Surya Graf, a founding member of Quench Queensland design collective and Principal of Surya Graf Studio, releases new work from his studio and product development space. After an extensive research and development process, the Graf Studio releases its refined Crease chair. Crease has been developed with more efficient manufacturing techniques and is locally produced from a recycled PET plastic material. The chair is about to be launched in a range of new colour ways and custom print options. You can go see – and try out – the first prototypes off the machine at the Gallery artisan Made Here Now exhibition. Also, as part of Monument magazine ‘Create a Date’ project, Surya Garf Studio was invited to collaborate with Shawn Godwin of Base Architecture to develop a wine rack concept. Using 3D printing processes to test the bracket component of the design, X Rack is now available to view. Quench Queensland design collective, was awarded ‘Best in Show’ at Dwell on Design, one of America’s largest design-focussed trade and exhibition events. For further details on Surya Graf Studio, please contact surya@suryagraf.com Images courtesy of Surya Graf Studio.

Gallery artisan in Brisbane’s Fortitute Valley has transformed its Brunswick Street shopfront window into a functional design studio during its current Made Here Now exhibition. Made Here Now is an exhibition and immersive, behind the scenes design experience. Designers Benjamin Breitenstein, Forrest Gillham and Julian Munro have moved in and are getting down to business, creating a communal workspace and pop-up exhibition, where all of the pieces  made – including furniture, product design, lighting, print and textile design – are available for purchase. Breitenstein said, “A major goal of the exhibition is to educate the wider community, not just designers, about the value, diversity and appreciation of design, as well as giving students a view into the world of practicing designers. We invite – in fact we encourage – the general public, students and professionals to come in and engage with design on any level.” Gallery artisan curator Simone Jones said, “At artisan we like to actively seek out and support the next generation of designers.  Made Here Now will be firmly positioned at the forefront of the production process, and by breaking down the traditional exhibition format we are also inviting the community to engage with the processes and practitioners behind ...

Queensland designed and manufactured products are taking centre stage and giving Londoners the best seats in town, literally. Solid Stool, designed by Alexander Lotersztain, is amongst the elite products featured in the just–opened, all-designed Monocle Cafe, London. The London cafe is an entrepreneurial offshoot of Monocle, the global culture magazine and website founded by Tyler Brȗlé that explores, trends and builds on all things across international business, culture, design and fashion. Seen as a ‘curated project’ the cafe features unique designs. Solid Stool was designed by Alexander for One/Third. One/Third brings design, craftmanship and quality together in a brand co-created by Alexander with Brett and Rebecca Gray. Alexander is the inaugural Queensland Smart Design Fellow, director of multi–disciplinary studio Derlot, founding member of QUENCH Queensland design collective, award–winning designer, advisor and mentor – a true Queensland design ambassador.   Monocle Cafe image by Kate Peters featuring Alexander Lotersztain design. Solid Stool image courtesy of One/Third.

Some more exciting new content for Design Minds! Adam Jefford, a Queensland/Smithsonian Design Fellow, makes some great points about collaboration, partnering with the community, empowering students to direct their own learning and also encouraging other teachers to join a dialogue in developing Design Minds. Design Minds is the online design education and creative learning resources for Queensland educators and students developed with content from the Queensland Government/Smithsonian Institution, New York, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum Fellowship. Design Minds is an initiative of Arts Queensland in partnership with the State Library of Queensland, endorsed by QUEENSLANDERSIGN™. Image courtesy of State Library Queensland

Indigenous Emerging Designer Scholarship Great news about a fantastic Queensland design scholarship. QUT Creative Enterprise Australia (CEA) is offering a one year CEA Fashion Incubator scholarship for an emerging Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Designer commencing in 2013. This unique opportunity follows on from the the successful launch of the AKIN collection; a collaborative contemporary Indigenous fashion design partnership initiated by Arts Queensland and the Queensland Design Council. AKIN, produced by CEA, previewed at QUT’s elite fashion graduate show late last year. Recipients of the scholarship will join the CEA Fashion Incubator’s Emerging Designer Program. This program will provide the training, workspace, technical services, mentoring and networks needed to grow a sustainable fashion business. The scholarship will support an Indigenous designer to acquire the skills and experience needed to launch a career in the fashion industry. This unique opportunity is valued at over $10,000. The program includes: – Professional business and technical support delivered by CEA in partnership with QUT – Fashion and our industry advisory panel – Dedicated mentor with one-on-one sessions – A fully equipped studio, shared with like-minded fashion businesses – Access to sampling and production facilities – Office space with lockable cupboard – Access to WGSN, a trend forecasting site used by international fashion companies ...

