The first Friday of November proved a popular night for exhibition openings with three shows celebrating openings at the same time! The sun was shining into the evening, making it a great chance to enjoy a social(ly distanced) occasion and, of course, the art of talented locals and a popular visitor from the capital. At Fiksate, Wellington artist Chimp returned to Christchurch for his new solo offering Social Woes, an investigation of the impact of social media on our contemporary existence, while over at 413 Local Gallery on Tuam Street, Daken presented Daken’s Emporium, a selection of his customised toys and comics (along with some special guest contributors), and at the Boxed Quarter, the talented team from everyone’s favourite art supplies store Gordon Harris hosted In the Hours After, a group show featuring multi-disciplinary work from Peter Pinckney, Carrie Dingwall, Klaudia Bartos, Bebe James, Olivia Isabel Smith, Louann Sidon, Theresa Waugh, Seonaid Burnie and Al Joice.
It was pretty tricky to make it around all three shows, and while some were impressively able to manage the logistical challenge, for many others, it was a case of picking one. So, for those of you who didn’t manage to get to all of these shows, this is for you!
Chimp – Social Woes @ Fiksate Gallery, Friday 5th November (until November 27th)
Fiksate was looking pretty spiffy to mark the opening of Social Woes…While outside, the crowd enjoyed the sunshine in a makeshift outdoor area (Photo credit: Fiksate Gallery)Chimp, the man of the hour, eventually got the chance to relax after a busy opening evening, here with his work Mental Weight (mixed media on board, 2021)…Birds of a Feather (mixed media on board, 2021) highlighted some of the stylistic progressions in Chimp’s latest work…As did Eyelash Wings (Acrylic, digital print and aerosol on panel, 2021)Social Woes runs until November 27th at Fiksate, 54 Hawdon Street, Sydenham
Daken – Daken’s Emporium @ 413 Local Gallery, Friday 5th November (Until November 10th)
Over at 413 Local Gallery on Tuam Street, the space became an imaginarium of Daken’s playful custom toys… (Photo credit: Daken)Including a replica of the artist’s workspace (Photo credit: Daken)There were his Dak Bird cut outs and the Hands of Film series… (Photo credit: Daken)And custom cereal boxes (packed with goodies), zines (A Dog’s Mind 2 – Electric Boogaloo!) and comics (note the powder-filled Scarface blister!) (Photo credit: Daken)As well as a selection of prints – from fantastic creatures to the Emporium and even Toxic Mutant Joes Master Wars! (Photo credit: Daken)
In the Hours After featuring Klaudia Bartos, Seonaid Burnie, Carrie Dingwall, Bebe James, Al Joice, Peter Pinckney, Louann Sidon, Olivia Isabel Smith and Theresa Waugh @ the BOXed Quarter, Friday 5th November (Until November 10th)
An excited crowd gathered for In The Hours After… (Photo credit: Theresa Waugh)(Photo credit: Klaudia Bartos)(Photo credit: Theresa Waugh)Featured artists Louann Sidon, Klaudia Bartos, Bebe James, Olivia Isabel Smith, Theresa Waugh and Seonaid Burnie got the chance to celebrate (Photo credit: Findlay Currie)Olivia Isabel Smith’s mixed media works explore the arrangement, organisation and collection of objects… (Photo credit: Olivia Isabel Smith)A selection of Seonaid Burnie’s evocative works from In the Hours After… (Photo credit: Seonaid Burnie)Theresa Waugh’s textile works explore texture, form, pattern and colour (Photo credit: Theresa Waugh)Bebe James’ beautifully presented jewellery pieces added to the show’s diversity… (Photo credit: Bebe James)Klaudia Bartos’ haunting portrait works from In the Hours After (Photo credit: Klaudia Bartos)
Are you part of a show coming up? Email hello@watchthisspace.org.nz to let us know. Showtime will cover exhibitions and events from the local scene…
Despite the challenges of Covid through the second half of the year, Christchurch has continued to present activities to keep us busy and engaged – from new murals to exhibitions and projects. Likewise, other cities have worked hard to keep events going, albeit under trying and ultimately stressful realities. But one of the great things about urban art is its ability to thrive no matter the circumstances, it is a sign of our endurance and existence, so it is fitting that many of the entries in this month’s And That Was… are reflective of that potential, even if they are commissioned projects or organised events…
Even More: The Show @ Clubhouse Creative
The latest incarnation of Lydia Thomas’ More: The Show, Even More: The Show took place in a new location (making use of the awesome spaciousness of Southwark Street’s Clubhouse Creative) and featured a number of new artists, some Watch this Space favourites, others new names for us to get excited about. With a diverse range of talented local female creatives, and packed into the massive warehouse space in a visual feast, the pop-up was popular and energetic and yet another bow for the Hello I Am project…
Ghosts on Every Corner gets a Boost…
Image courtesy of Jenna Ingram at Fiksate
It was so good to see the Ghosts on Every Corner team reach their Boosted campaign goal! Ghostcat and the Fiksate team have been working away at getting this art trail and book project off the ground and the support for their Boosted campaign was incredible as they reached their goal with a few hours to spare! Bring on the mini art and normal-sized book!
