Bundjalung/Minjungbal woman Emma Rolls remembers the exact moment she decided to take the leap…
admin
-
-
There’s no two ways about it: Lana Launay loves lamps. When the Sydneysider made a hasty departure from New York last year as the pandemic accelerated, she turned to weaving as a creative outlet while she worked out what to do next. As it transpired, the weaving was the next step!
When she’s not working for cult jewellery designer Lucy Folk, Lana designs and handweaves earthy-toned lampshades from her home in Darlington or her mother’s art studio in North Curl Curl Beach, under her own brand, Shades Lanay. Whether conical, cubed or cylindrical, each one-of-a-kind design is crafted from natural materials like coffee-stained raffia, coconut shell rope and bamboo yarn. We love them!
-
Harrison Balodis was housesitting a cottage in Pambula, on the Sapphire Coast of New South Wales for two weeks in 2012. He instantly fell in love with this quaint little place, in the centre of town. He told the owner he would be the first in line to purchase if she ever decided to sell. Four years later, he got the call.
In 2016, Harrison and his partner Miranda O’Rourke packed up their lives in Sydney and moved south to set up their new home in the 150-year-old cottage. They embarked on a big DIY renovation and restoration project, enlisting local friends to help with the building and scouring op-shops for all the perfect interior pieces.
Two years later, and they opened up their beloved cottage home as a holiday rental – Lotte’s Hjem, named after the owner Harrison had bought it from. Whilst interstate travel may be temporarily off the cards for some of us, we’re definitely earmarking this cosy coastal cottage for future holiday plans!
-
To say this garden has undergone a transformation would be an understatement.
What was recently a large, barren plot accompanying a newly-built home in Kenthurst (39 kilometres north-west of Sydney’s CBD) is now an absolutely thriving garden for its elderly owner.
The client’s brief can be boiled down to four key elements – accessibility, refuge, social opportunity, and views – but their main request was for flowers! The resulting design by Outdoor Establishments combines seasonal colour, mature trees, and bird-attracting species, delineated by stone walls and paved areas featuring textural travertine from Eco Outdoor, to create multiple zones for eating, lounging and enjoying the garden. The perfect outcome for an extended family who love to entertain!
-
People say that even if you don’t recognise a famous face when you pass one in the street, they still have a superstar quality about them that turns your head. ‘They must be a celebrity,’ we mutter under our breaths, and scorn the lack of reverse-Google Image search in the real world.
The innate starpower of these born performers gives them an aura, a glow, a whiff of godly magnetism. If you don’t believe me, scroll on through these photos of actor, Chloé Zuel, who plays Eliza Hamilton (the lead female role!) in Australia’s production of Hamilton.
Despite this seemingly inexhaustible energy that comes with a performer’s confidence, stage work is a gruelling, exhausting and nerve-wracking job. But it’s also an exhilarating one, particularly when it’s in a musical at the forefront of a pop culture reckoning. When it debuted on Broadway in 2015, Hamilton swept up a record 16 nominations at the Tony Awards, winning 11 of them – plus a Pulitzer Prize for Drama for its writer and star, Lin Manuel Miranda. Its world domination has continued steadily, with the production landing on Sydney’s sunny shores last year and now making it’s way to Melbourne in the coming months.
Amongst this heady mix of glamour and the grit, we followed Chloé around for a day in her hardworking shoes to see just what it’s like behind the scenes of the world’s most famous musical. Between morning meditation at her home in Clovelly to battling nerves and navigating upside-down days (she has dinner at 5pm and starts work after!) – we talked self-doubt under the spotlight, making musicals cool again, and, of course, work!
-
Artist Thea Anamara Perkins is an Arrernte and Kalkadoon woman, with family ties to the Redfern community in Sydney. At just 29 years old, she’s been nominated for the Archibald Prize for the last three consecutive years, with her confident and courageous painting style. She imbues people and landscapes with emotion and vulnerability, and is known for her personal portraits of prominent First Nations figures.
Among her other accolades (she was a finalist in the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship, The Alice Prize 2020 and has exhibited as part of Tarnanthi) Thea won the Australia Council’s Dreaming Award for emerging First Nations artists in 2020, which she plans to use to develop workshops with the Tangentyere Town Camp Artists in Mparntwe (Alice Springs). On top of that, she is a NATSIAA finalist for 2021, and is about to launch her first ever solo show – Shimmer – this month.
In case you haven’t worked it out yet, this is one young artist destined for very big things.
-
Creative People
A Truly Magical Tapestry Collaboration Between Local Artists + Weavers
by adminby adminThe Australian Tapestry Workshop was founded in 1976 and remains one of the few studios in the world continuing the art of handcrafted contemporary tapestries. In the last 44 years, the workshop has woven over 500 tapestries for public and private collections around the globe.
In an extraordinary new project called ‘Weaving Futures’, the ATW worked with four local artists to recraft their artworks as tapestries. Artists Eugenia Lim, Atong Atem, Troy Emery and Hayley Millar Baker worked closely with weavers Tim Gresham, Pamela Joyce, Amy Cornall and Emma Sulzer to bring the colourful woven works to life.
See inside this a truly epic craft from the ATW’s light-filled studio in South Melbourne!
-
The third day of winter and the fourth lockdown in Victoria means we’re back in comfort food mode – and this warm miso salmon bowl with udon noodles from Julia Busuttil Nishimura is bringing the cosy vibes!
Topped with grilled broccolini, a crunchy snap pea salad or really whatever’s in the fridge, this wholesome, tasty dish is going to get us through the cold months ahead.
-
Last year was one of protection: turning inwards to our bubbles, families, loved ones and communities in a time of great stress. It seemed that the only cure to a highly infectious, rapidly-moving virus was hyper locality – a.k.a. staying put.
This was both a blessing and a curse for small businesses. Some thrived and some did not, but lots of them pivoted – and out of the ashes grew new ideas and fresh beginnings. The Beautiful Bunch was one of those pandemic miracles. Started by Merchant Road founder Jane Marx when her hospitality and events business was forced to halt completely, the floral subscription service provides training workshops and employment to young women from refugee and migrant backgrounds who struggle to find work.
This extra special, community-focused project boomed so successfully with local support that it launched as a full-time operation this year. Just in time for another Victorian lockdown…
-
Earlier this year we featured the work of the very talented emerging artist, Amalia Keefer. We loved her work so much (and so did you guys!), so before long we got chatting to Amalia about the possibility of hosting her first solo exhibition – and to our delight, she accepted!
‘Here, In My Mind’ is a series of 14 abstract paintings exploring colour and form. Through Amalia’s perspective, ordinary daily moments are made extraordinary. We’re hoping to be able to open Amalia’s show in person (fingers crossed!) on Saturday June 12th… but for now, pre-sales are open!
Click here to view the entire show and email art@thedesignfiles.net for all sales and enquiries.