‘Quench: The thirst for new design’ - a unique mentoring and international showcasing opportunity for emerging Queensland designers – has now launched and be quick to get your entry in by 6th January 2013! The Thirst for new design initiative is the creation of Quench, Queensland’s international award-winning design collective, developed in partnership with Gallery artisan – the State’s peak body presenting and promoting individual quality crafted design. Thirst for new design will select one talented designer to not only feature in the Quench-curated exhibition to be on show in artisan’s exclusive Ivory Street window in January 2013 but to have all flights and accommodation paid for and join the Quench exhibition in an international design fair in the USA. To enter, you need to create an interpretation of what the work of Quench means to you and present this in film, graphic design, animation or multi-media - you can be as cool or as crazy as your like!  But first, you need to go online to artisan’s blog and register through the online process. Quench has had an amazing year, winning ‘Best in Show’ at Dwell on Design - one of the largest design fares in the USA – beating 276 exhibitors including global brands such as Miele, Kohler and Emeco and ‘country’ stands including design-gurus Switzerland. The year for Quench has ...

AKIN, the first ever, international luxury collection developed through a collaborative process between Indigenous artists and Queensland emerging fashion designers made a sensational debut as a ‘one-off’ preview at the sell-out Chaos and Control Queensland University of Technology (QUT) 2012 Graduate Fashion Showcase. The 20-piece ‘collection’ was produced as part of the Contemporary Indigenous Fashion Partnership which connected established Queensland Indigenous artists from far north Queensland with five QUT Fashion graduating students to develop the high-end fashion ‘range’ for commercial sale. Funded by QUT Creative Enterprise Australia (CEA) – a business development agency who also operate a fashion incubator – and Arts Queensland, the project’s objective is to achieve commercial success and provide profits for both the artists and designers. A first of its kind, the project required consultation across the areas of business, fashion and the arts. Working closely with KickArts Contemporary Arts and Arts Queensland to establish an ethical framework for the project that respects both artist and designer, CEA delivered intensive workshops facilitated with QUT Fashion to mentor artists and designers, held in August as part of the 2012 Cairns Indigenous Art Fair. This is only the beginning for AKIN and aims are set to develop an international fashion label ...

Travelling some 16,472kms from the Boucher & Co Toowoomba studio to Buckingham Palace in London, is the People of Australia’s gift to Her Majesty The Queen; an exceptional Royal Writing Compendium fashioned from unique Queensland timber by gifted Queensland designers and craftsmen. From their Toowoomba, Queensland workrooms, director and designer David Boucher with his team of artisans create rare and beautiful bespoke fine-art furniture and unique gifts from exotic materials for clients from Sydney to Paris, royalty and movie stars to private homes.  Magical, otherworldly work conjured from lustrous figured timbers marked with such unusual swirls and colours they resemble landscapes. Presented to The Prince of Wales at Government House in Canberra on 10 November 2012, the Royal Writing Compendium was commissioned by the Governor General, Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce, as the official gift from Australia to Her Majesty The Queen on the occasion of her 2012 Diamond Jubilee. This beautiful and practical piece is made from magnificent North Queensland Butt Maple. Its story is fascinating. Some 200 years ago, a large North Queensland Maple tree fell victim to the destructive force of a Pacific Ocean cyclone. The tree was crushed, bent and twisted by the massive cyclonic winds, but ...

Queensland’s artisan – presenter, promoter and gallery for unique quality crafted design – is steaming ahead with their current exhibition; The Antipodean Steampunk Show. Steampunk merges a 19th century aesthetic with scientific invention, salvage and new technology. This fantastical exhibition showcases highly imaginative handcrafted and functional Steampunk communication devices, sculpture, photography, fashion, lighting, weaponry, footwear, illustration, jewellery and film by Australian Steampunk artists and designers. Jordan Bloomer tells us that …”Born into the physical world in the mid-1990s by a group of science-fiction writers who had grown tired of the cyberpunk genre, Steampunk started out as a literary sub-genre that weaved fantastically worded visions, which amalgamated 19th century Victorian aesthetic principles and coupled them with modern technological advancements. This quixotic marriage of old and new has birthed a burgeoning sub-culture of creative individuals who are constructing a Neo-Victorian age that dwells within the current one.” Steampunk is only one of the feathers currently sitting in artisan’s cap. In the Queensland Australia Business Arts Foundation 2012 Awards, artisan won the Australia Council’s Young and Emerging Artists award in recognition of their Emerging Curator Mentorship Program created in partnership with BCM. Artisan don’t stay still, and you can find them touring highly ...