Another sign of the changing culture of Newcastle came to life this week with the launch of Playstate Supply and gallery by Jordan Lucky on Friday.
The business, at 8 Union Street, Newcastle West, is both a paint supply shop for artists, particularly street artists, and a gallery, which will feature works by Jordan Lucky and other artists, and workshops for artists of every style.
Playstate joins two other businesses already on the block who have built reputations for their unique cultural offerings - Jam's Karaoke Bar, and The Rogue Scholar pub.
"We really want to open the space to artists who don't fit too well in a conventional gallery," Lucky says.
"I'm pretty excited to open the doors. We definitely have some cool ideas for what we are going to be using the space for.
"We are not following the usual rules at a gallery. I'm probably the usual gallery's nightmare - 'Don't touch the walls!!'"
Lucky's been finalising work for the opening party on Friday, which includes three canvases embedded within the mural wall, which can be purchased separately (priced at $3000 each).
In a month, the canvases will be removed and the entire wall painted with a new image for a new show.
I'm pretty excited to open the doors. We definitely have some cool ideas for what we are going to be using the space for.
Jordan Lucky
As Lucky puts it: "You've got one month to come in, soak it in, and then it's gone forever. It's very time sensitive."
When the first street mural festivals were held in Newcastle, like Hit the Bricks and the Big Picture Festival, almost all of the artists were from elsewhere - Melbourne, Sydney and further afield.
But now, the city has its a considerable amount of local talent, with their work standing as prominent as any - think Mitch Revs, Jordan Lucky, Ellie Hannon, Jasmine Craciun, Trevor Dickinson, Lucas Grogan, Patricia Van Lubeck, Sophie Flegg, Tom Henderson.
Lucky forecasts a street art scene that will continue to come into its own.
"I think Newcastle is really going to develop into a very wholistic street art, where each neighbourhood has its own flavour of street art, you are starting to see that already," he says.
"Mayfield has its own look. Wickham has its own feeling. Even comparing Beaumont Street to Darby Street, even though they are similar, they are very different."
Jordan Lucky himself has a considerable amount of quality works about the city - from the wall across from Praise Joe cafe in Tighes Hill, to the wall on the King Street side of the building he now calls his gallery, his cool concepts and frequently bright colours stand out.
Since he painted his first mural on his home turf at Port Stephens in 2005, he's painted hundreds of murals around the world, in Europe and Asia, and Newcastle.
"One of the reasons I've been so well received in Newcastle is because I have multiple styles," Lucky says.
"Big underwater works, nature, portraits. There's not a lot I don't do. I just get excited. I want to try everything. I want to go in every direction as an artist.
"I feel like I'll do two or three big ocean ones, and I'll be like, 'let's get my head out of the ocean for a while', maybe I'll do something surreal and psychedelic, or realism and kookaburras..."
The Playstate Supply business has three aspects to it - the paint shop, the gallery, and artist management.
"We want that community hub sort of feeling," Lucky says.
"We plan to do not just art shows, but workshops and stuff like that.
"And open it up to other artists to run workshops as well."
Playstate offers administration and advice, both to artists and those seeking artists for projects.
With Lucky's workload now approaching 30 murals a year, there is more work on offer than he can handle.
"People can contact us and we have a range of artists," he says.
"If my work doesn't suit them in terms of what they want for a mural, we have other artists that we help facilitate."
