Madison on High Street

/ Madison/

Earlier this year I was contacted by the team at Hamilton Hayes Henderson architects to create a mural on an upcoming project. The brief was to reference the history of the site as the apartment building is located where the original Southport railway station operated until 1964. I explored a few options through the concept development stage and came up with a mandala inspired design as my recommended option. After some minor refinements approval was granted and its was time to get cracking. I tried to harness the energy from the jackhammering, concrete cutting and earthshaking machinery operating nearby. At times I could barely hear myself think on the construction site but the contractors were very accommodating and great to work alongside. This was an exciting project to be involved with as only a few times in my career has a client built a wall with a mural in mind. 

Exit 75

/

When I said Sauce was busy, I wan’t exaggerating! He managed to smash out this Stomper on the Gold Coast over two days. It was in the pipeline for a while, as Sauce know it would be a mission to finalize. During this time, we received word that another Writer, Polka passed away, so it was fitting this wall would be a tribute to the young man who died too soon. 

There were heaps of different challenges to negotiate, from lining up paints to having enough space on site. The wall which is visible from the motorway, doesn’t have many neighboring buildings, so the ‘nature strip’ was more of an overgrown tangle of weeds with a large and steep drop. The lack of buildings also meant Sauce was unable to source power for his airless spraygun so the background was done with rollers. He was definitely stinky when he came home, so I can assure you plenty of sweat went into this wall.


This wasn’t the first time Sauce had painted here. Previously, an old friend Roms had organised permissions for the wall, but over time Roms had other things to manage and he graciously handed it over to Sauce to maintain.

Goodbye 2013!

/

Wowzers! 2013 has been one rollercoaster of a year. Sauce painted more murals than we care to count and the studio has been out biggest adventure yet! 

The year started with a bang, as Sauce spent five days at Brisbane Pop Culture with Turtle and Em Undead. With all the rain and storms for the summer of 2012-13 Sauce was definitely battling the elements. But it was finished in time and luckily Em and Turtle escaped any flooding. We however, were not so fortunate. Country living has it’s downside, and while we were planning and scheming to open The Sauce Studio in Murwillumbah, we were flooded in at home for four and a half days, without power. But, we survived, and managed to open the studio, so Lady Luck must have been looking after us.

Buddah watching over us in the studio.

The Studio opening in March was definitively the scariest and most exciting thing we have ever done. In the lead up to opening night, it was utter chaos. We were busily organising shirts, logos, merchandise, advertising and all the paperwork that comes with running and expanding a business. We also had to re-fit the shop ourselves which saw Sauce and myself covered in paint and sweat from head to toe. A massive thanks goes out to all the people who visited for opening night (and throughout the year!). It’s heartening to know people are interested in the artwork and want to support an independent artist.

Ainslie Rose hard at work!

Once we opened the studio, Sauce was off to Tassie, and then Julia Creek, which was the first of three trips to Central Queensland this year. The Anglicare CQ team are without a doubt the most professional and dedicated team we have worked with. Every time Sauce visits Emerald, he’s treated like a superstar and the Anglicare CQ team have every detail organised. The kids are appreciative and enthusiastic. Sauce has even made friends up there who take him motorbike riding. Rough life hey?

The studio is keeping us both busy, with Sauce using the space as a workshop and I’m busy with all of the admin and paperwork. In September of this year, we held out first curated showcase, which was another adventure. I had the exciting role of Senior Curator, which meant I was developing and analysing the theme, while also advertising and vacuuming. For the week before Stains of Modernity opened, we had a young lad on work-experience who was dedicated and energetic. We almost couldn’t keep up with him!  Again, a massive thanks to all who came to the opening night and gave us a hand behind the scenes. It’s always scary throwing that type of party. We can never tell if it is going to be epic or, and epic failure, so thanks for making it a success.

Digital Interference. One of the pieces from Stains of Modernity.

It hasn’t been all beer and skittles, with Sauce facing some challenging bureaucracy and professional hurdles. We blogged about the many different experiences, and on a personal level it is disappointing to see the legal walls shut down, commissioned walls painted over and the zero tolerance approach taken by numerous organisations. I am conscious when we’re putting together blog posts as it is easy to moan about these issues, but we believe in standing up for what we believe in. Which is why we also write countless emails to officials and bureaucrats and make this information public. Just like Max Cavalera reminds us, “I’d rather die on my feet than keep living on my knees.” Too true Mr Cavalera.

 

One more exciting piece of information before we go. We are finally running stencil and aerosol workshops from the studio. Book it in your diary!

