can delve into and explore. For the purposes of honouring Tonee's original prompt, I've recreated the reductionist task within adapted parameters. Please continue to 2.0.
2. on your marks…
select 2-4 marks/grid boxes to combine.
this could be your two favourite and two least favourite marks, or you might close your eyes and jab the grid with your pencil- either way is valid!
3. NAME . THAT . FEELING!
consider how your chosen marks make you feel.
consider how your special interest or favourite topic of discussion makes you feel.
match a new feeling word (or adjective, if you are emotionally-stunted) to each box-mark you've selected.
4. word association (reductionism)
designate a colour or texture to each word.
the chosen colour or texture can be evocative of the word, or intentionally disparate.
here I want to show you a snippet from my NAS sketchbook during reductionism ideation- and show you how I applied this concept:
process journal snippet - word association: memory, word, colour
5. forming a portal (reconstruction)
create a new "grid" (depending on the number of marks you chose- perhaps you just have two boxes side-by-side, or you may prefer to combine all marks into one "box", but however you choose, for this final step you need:
at least one box, drawn on a page or surface (no more than 4)
at least 2 marks from your original deconstruction grid (though don't be surprised if they squirm around a bit as you "recreate" them- try to let go of stiffness & over-control)
at least 1 colour/tone (no more than 5)
at least 1 intentionally created texture (as many as you like)
6. sharing is caring
share your new fantastical portal with me if you feel so inclined.
I accept emails, DM and tags, and heartily encourage the use of the hashtag #brzadollprompt for every month's creative prompt response.
I am so excited to discover new-unknowns together!
In my experience, resolve isn’t necessarily achieved, so much as discovered.
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current collection
shop update
these works will seek a wall beyond the studio- each work acting, in it’s own way, as a personal portal into something strange & fantastical.
your wall is waiting…
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monthly GLAM curation
portal fantasy: a literary curation
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1. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, novel by Lewis Carroll
Where everything begins and ends for me.
Where nonsense tries so hard to confound that it circles round and ends-up making sense again.
The spotlight is on these two editions; the gorgeously colourful and foiled psychedelic modern cover, with the original, 1865, un-abridged text.
The abridged version is by Jon Scieszka, but I really chose it for the illustrations-by the talented concept artist, Mary Blair.
Her stylistic sensibilities are divine. A classic example of portal fantasy- of curiosity leading to the most amazing adventure- a sentiment to live and create by.
access: this text is public domain and thus can be read online for free: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11
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2. Wayward Children, series by Seanan McGuire
For anyone who has ever felt they were born outside of their ‘true’ time or place.
Each book stands alone, but can also be read in order to experience a non-linear, yet masterfully cohesive timeline and compelling intersection of characters and their respective fates.
In particular, I’ve selected Book 4: In An Abstract Dream, (2019) and Book 10 - Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear, (2025)
Book 4 is one of my favourites in the series, and links to text 4 on this list- a poem by Christina Rosetti. The novella artfully recreated the sense of the world in the poem- a world that defines tensions between calm and calamity.
Book 10 has giant turtles for riding! And, I guess it’s also relevant that I had read most of it during the same month as my short course, and then stopped abruptly (because, well, the title says it all, really!) It prompted my final artwork in the Known-Unknown collection: I didn’t want to finish (because I knew what but not how). I did finish the very short novella eventually, but it took a little extra emotional-buffering time to get there!
In each title, a physical door appears. The door warns; ‘Be Sure,’ and with that, each character makes a strange choice- whether to cross over that threshold.
I’m always curious to know whomst of my peers would choose to enter this mysterious portal, or would turn away and head for the comfort of home?
access: ‘Juice Like Wounds’, (2020) is dubbed a side quest short story. effectively story 4.5 in the Wayward Children series. available as a free, short, in-betweenie on The Reactor website (formerly Tor.com publisher site): https://reactormag.com/juice-like-wounds-seanan-mcguire/
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3. Anne Dangar, publication/exhibition catalogue by National Gallery of Australia (NGA)
If you have ever felt inclined to read a true story about a young Australian woman who:
Ran away to Moly-Sabata, France.
Established a community-focused pottery convent, teaching all who wanted to learn.
Trained with high profile artists earning renown in her community and beyond.
Conducted a heavily letter-born, lesbian (alleged) love affair (with another brilliant Australian abstract artist, no-less).
Creating beautiful abstract designs on functional items- that survived kiln-firing and the ravages of time.
