PM3

For followers of the 2095'ers ramblings, it would be difficult to not to acknowledge the fact that PM3 had a major impact upon her life as a streetart photographer.

Prior to first visit she had heard various comments by some that it wasn't "their scene" in that it wasn't "street" enough for them.  Being a fairly philosophical person, the 2095 chick did not let this influence her at all: in fact it was the opposite.  And besides, why would you not want to to see something that was street, with its stage being a world heritage listed island in the middle of Sydney Harbour!

Undeterred, the 2095'ers maiden voyage to Cockatoo Island was on the official opening day.  While she had been aware that installations & PM3 starting before the official start date, for some inexplicable reason the chick elected to not go and upon reflection she still is unable to pinpoint exactly why.

No need to dwell or attempt self-analysis (cause this could go on for eternity!) the main point is that she got there.

After exploring the exterior and needing to have a breather, the 2095'er swivelled her head and there it was.  In ya face, drowning with layers, an explosion of colour, HUGE pasteups and in the midst of it all it was.....total silence.  

A complete contradiction of the senses in an almost blissfully suffocating way.

As with most experiences the desire to share via slideshow was a no-brainer. Inspired, feeling incredibly excited and proud that the Aussies were showing the world "how it was done", each sound bite expresses the 2095 chick emotions at time of "production" (or reflection as the case may be).

One must be patient given there are 4 in total and even then they do not cover every frame captured.

Inside came a need to capture as many images of PM3 as humanly possible in an almost obsessive nature.  

Perhaps deep down the 2095'er understood that this may be a one time experience and as it was quasi-street, where things can change daily, such was the desire to capture these changes: hence multiple returns became almost a way of life for the chick.

An intense feeling of sadness and grief overcame the 2095'er at the end of this amazing experience.  Initially excited that the new date had been released the 2095'er could barely contain her excitement at what would be on show at the next Outpost.  Sadly this was not meant to be.  

For reasons that still perplex her, the 2095 chick "got" that the honchos (or those with the moula to fund such an 'exhibition') felt it was time to take away from the artists and transform this "test" to how THEY perceived it should be thus removing entirely what street and art is really all about.

The 2095 chick remains incredibly sad as it seems (or at least in the 2095'ers humble opinion) that the arts are once again left on the side burner by those with the dosh who have some inane feeling of "ownership" and remove the opportunity to educate those who may not fully understand what street art is all about.

On a personal level they have removed the opportunity for the 2095'er (and others) to explore, admire and become hopelessly lost within the world of streetart in a single location.

As such we must thank Ben Frost, Konsumterra and all that contributed to PM3.  The 2095'er must also personally thank each and every artist that she has now become familiar with on a more personal level for without PM3 she may not be able to do her blogs.

As she has a ridiculously high number of images (and even now, they are still not all uploaded) feel free to check out the 2095'ers PM3 set "here" but be mindful that while images remain the property of the 2095'er the actual paste ups remain the property of the artist/s.

The Unknown

Every so often (and at times most likely as the artist had originally intended) there are nameless works - or works that are actually tagged but not in a way that is easily readable or identifiable apart from those already in the "know" - that spring out of seemingly nowhere.

Conundrum therefore abounds.

Admittedly there are times when the 2095'er (and perhaps as with others, although maybe like the 2095'er they have difficulty admitting it to anyone other than themselves) might happen upon a paste up, sculpture or other form of art on the street that may, at the time, make absolutely no sense whatsoever and as such, you continue on your hunting expedition.

Such was the case with the nameless artist. Noticing an evolution or maturation even, of this particular artist's work and the frequency that their pieces "appeared" (or as has been noted in previous blogs once a piece has been spotted it somehow sticks with you and suddenly they appear "everywhere") it became within itself a little treasure hunt.

Despite valiant efforts by the 2095'er asking many of her street-artist friends/colleagues/comrades no one has been able to enlighten nor identify.

Therefore it is with delight that the 2095 chick presents to you an ode to an unknown and unnamed artist whose works she loves "a lot" (once again she cheekily makes a slight reference to her fave Aussie show "Rake"...you need to watch it, live it, learn it and then enjoy the ride!).

Is it Thoif?  Is it...well obviously the 2095'er has no idea so any feedback would be most welcome!

Feedback received!  It's Phool.  Huge thank you to a fellow street-art photographer for this info!  A girl can never have to many pieces of info, specially in the world of street art

5 Questions with Simone Sheridan

The 2095 first came to be in touch with Simone by way of the wonderful world of social media.  Being a former Novocastrian the 2095 felt duty-bound to make a "connection" immediately!  After all we (ie. Novocastrians) are famed for jumping on the bandwagon of friendship, even more so when that particular someone has a passion for street art and all its composites.