The Ocean is in our Hands – Blue Cradle x Popx x OK Creates
Local oceanographic non-profit trust Blue Cradle along with Richie Pops Baker and OK Creates are the forces behind this new mural on Colombo Street. The work celebrates the incredible diversity and supportive qualities of the ocean, while also serving as a reminder that we need to ensure its health and care. It is an impressive and meaningful addition to a busy part of town!
The Paste-Up Project x teethlikescrewdrivers
Watch This Space, along with Phantom Billstickers, have been busy creating The Paste-Up Project, a new platform for one of urban art’s most enduring forms. Turning a central city bollard into a supported platform for paper-based art, the project adds diversity to the city’s urban art profile. Teethlikescrewdrivers was first up, and we love his Connection, Community and Collaboration installation, which ties together some of the key elements of urban art!
Dr Suits @ Graffiato Street Art Festival
Image courtesy of the artist and Fiksate
our buddy Dr Suits was among the guest artists at Taupo’s renowned Graffiato festival over Labour Weekend. With a truncated roster due to Auckland’s Covid restrictions, Aotearoa’s longest running urban art festival was a slightly different proposition in 2021, but Dr Suits (with assistance from man himself Porta) flew the flag for Ōtautahi, producing a striking and bold work that suggests some new directions for his public output…
What have we missed? What were your highlights for October? Let us know in the comment section…
Wellington artist Chimp returns to Ōtautahi and Fiksate Gallery for a new show on Friday, November 5th. Social Woes follows Chimp’s 2019 show Aliases, and marks both an extension and an evolution – a continuation of the artist’s fascination with the impact of social and digital media on our lives and mental health, while also notably pushing his work in new directions stylistically and technically.
Built from Chimp’s exploration of how social media has affected our ability to communicate and engage, Social Woes suggests this collective weight without a heavy-handed or explicit commentary, instead encouraging our reflection and consideration with increasingly fractured compositions and painterly flashes. The artist is acutely aware that the show is more an opportunity to bring people together and to raise questions than any offer of answers or solutions.
Social Woes opens 5pm, Friday, November 5th at Fiksate Gallery (54 Hawdon Street, Sydenham)
To recap September we caught up with Cape of Storms, our favourite street collage paster-upperer! You will know Cape’s paste-ups, even if you don’t realise it, they utilise vintage cooking books, kitsch knitting images and more retro finds to create whimsical juxtapositions that are at once funny and mysterious, adding that sense of wondrous inquisition as they appear across the city, revealing the absurdity of life. As I suspect it was for many of us, Cape of Storms’ September was hectic, catching up on a life that was put on pause… So, what was keeping Cape of Storms busy? Read on and find out…
September was a blur. My recollection of how the month passed by is somehow not linear. I remember key events, like feeding my best friend’s new baby girl for the first time, dressing up and going out for a special meal with my partner at Soul Quarter just after we passed into level 2. Going back to the gym, the stress and irritation around how and when to mask up. But most of all, I remember the build-up and anticipation, coordination, ultimate execution of of MOVING HOUSE.
Moving house is awful. It confronts you with all your life decisions and lifestyle choices and forces you to judge yourself as you pack up your life, box by box (well, at least for me anyway!).
I arrived in New Zealand just under three years ago with two suitcases full of clothes, a racing heart and a head full of dreams for my new future. For the first few weeks I muddled by sleeping on the floor on a blow-up mattress, eating at a rusty camping table and managing the delicate balance of ice-to-water ratio in a chilly bin.
