Tag: Component

And That Was… April 2022

This edition of And That Was… was almost forgotten, such was the nature of April 2022. With March a hectic month, there was a feeling April would be quieter, but the reality was anything but relaxed. Months fly by these days, a combination of busy schedules and the constantly evolving Covid situation. April kicked off with a whirlwind trip to Tāmaki Makaurau for Ghostcat’s collaborative The Main Line exhibition at Limn Gallery, and as you might expect, a range of other adventures and encounters. On the home front, we have been launching a few new initiatives that will all become a bit clearer over the coming weeks… In the meantime, here are a few of the highlights from April!

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The Main Line opening @ Limn Gallery

We boarded a flight to Auckland on the 7th of April for the opening of The Main Line, a show featuring 28 custom-built miniature trains, produced by Christchurch’s own Ghostcat, each decorated by a graffiti artist paying homage to the iconic Spacerunner carriage (artists included Dyle 52, Askew, Phat1, Berst, Morpork, Lurq, Ikarus, Dcypher, Yikes, Freak, Vents and more). The opening was packed with names from the Aotearoa graffiti scene, reminiscing over a beloved part of the local culture’s history, making for an auspicious occasion.

Street Treats in Tāmaki Makaurau

With The Main Line opening on a Friday night, the rest of the weekend was left for exploring and the chance to navigate Aotearoa’s biggest urban centre. From the Mercury Plaza to legal walls in Avondale and many spaces in between, it was a treat to stumble upon works by some real heavy hitters and discover some new forces as well. A personal highlight was stencil don Component’s beautiful ballerina in Ponsonby…

Race A2D at The Avondale Pavilion

Another highlight of the trip to Auckland was the chance to catch Race A2D painting at Te Tūtahi Auaha – The Avondale Pavilion – the process documented by the man himself Dr Berst. The Pavilion is a fantastic concept that has become a key tool in the documentation of Aotearoa’s urban art culture. I might even appear in the background of the YouTube video a few times!

Slap City Billboard Takeover

The Slap City collective keep finding amazing spots and this empty billboard is a personal favourite – it might not be as central as some of their other locations, but it has an undeniable charm, echoed in Vez’s sppon drawer and played on by teethlikescrewdriver’s massive pencil. 10/10 would visit again.

Artist Talk with Jacob Yikes @ Fiksate

Jacob Yikes’ Even in Darkness exhibition was an April highlight in itself, a bold body of work that was candid and honest while still mysterious and evocative, but the chance to sit down and discuss the process with the artist with an enthusiastic live audience at Fiksate was a perfect way to end the month. The lengthy talk was an honest insight into the artist’s practice and the influences found in Even in Darkness.

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What made your list for April?Let us know in the comments… And if you have any events coming up, let us know by emailing hello@watchthisspace.org.nz

 

Postcard from Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland

Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland is a strange beast. It is the only mega-city in Aotearoa,  and when you touch down from Ōtautahi it is hard to comprehend the sheer spread of the northern metropolis. While you can easily navigate Christchurch’s inner city in 15 minutes, Auckland’s urban centre seemingly sprawls on forever, with each area displaying a distinct identity. Our quick trip to Tāmaki meant we didn’t get to endlessly explore the diversity of the city, but we did get to see a fair bit of art. Of course, there is no chance we could have achieved a full coverage of the city, but what we saw, we loved. Auckland has the longest and largest history of Aotearoa graffiti and street art, so spotting a legendary figure’s name or character, whether fresh or faded, is always a possibility, but still exciting for a nerd like me, while you can always find a new name that is on the come up as well. It also has a truly urban feel, where you can get lost down alleyways, led by the trace of some preceding presence who was compelled to leave their mark. It is a real city, and it’s streets are always talking…

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Where should our next postcard cover? Let us know at hello@watchthisspace.org.nz

 

And That Was… June 2021 with DREAM.R

When we asked DJ DREAM.R to compile our And That Was… for June, we knew she would have plenty of rad things to talk about – the flip side of that is it becomes a tough task for someone who is constantly juggling projects and events to find time! Like the champion DREAM.R is though, she made time and came back to us with an amazing list of things she has loved from the last month – from creative workshops to morning raves and bubbling plans for murals in Wellington, this is most definitely the list of a true creative who spreads across the realms of making, doing and thriving! From choice-cuts that get the crowds dancing to funky pots and earrings as well as a surrounding circle of friends that guarantee wicked plans, DREAM.R was a perfect choice to recap June 2021…

Jess Johnson and M/K Press Workshops at the Christchurch Art Gallery

I recently attended a few workshops at the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, including a session with artist Jess Johnson, who creates intricate otherworldly pieces that I have been drawn to for their pastel colours, symmetry and sci-fi strangeness. She does most excellent collaborations with Simon Ward and together they make their worlds come to life with virtual reality. If you ever get a chance to check this out, don’t sit on it – get involved!  It was insightful to learn her techniques and inspirations and I got to play around with my own piece on the day.