The initial "introduction" came as a result of .....(does she need to state the obvious the 2095'er wonders aloud....oh go on then....just do it!) The Outpost in 2011 where photos/documentation/capturing streetart moments were duly shared, admired and talked about, albeit via the fibreoptic world.

A little further down the track, having keenly watched street art promotion and development grow in the 2095'ers old home town, it was time for a jaunt up north. Fortunately, having grown up in the area, the 2095 had absolutely no issue with geographical navigation as for once she was on top of things and then some!

AND it wasn't raining (see previous 2095 street art entries if not already done so in order to make sense of this rather obscure sentence).

Before the self-indulgent street art discovery tour, the 2095'er wanted to go back to her old school chapel and simply enjoy just "being".

That done, a hunting we will go and boy did the 2095'er find some AMAZING pieces and joy of joys NO CARS!!!!  Truly! No cars to block the walls!  It is every photographer's dream to not only find amazing pieces that haven't been tagged or capped but in a car free zone????? Doesn't get better than that!

image included with kind permission of umpel

You are a person of many "hats" with a passion for promoting local artists and street artists alike.  When did this love come in to being

It started when I was in Mudgee studying Visual Arts for my HSC where I did a case study on a local graffiti artist who is now known as CHEMS.

CHEMS even took part in the first exhibition I organised as Founding Director of an artist-run initiative ARThive (which you can read more  "here").

I have always been fascinated by art collectives, and people who flock together based on an agreed idea/philosophy.  I have always loved graffiti too, so it's simply a natural cohesion of two interests.

After working at ARI, I learned a lot more about managing exhibitions and I found the "white cube" thing boring and am much more inspired by the outdoor spaces.  I have been documenting Newcastle streets since 2008 and I love how some spaces are hidden until someone makes that bold move to put something up.  Truly inspiring.

SAW is a major project of yours along with TiNA.  While being fun it's also a sensational marketing tool.  How many headaches and how many (dare I suggest....) meeting with "beverages" consumed did it take to not only come up with these concepts but more importantly their names

TiNA (This Is Not Art) Festival was founded many years ago by a bunch of Novocastrians. Funnily enough the name was inspired by a tag on an empty building called Latec House. Newcastle has its fair share of empty spaces which are HUGE sources of motivation for the work I do.

In 2010 I was Festival Director for TiNA (and  will be taking taking the role as Acting Director this year) and I wanted to create some visual signage on buildings to show people something new and happening.

I got a grant, found a curator and we organised a temporary art walk.  Interestingly once it was done ,property owners wanted more!  I noticed that the artworks were gaining more attention but people didn't know who was actually behind the project, which is why I felt it was important to create a "brand" so that the artists could gain online recognition at the very least.

Surprisingly for SAW, there were not many meetings to nut out the name.  I was working with an amazing colleague Angus Crowley (read more about Gus "here") who helped with the branding of ARThive (ARI).  Over a coffee I told him about my idea to create an outdoor gallery in the Hunter Street Mall with a view to have it expand/encompass the Newcastle region and he came up with "Street Art Walking" or SAW (we loved the acronym aspect of it as well).

I really have to throw a HUGE thank you to Gus who is an incredibly talented designer, collaborator, photographer, illustrator and an amazing person to work with.

The SAW brand & logo has been further supported by Brett Piva at Pocket Design (you can learn more about them "here") who is again another fantastic person to work with, and together we created a map, postcards and a new website over the last 12 months.

Street Art Walking

Pocket Design

I have been so incredibly lucky to find the right people who not only have an intrinsic understanding of SAW but have worked in such an easy collaborative way I can't thank them enough.

The locations of some of these insane walls are a particular fave (being a former Novocastrian) with the beauty being not much traffic so as to reduce the angst whereby a full appreciation can be achieved for both photographer and viewer.

image included with kind permission of umpel & street_moksha

Working and liaising with artists and council: how long did it take to implement from proposal to finished "product"

image included with kind permission of Ears

Great question!  It varies so much.  One job we are about to do with only one week to plan (three artist collaboration) took one day to approve.  We aim to paint it in a single day so for this particular project it there was about a fortnight turnaround time, and this particular project is with an existing SAW client.

We have now moved into the Placemaking realm, which involves more community and business consultations and therefore the process takes a little longer.  

Not forgetting that the weather has been known at times to throw a spanner into the works! 

The biggest challenge I have faced is paying my own bills on a regular income.  Often mural work is sporadic and not incredibly lucrative.  Much of my time is spent in sales mode, pitching artworks and advocating on behalf of the artists so they get justifiably paid.  As such, I have to find other work to keep myself afloat which at times means planning future street walls can at time fall by the wayside.

Fortunately SAW is starting to gain some real momentum and with my growth of understanding processes/requirements etc it's becoming more efficiently run.  The dream is to have walls rotating every 3 months in sync with the seasons.