Slowly and steadily I started to accumulate stuff. Four months after relocating from Cape Town, four modest boxes arrived by sea, filled with precious kitchen and household items from my previous home.
Fast-forward to September 2021 and van- load upon van-load of stuff needs to be ferried from the old house to the new house, multiple trips to Ecodrop required, $850 raised in Facebook marketplace sales and days and days of sorting, cleaning and reorganising.
And what did I learn about myself during this process? Well, a quite a few important things actually.
Friends, and friends who have become like family are my “home” in this new country. The physical objects I own only carry meaning for me if they are linked to how I can interact with the important people in my life, or bring me comfort and act as reminders of special memories shared with the people who are no longer physically present due to distance and time zones.Being a bit of a clutter-bug, I was amazed at how easily I was able to get rid of things that did not meet these requirements, and how important the objects that remind me of my home country and family actually are.
My home environment has become very important to me. This space has become my nest, my anchor which I can categorically call “my own”. Where I can express my personality and recharge. Taking the time to curate my space a bit better and only surround myself with things I truly need has been wonderful. Also, realising that my space is now shared with my partner makes this even more special as we create a life together.
When my life was in limbo for a few weeks, I really craved my routine and the activities that mean the most to me, the things that create balance in my day. For me, that was “studio”/workspace area back in order. This move has been really great as I have now seriously upgraded my work space and I really look forward to a lot of productive time being creative on a day-to-day basis, as I’m trying to incorporate making/creating into my daily routine. Another big one was realising how important regularly connecting with my fellow artist friends at weekly Slapcity meetups are to me. Slapcity is a group (I won’t use the dreaded word “collective”) of like-minded artist friends with a passion for street art. Some artists focus on sticker making, some on paper paste-ups, some on graffiti writing, some on drawing – but honestly any medium is welcomed. We get together every Wednesday evening to chat and do a little bit of work on whatever we feel like really, usually with a beer or cold beverage in hand.
So September was for the most part spent preoccupied with the move, but by no means all that I got up to…
Danny Knight-Baréat PB & JAM
Something that’s been preoccupying me throughout September is Slapcity member Danny Knight-Baré’s stunningly intricate multi-layered screen-printed pieces I saw at the PB & Jam show in mid-August. At first glance you would mistake the abstract colour-blocked pieces for digital prints, but once you realise that each line and dot have actually been screen-printed onto the surface, sometimes in up to 23 layers you truly realise their genius. I could stare at those textures and colours for hours. PB & Jam was an awesome group art and music show put together by the gorgeous Lydia Thomas (another Slapcity member!).
Level 3 saw us getting together via Zoom calls, but a return to Level 2 meant face to face meet-ups again! The pleasant sound of scissors snipping, vinyl cutting, the heavy smell of marker pen ink hanging in the air, good tunes playing in the background and our inane and random chatter is the definition of my happy place. It’s a totally relaxed and free environment, and I just feel so recharged and energised after every session. We alternate between the workspace at Fiksate Gallery and a few other locations around Christchurch central. New members are always welcome. Check out the Insta page for more info.
Mine and my partner’s favourite brunch spot on St Asaph Street in the central city. Excellent coffee and yummy fresh food (especially in the cabinet), all in all a beautifully decorated hanging plant-filled space. The hanging plant jungle that covers the entire ceiling of the café has Millenials and Gen Zs frothing at the mouth, but looking beyond this #hashtag nirvana, the food, coffee and service is really amazing. Our favourites are the Eggs Benedict, the Salad bowl with halloumi and the Florentines from the cabinet.
Aussie art rock and my trusty Blundies
I’ve had Twilight Driving by Methyl Ethel on repeat on a daily basis. I just can’t get enough of Jake Well’s gender-bendingly unique voice and the haunting lyrics. I’ve been listening to a lot of Holy Holy as well. Coupled with the fact that I have been wearing my beloved brown Blundstone boots so much that I’ve had to introduce “rest days” for them is making me question my loyalty to this Antipodean island in favour of the other, larger, hotter one. But then I think of those poor sods in Melbourne and happily return to sipping my flat white and dunking my ginger slice. Also, Blundstones are actually made in Vietnam now…
Trawling op shops for old textiles. Saturday morning hours lost inside the labyrinth of Creative Junk. Clandestine printing missions at my office photocopier. Gluing things to other things. Figuring out how to paint and paste onto old biscuit tins and suit cases. All in preparation for Even More The Show, opening Thursday, 14th October (and running through the 15th and 16th) at Club House Creative on Southwark Street. Even More The Show is yet another group show organised by the charming Irish creative dynamo Lydia Thomas. I was so stoked to be invited to take part, and it is made all the more special by the fact that proceeds made from the show will go to Youthline. Quite a few of my local female artist friends will also be taking part, its going to be a hell of a lot of fun!