January 12th & 26th and February 9th.
$40 per head which includes a small canvas and paint supplied. 
Strictly 13 years or older.
Bookings essential. 
Wear appropriate clothing. All care taken, no responsibility for leaving paint on your new Nikes.

 

What ever you are doing this festive season, stay safe, look after your mates and enjoy yourself.

Peace,
Sauce and Ainslie Rose.

Sauce takes some time out with his new favourite book.


 


Mr Tom Tate & His Lovely Opinions.

/

When Justin Bieber left his mark on the wall of QT Gold Coast it made headlines across the world. At the time, we posted a link to the story and made our opinions known on Facebook, which, is the standard thing to do. And then, we saw the video Mr Tom Tate made about his thoughts and opinions regarding the artwork in question. At The Sauce Studio, we’re not happy with Mr Tate’s approach to this issue, and, we believe, sometimes, you have to put your money where your mouth is.


Firstly, I want to point out that Justin Bieber’s art, (Both music and aerosol) is not to my taste. We are not advocating in his behalf, nor do we appreciate his abilities, but as Voltaire says “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” While Justin’s actions may be immature, he still has every right to express himself. I know I did plenty of dumb things when I was younger, so who am I to judge?

 

Secondly, the coverage of this story is what I think is a part of the bigger picture issue. Aerosol art, graffiti and the sub-culture of Hip Hop are all things which can be enjoyed and created in a safe and legal manner. In this instance, Justin sought permission to create his artworks, and therefore it is not vandalism. Mr Tate’s actions of sending a graffiti removal kit to the hotel are just down right rude and ignorant. These types of attention grabbing tactics vilify and demean the cultural structures of Hip Hop and Graffiti Art. If Mr Tate is unable to tell the difference, or act in a manner which is respectful to artistic expression, I question his ability to be a fair and thoughtful Mayor. 

 

I am also disappointed by Mr Tate’s response to Justin’s artwork, as I don’t believe these types of actions are conducive for creating a vibrant and culturally sustainable future. This year, the Gold Coast Cultural Precinct was unveiled and Mr. Tate has also made a video about this. The precinct will include an art gallery, production studios and showrooms for arts and creative industries, and a New Arts Museum and Living Arts Centre. All of these things sound great, but if the Mayor is unable to respect artwork in this instance, I doubt very much he has the ability showcase the city’s culture and creativity to the world. In fact, I assert in his video address, not only does he denigrate Hip Hop Culture, he is tarnishing the Gold Coast’s appearance too. 

 

In Sauce’s video, he touched on Mr Tate’s use of the word “Princess.” Gender stereotypes can be difficult to unpack in a two minute clip, but I want to expand on it here. By using the term “Princess” to refer to a male is rude to both men and women. Specifically, from Mr Tate’s position of power (with wealth and public leadership), it infers that a Princess is a negative position, and as girls are Princesses, they must be negative. It also emasculates the male and creates levels of good verses bad. I would like to invoke such a gender stereotype and suggest that a gentleman of Mr Tate’s position should know better than to use stereotypes as put-downs. I expect more from our leaders, and I believe we need to keep them to account.

 

 

So, in sum, Mr Tate has done nothing to cultivate creativity on the Gold Coast nor act as an ambassador for Gold Coast tourism. By acting in an immature and ignorant fashion he as added to Justin Bieber’s profile. Nice work, Mr Tate.

 

Peace, Ainslie Rose. 

The Benefits of a Mural (Part two)

/

 

Welcome back to part two of ‘The Benefits of a Mural’. In the previous post we explained how a mural can be a cost effective method of graffiti prevention and how it differs from digital printing. In this post, we will explain the human elements of a mural.

 


 

A mural can be a cost effective method of creating a sense of pride and ownership for schools, community organisations and sporting clubs. The design elements of the creative process can provide your organisation with effective tools to make your space your own. The use of a mural creates a brand alignment with the handcrafted, bespoke and artisan elements of sign-writing. This type of visual communication speaks above the convoluted clip-art images we are all familiar with. By commissioning a professional mural artist to create a mural for your organisation, you are immediately communicating differently with your client base. 

 

 

 

Murals are also a great way to enliven a usually dull or dead space that would be usually ignored or avoided. Through the use of colour, you can make a feature of a normally wasted space. The human element of the design process provides a platform of realness to your organisation. The application process alone allows a level of flexibility which is unmatched with other sign-writing or visual advertising methods.

 


Feel free to contact us at Aerograffix to discuss your creative needs. We’d love to have a chat about your mural project.