What can we expect to see in the not too distant future for street art in and around Newcastle

Well I have been scheming up an event idea for a while now.  SAW came really close to working with The Opening Hours on an event last year, but the pieces unfortunately quite fall in to place.

This year however SAW has been given many walls to manage, so the dream of rotating on a regular basis is becoming a reality.

We have been very focussed on the Hunter Street Mall and hope to launch first event next year.  In the meantime, we want to start offering personalised walking tours, showing off Newcastle's hidden gems.

And as I have to maintain a regular income, often SAW "dream" projects have to tick over slowly.  BUT I have been contacted by locals to work on a street art event later this year....top secret stuff!

Stay tuned and keep your eye on Newcastle cause we are dreaming BIG time here!

How would you sump of the world of Simone, SAW and TiNA in 5 words

Busy, exciting, challenging and very worthwhile!

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So my friend Simone, thank you for sharing some time with the 2095 chick, can't wait to see what's in store for SAW & TiNA and hopefully the 2095'er will get back to the 2300 sooner rather than later!

And a massive thank you to Ears, Umpel and Street_Moksha for allowing the 2095'er to include her photos of their amazing walls for this article.

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and only cause she can....keep that street art a happening Newcastle cause it's gooood (it must be noted that this art is copyright to the artist, but the 2095'er simply could not NOT include it as a tribute to the amazing steel town talent)

5 Questions with Camo

My introduction to the wonderful world of Camo was on a sneaky after work mid-week jaunt to Newtown.  It was a bit of a curious afternoon given that it was only around 2pm and Kings Street wasn't particularly busy, which for the 2095 and her photography it was a blessing. 

Nothing more irritating than having a car block a wall, thus requiring manoeuvring of both oneself and the camera to get a half-decent albeit on an angle shot. 

Being completely oblivious to passers-by and wholly focussed on the "hunt", I spied the most adorable stencil all by its lonesome and audibly sighed "oh how GORGEOUS!"

About 2 minutes later using the standard whip-lash of eyes and neck method, the 2095 then spied another little piece across the road, ran like woman possessed to get that car-free no need to have weird angle shot.

Obligatory FB friend request sent/accepted, the 2095'er kept a close eye on photographs by the artist of new pieces on walls: fortunately having trapsed around the Inner West for many many MANY hours there are certain walls you recognise instantly mainly through colour or a cap...so from this culmination of photography and love of the stencils we now arrive at "5 Questions with Camo".

When was Camo born and how did the name come in to being

Camo was born many years ago when I was growing up.  The name is actually a nickname I used to get called: I like the camouflage connection with most of my outings needing to be done "unseen".

Amazing works appearing on corners, walls and at times in not so highly-visible locations.  Is there a methodology as to where and when your works are placed

Sometimes, like the work I did on branch of a bank in Rosebery.  I mainly look for a nice wall and somewhere I think the image may look good. I'm not too concerned with "high profile" places.  I like the idea of placing works in out of the way locations so a new audience will seem them and maybe the "buff squad" won't find them as quickly. 

From start to finish, can you outline exactly how you create these incredible pieces and what has been your largest or most difficult installation to date

I usually have a rough idea in my head of what sort of image I wand to do.  I spend time trawling through photos (99% of my stencils are done from a photograph) looking for something that I can use.  I then print the image and begin the cutting process.

Once cut I will do test sprays, sometimes only one but usually 2-3 to work out the images and make any changes needed. 

The most difficult installation was the one that only half happened due to being busted by the cops.

Other than that, I usually find the more difficult ones are when I use more than one stencil to create an image, purely because of time taken and that I do all my works alone: so no lookout.

The triggers for your work: are they from something that has occurred in your personal world whether it be family, political issues, stupid acts by stupid people

I guess most of my works some from thinking that the world is moving too fast, being controlled by too few in a profit driven world.  We need to take a deep breath.

The works I do with children playing, tipping paint from buckets, sling shots etc come from a belief that kids grow up too quickly and need to deal with too many pressures too soon in life.  Surely a slingshot, paint bomb and blank wall is more fun than the latest electronic product.

Other works come from the same feeling but with a tinge of anger and frustration: the rioters, gas mask people, the stencils I did of asylum seekers (not sure how many people caught on to that one)

Sometimes I do think people of the world need to get angry, stand up and react to what is happening.  I love seeing when a country's citizens say enough is enough, like in Turkey & Syria last year.

Art has traditionally been viewed as a form of expression: do you see yourself as an artist, street-artist or someone who has somehow just got it "right"

I guess I see myself as a street-artist.  But then I just got made feature artist in "Artfido" so I have no idea anymore..... 

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My thanks to Camo for spending some time in answering the 2095 chick's questions and simply being one of those that says "enough is enough" albeit by stencil