Follow Cape of Storms on Instagram and check out her work with a heap of talented local creatives in Even More The Show this week!
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
Jess Johnson and Simon Ward’s Genetekker Archaic (2018), on the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū’s forecourt bunker. Photo: http://www.ivananthony.com/
DREAM.R’s creation from the Jess Johnson workshop
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.
Jane Maloney from M/K Press knows all about risographs…
DREAM.R’s risograph poster from the M/K Press workshop
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!
Opening June 4th, Elliot ‘Askew’ O’Donnell and Jasmine Gonzalez present their first collaborative show Continuum at Fiksate Gallery. Based on a series of Gonzalez’s photographs interwoven with O’Donnell’s painterly investigations of digital and analogue abstraction, the show is a reflective rumination on the travails of the last year, the couple based largely in the US during the Covid-19 pandemic and the broader civil unrest that also flared during 2020. Continuum reflects the philosophy adopted by the duo as coping mechanisms throughout those challenging times. Viewing history and the contemporary experience as part of a continuum, the artists have created a body of work that is both beautiful and unsettling, as well as highly collaborative – working with O’Donnell’s florist mother Meghan Humphries and Wellington-based dancer, poet and performance artist Jahra Wasasala. The sequence of large canvasses suggest the interconnection of experiences and the cyclical pattern of history, even as hopelessness and isolation abounds.
Continuum opens June 4th at Fiksate Gallery (54 Hawdon Street, Sydenham), and runs until July 3rd.
April has come and gone and while the year moves at a steady pace, there has been plenty to keep us entertained. Although the weather is getting a little less predictable, it is providing a late flurry of sunshine (at least after the inevitable chilly mornings), extending the window for outdoor activities like painting murals! While there have been a number of new outdoor works to explore, there have also been some very cool things going on indoors as well. Exhibitions like Ghostcat’s Shadow Town at Fiksate Gallery and the Canterbury Museum’s Hakē: Street Art Revealed, have provided popular experiences. As always, we have a recap of what tickled our fancy, compiled as an easy-to-follow list! So, without further ado, here is our And That Was… April 2021…
Ghost’s Shadow Town @ Fiksate
Ghostcat’s Shadow Town was packed for opening night… Photo credit: Charlie Rose Creative
Ghostcat’sShadow Town was highly anticipated and the crowd that showed up for the opening night at Fiksate were not disappointed. The collection of miniatures drawn from Christchurch’s urban environment were hot tickets, with people drawn to the beautiful intricate details and the associated nostalgia. With just a few days left at the time of writing, if you haven’t made it to Shadow Town, hurry!
Benjamin Work @ The Canterbury Museum
Benjamin Work’s Motutapu II was produced for the Hakē: Street Art Revealed exhibition at the Canterbury Museum
When the Canterbury Museum were presented with a window to reveal the legacy works from the massively successful Rise exhibition, they also wanted to add a new work to the main exhibition hall. Enter Auckland artist Benjamin Work, whose massive, striking floor mural Motutapu II draws from the iconography found on the Tongan ‘Akau Tau (war clubs) in the Museum’s collection. The work adds a new element to the surrounding wall paintings from Rise, highlighting the diverse trajectories of urban artists over the last decade.
TMD x DTR x Ysek X Chile One in New Brighton
A collaborative jam with members of TMD, DTR along with YSEK and Chile One in New Brighton
On a cold Saturday morning (the night after the Shadow Town opening), a heavyweight collection of artists got together in New Brighton for a painting jam. Local artists Dcypher and Ikarus of the DTR crew, Christchurch-based Chilean artists YSEK and Chile One, and Auckland’s Phat1, Diva and Dyle of the legendary TMD crew, freshened up a popular New Brighton wall with traditional graffiti pieces and characters, creating a legacy of the meeting of some of New Zealand’s biggest talent.