I also attended another great workshop with Jane Maloney from M/K Press who brought in her risograph and showed us how it all worked. I got to create a few fun prints working in with some backgrounds she had already printed. Using the risograph was magic, and so satisfying to watch. I had no idea how it worked and now that I have had a play, I am itching for more! M/K Press’s 12-month collaboration with Fiksate Gallery, of a limited run of prints each month with a new urban artist is amazing!

Morning People

I was recently asked to play an event called Morning People, which happened to be on a Thursday morning at 6:30am! Now, when I first heard about Morning People I was skeptical because, quite frankly, I am far from a morning person (more like a night owl). However, I went to the first show they did in Christchurch a while back and was surprised at how much fun I had and how refreshing it was. Leaving the club at 8am is a memory of the distant past …ye old Christchurch city life…out ze club and onto the first bus home no more!

The morning is designed to offer an early, clean one-and-a-half hour, one-DJ rave for people before they start their day. They serve coffee, fruit, protein bars, and my fav drink ‘Club Matè’ (an epic caffeinated beverage from South America). This is a recipe for the best start to the day I have experienced yet. I was buzzing all day from the energy the crowd gave me. Watching everyone just get into it and dance their lil’ butts off was so magical. From a DJ’s perspective, it was a totally nervous lead up (feeling the pressure of delivering a solid performance of dancey tuneage to full-on sober punters!) with an exciting and fun outcome where I really just had a fully focused and dedicated crowd of beautiful people who were there to move their bodies! What more could we ask for?!

Morning people are based in Auckland and they do early morning raves in Auckland, Christchurch and sometimes Wellington. Check them out and if you can do it, do it! I recommend trying it at least once to see if it’s for you!

Cosmic Undertakings

The temporary frontage of Cosmic Wellington, which will soon see some new art

As the Operations and Project Manager for Cosmic, I am working on a project for our Wellington store where we will be doing some murals on the store frontages. I have approached an artist for one, but they haven’t confirmed yet, so I won’t divulge (but I will say that they are one of my most favourite artists on the scene today and the work she creates is magic!). This would be for a roller door and a feature wall inside the new café/vape store. For the other roller door, I will be doing a piece with my lil’ babe of a friend Lil’ Ems, who is the heart of ‘Cute Gang’ (a worldwide gang of cute artists who share the love of street art and connections). I have no idea what we will come up with, so I cannot wait to get drawing! Ems just did a wee sign on our frontage to show we are still open throughout the renovations. We have already been tagged with ‘F**k the Police’, which we assumed would happen and may end up being a funny week of bomb tags, although I do hope the final images are respected and left as is. Wellington has some real beautiful wall coverings and it is always such a trip walking the streets and taking in the talented creations. This is less of a did-do… and more of a watch-this-space!
If anyone is interested in showing me their work and could see themselves doing a mural, please flick me some details and ideas to leila@cosmicnz.co.nz – we haven’t locked anyone in yet and it could still be up for grabs if it’s a fun and suitable match (Wellington-based ideally for ease of logistics!).

Warehouse fun and Shes.cutting.shapes!

A Shes.cuttin.shapes creation

A bunch of my crew just signed a short-term lease on a warehouse right in the centre of town. We have intentions to use this space as storage for our many behind-the-scene ventures and to make a studio where we can create new works while hanging with friends. We are called ‘Clubhouse Creative’ and while I am not sure where this new venture will take us, it is super exciting to think of the possibilities! I look forward to playing around with more painting and doing some bigger murals (practice for the Welly mission – I will attempt to paint a mural on the front roller door… I’m not sure who painted the one that is on there now, but I think it’s time for a refresh…), and to make space for my Shes.cuttin.shapes projects. I have been painting pots for all of my plant friends for a few years now. I use test pots from Resene and never plan them before I put brush to pot, I trust the process and enjoy the moment! I also make earrings from molding clay and have fun with my hands making cool patterns and shapes. I haven’t quite got them to the stage of selling, most of my creations are for me and my friends… I am hoping that this space will give me the creative space to share my love of these things!

Lots of creations on the horizon!

RDU’s Slaps Collection

I play with some good friends of mine on the Rhythm Zone show on RDU 98.5FM every second Friday from 6pm to 8pm. Being in the RDU studio, I have always spent any downtime in between mixes looking deeply into their slap sticker collections from over the years. It has been built up over years and shows a long history of the humans who have passed through and/or contributed their time to the station from all walks of life within the music industry. Each individual sticker represents a gig or a musician or a label or a brand – spanning many years of goodness!

Follow DREAM.R (and Shes.cuttin.shapes) on Instagram for more dreamy goodness!