This might just be the artist exhibition catalogue (with blended biographical account) that you never knew you needed!
The publication itself is thoughtful and clearly a labour of love. Speaking from experience, it really is hard to not fall for Anne Dangar as you witness her timeline and beautiful creations form. Both the publication and the pottery house powerful portals into memory and connection.
access: the NGA Exhibition History: https://nga.gov.au/exhibitions/anne-dangar/
and, well worth a listen, this podcast with the Anne Dangar Exhibition Curator- Rebecca Edwards: https://nga.gov.au/on-demand/rebecca-edwards-on-anne-dangar/
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4. Goblin Market, poem by Christina Rosetti
Deceptively simple- with a jaunty Victorian rhythm & rhyme, ‘Goblin Market’, weaves a lyrical story of sisters tempted into dangerous bargains- by strange men offering desirable deals on extremely , mouthwateringly fresh fruit.
Recommended to those who enjoy a thinly veiled Victorian near-scandal, unpicking enjoyable allegories (the fruit represents what- now?), and sisters that are doin’ it for themselves.
I know the folk and faerie tale elements of these works are like a forbidden fruit to my senses. It’s about the truths that are kept hidden- just outside of knowing. You can see it out the corner of your eye, but you’re not supposed to turn your head and look. You hear whispers on the wind, but arent’s supposed to utter an answer.
As a reader and viewer, I love knowing both sides of the story, and I think the temptation to learn lessons the ‘hard’ way only becomes more enticing to me as I age. (Perhaps that is the way of all eldest children- particularly those socialised as daughters?)
In applying this realisation to my creative practice is liberating- like discovering a secret pathway to freedom.
access: long have I loved the Poetry Foundation website. here you can access Goblin Market for free, and a huge catalogue of works by Rosetti, too. check it out: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44996/goblin-market
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5. The O.G., Zines, et al. digital publications by Amy Sillman
Amy Sillman’s fine arts essays, lectures and digital zines are for you, simply put, if you yearn for abstraction.
I’m still learning about Amy Sillman- as an artist, writer, thinker and maker. It is a joyful exploratory experience because Amy Sillman is genuine and effusive in her recognition of other fine artists and peers, and is also grounded and thoughtful in her analysis.
As an artist and a Libra- balance is extremely enticing to me. Perhaps Amy Sillman - with her zines, lectures, podcasts, interviews and collected essays (some of which are free online, and anthologised in her book- ‘Faux Pas’), is the personification of planting the left foot firmly on this side of the threshold (or sill, as it is also known), and the right firmly on the other side. Or, perhaps Amy Sillman would snort at my suggestion and ask me to focus on the mess instead of wrapping up neat, intellectually packaged passages. Yep, she’s brilliant!
access: Amy Sillman’s website is iconic. I recommend taking a good solid gander. However, one of my favourite volumes of her zine The O.G. is Vol 14, Shapes, 2020. There are so many thoughtful references to artworks that focus on shape, and inevitably evolve into genitals. What’s not to love? You can read or download the PDFs here :https://www.amysillman.com/Zines/
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6. Mighty Max, animated TV series and toy line by Bluebird Toys / Mattel Inc
For lovers of 90’s catch-phrases, toxic-waste guitar licks, and wearing backwards caps- Mighty Max was a semi-underground staple of the 1990’s rise in integrated cartoon/toy lines- a phenomenon that, well into the 2020’s continues to create worldwide marketing hype.
I’m talking- the TV series created purely to advertise and sell toys to children - classic Mattel (yes, I love Monster High, too) - and yet, they often felt more fully-realised than some of the shows that claimed to be story-first conceptualisations.
My recollection is a little hazy, but I recently came across some snippets of old Mighty Max episodes, and the Polly-Pocket-esque toys my mum is seeking to offload to her adult children.
Borrowing from classic mythology and hero-tropes appeals to my (arguably camp) tastes even today, and studying Dante’s Inferno in university- learning the poet Virgil was the guide through the circles of hell- I looked back at my memories of Mighty Max, and the wise, personified Owl companion, also named Virgil, with renewed awe and significantly updated literary and historic reference.
And how, pray, does this link to our theme? Well, the Owl Virgil was also TOTALLY magic and used a sick staff to open portals to other places in our world and beyond!
access: good luck, & may Virgil guide you.
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thank you for reading the first volume of the BRZA DOLL newsletter
join again next month and prepare to take a wee jaunt with me!
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