Charles Williams and Benjamin Work @ Etu Pasifika Health
The mural on the side of the Etu Pasifika Health Centre. painted by Charles Williams and Benjamin Work
In the wake of the launch of the TMD: An Aotearoa Graffiti Story at The Dowse in Lower Hutt, crew members Benjamin Work and Charles Williams arrived in Christchurch to paint a mural on the new Etu Pasifika Health Centre. The work combines the signature styles of the two artists with a design conceived by fellow TMD member Janine Williams. The background is coloured in a bright blue, black, yellow and white pattern, with Work’s Tongan warrior chief figure on the left couched within the architectural framework, while Williams’ depiction of a Red-tailed Tropicbird soars upwards from the bottom right. The harmonious combination of styles creating an impressive new work for Christchurch.
TMD: An Aotearoa Graffiti Story @ The Dowse
A straight letter roll-call on the wall of the flat recreated in the TMD exhibition at Lower Hutt museum The Dowse
It may not have been in Christchurch, but I couldn’t leave out my trip to Wellington for the opening of the TMD: An Aotearoa Graffiti Story at Lower Hutt’s The Dowse Museum. Combining history and installations that spoke to the culture and roots of New Zealand’s most iconic graffiti crew with a group show of crew members’ contemporary practice, the exhibition struck all the right chords. The additional benefits of seeing the crew members painting murals around Lower Hutt and then as part of a panel discussion topped off the weekend. I highly recommend – go see it!
And That Was… April 2021 – what would you add to the list? Comment below to let us know!
Ghostcat is set for his first solo show, with Shadow Town confirmed as Fiksate’s first exhibition at their new Hawdon Street location in Sydenham. Opening Friday April 9th, Shadow Town will present a selection of Ghostcat’s fascinating scratch-built urban miniatures, including the detailed recreation of local spots, from the grimy and overlooked to the iconic and vanished.
Ghostcat’s recreation of Staveley Market, one of the works to feature in Shadow Town at Fiksate
Originally from Birmingham in the UK, Ghostcat has found a new home in Otautahi, and his work is both a celebration of the physical sites he has explored and the stories of the changing city recounted via friends, adding an emotional resonance to the works beyond nostalgia and visual detail. The artist’s infectious sense of humour, laced with a healthy dose of body horror-influence, will also be on full display, with the grimy elements of our urban environment celebrated over the picturesque; from dirty toilets and graffiti-ed alleyways to dumpsters and sticker-laden street signs.
Many of the works also feature collaborative contributions from local artists, from Fiksate’s own Dr Suits to members of the DTR Crew and the Slap City collective. This has proven an important aspect of the artist’s process, adding authenticity and collectivism to a concept already driven by real experiences and a sense of connection.
One of the set of doors featuring collaborative contributions for local artists that will feature in Shadow Town.
Ghostcat’s star has quickly risen as his creations have caught the attention of Instagram scrollers, with interviews and media coverage ensuring Shadow Town will surely be a popular occasion with a hum of excitement already buzzing…
Shadow Town opens 5pm, Friday 9th April at Fiksate Gallery, 54 Hawdon Street, Sydenham.
Ghostcat’s first ever solo show Shadow Town opens at Fiksate’s Sydenham gallery space on Friday, April 9th. While we figured March would have been a busy month for him, we thought it was worth checking in to see what kept him going throughout this hectic period as he prepared for the exhibition. Ghostcat’s exquisite scratch-built miniatures are intertwined with our surrounding spaces, inspired by our personal and communal experiences, so sharing a list of what he has doing seemed a fitting exercise. Knowing Ghostcat’s love for the quirky and grimy things of life, we were also aware it would likely be an eclectic list, surely infused with his love of schlock horror movies, quirky discoveries and of course, as a man after my own heart, pizza… We weren’t disappointed. So, here are the five things that helped Ghostcat along the road to Shadow Town and made his March more colourful…
Alligator the Movie:
I love eighties horror movies and this month I saw Alligator for the first time, its about a baby alligator that gets thrown down the sewer and feeds on dead dogs and rats that have been biffed down there by a lab. It grows about 60 feet long and fucks everyone up in town, it was incredible! I love how everything is handmade in that era of movies, from the posters to the effects…
Alligator the Pizza:
Image from https://alligator.pizza/
This is pure coincidence, but I also had Alligator Pizza for the first time from Riccarton this month. Pizza is life for me, I love it. Sal’s is normally my go to, but Alligator’s pizza’s are massive, like truly they are ginormous man! I had a whole cheese pie, it was the biggest thing I’ve ever seen!
