Maree Faulkner

A few days ago I was on a train ride back from Katoomba's Winter Magic Festival and magic really did happen.  I was standing in a packed cart, not an inch to spare, when a woman caught my eye.  I couldn't stop looking at her, I was completely drawn to her energy.  And then, the seat next to her magically became available and I sat right beside her.  There was small talk about a cloth doll she was sewing for a friend, and then she reached inside her bag and pulled out a small point and shoot camera to show me a picture of when she was a baby.  She recently acquired it from a friend and took a snapshot, so she was really proud of her photography skills.  Taking a picture of a photograph is not easy.  I sat quietly as she exchanged memory cards and started to flip through some seemingly uninteresting people shots.  When I asked her if I could see some of them, she slowed down her review and photographs of her and Leonard Cohen appeared.  I voiced my surprise and she just smiled, continuing her review.  She said that night she felt pretty and showed me a picture of her with fake, long, PINK eyelashes.  I was more and more intrigued by her and finally asked her if i could take her photograph, as I thought she was one of the most striking people I've ever met.  Literally, her energy just kept on drawing me closer and closer.  She graciously agreed, and I took about 5 frames, talking to her as I would a long lost friend. She then proceeded to show me some photographs of her "drawings" and that's when I just about blew a fuse.  Her artwork is simply STUNNING, completely alive, colorful and full of emotion.  You can see the motion, the love, the passion in each stroke.  I finally asked her what her name was and she wrote her name and address on my train ticket to keep in touch.  Maree Faulkner.  

I will be contacting her again, and hopefully will spend more time with this amazing woman.