Radiohead – How to Disappear Completely:
I started listening to Radiohead’s Kid A again this month and I had forgotten how beautiful the track How to Disappear Completely was… It is Thom Yorke’s favourite, I think. It reminded me of how we all feel at some point in our lives. Shit, that sounded really depressing, haha. But music takes you places though, eh? It evokes all sorts of wondrous things. Its an incredible song.
Edward Gorey – The Gashly Crumb Tinnies:
I had a conversation with Bongo the other day and he showed me some art from someone that jogged my memory of an artist I love so much, Edward Gorey. I have been meaning to get his book The Gashlycrumb Tinies. Its such a sinister and macabre illustrated book showing the running alphabet alongside the strange deaths of children, like, “E is for Ernest who choked on a peach.” Its delightfully twisted. Check it out, it is a stellar coffee table book. I love the scratchy heavy dark use of colour and the depiction of death is wonderful. Death should always wear a top hat and carry an umbrella. It doesn’t take itself too seriously but by nature it is pretty twisted. It’s fascinating, I recommend checking it out.
Preparing for Shadow Town:
Collectively working and collaborating with Bols, Teeth Like Screwdrivers, Ikarus, Vez, Tepid, Dr Suits, Bongo, Rubble City and Dcypher has been such an all encompassing experience, from seeing a vast range of styles of art to all having the same goal, which is to be part of anything that represents who you are as an artist. It’s been amazing and I am truly honoured to have had so many interesting and talented people get on board with what I’ve been doing. I’m really excited about this show, it can’t come soon enough!
Shadow Town opens 5pm, Friday April 9th at Fiksate, 54 Hawdon Street, Sydenham
Jessie Rawcliffe seems like the perfect fit for this month’s And That Was…, having just completed a stunning piece on one side of the Berlin Wall installation at the start of the month. Of course, typically laid back, Jessie is also not the type to wax lyrical about her own work, so don’t expect any mention of her own work (although you can check it out here). Instead, her February recap is filled with her favourite things, from British electro post punk albums, to photographic exhibitions, and as she promised me, the ‘goodest boy’ she could muster. So here is Jessie Rawcliffe’s February 2021 recap…
Shit. Reuben asked me to do this at the beginning of February – now that the month is over I can’t seem to remember a single thing that I did, but I know it flew past in a blur of hectic energy.
I’m terrible at picking my favourite anything (afraid of commitment much?), but here we go…
Album pick – Sleaford Mods – Spare Ribs
Categorised as ‘electro post punk’, I found these guys through Idles and Fontaines D.C. on YouTube. They’re a two piece featuring sparse beats, vocalist Jason Williamson talk-raps about middle class struggles and British culture with an abrasive English accent that I can’t get enough of.
Mork n Mindy is an absolute banger.
Opening / Monthly social gathering highlight – Fiksate’s new digs
Image supplied by Fiksate Gallery
It has to be Fiksate opening their new spot in Sydenham. Hawdon Street is in a great part of town, I’m about it.
Best good boy
This is Honey. We met at the beginning of the month, none surpassed. 11/10. Would pat again.
This guy’s been on fire this last month. His collage-style paintings have a cut and paste effect, mixing broad loose brush strokes with smaller detailed imagery that he always manages to balance. Objects are superimposed and float in space, you can read each thing or just enjoy the overall effect.
Also, dude has a cute dog, which is ultimately the content we all want.
Good Times Don’t Last, 2021. Image from Smolik’s Instagram @thatlosersmolik
Favourite exhibition – Larence Shustak: air gun? at Te Puna o Waiwhetu
The only thing I remember going to is the Larence Shustak: air gun?photography exhibition at CAG. It’s worth seeing.
He has a really interesting career going from New York where he took some of the most universally recognisable images of jazz legends, to Christchurch, where he photographed punks, and working with Flying Nun.
While we were there a gallery tour was on; the person taking it pointed out their all time favourite Shustak photograph, which is part landscape part portrait and probably the most quintessential ‘kiwi’ image on show; and I thought “fuck, really? That one!?”
