Stockroom - a bit of a hit!

You couldn't ask for a better opening for a new art space!

Over 400 people attended the Grand Opening of Stockroom, our brand new art and design complex in Kyneton. People came from all over to attend - Melbourne, Ballarat, Bendigo, Dayelsford, Hepburn - and the rest!

The coffee caravan was pumping, our stencil artist friends were busy decorating the walls, the galleries and artist studios filled to the brim, and as for the rest of the place - it really was standing room only! Pizzas were eaten, coffee and vino were consumed, and kids ran amok - 'cos they could!

Thank you to all of our family and friends, our new supporters, and our loyal clientele from Wolf At The Door - everyone who came and said nice things about our new place.

We appreciate your well wishes and are looking forward to continuing to make art, design and makers culture matter in regional Victoria.

Find yourself in the Stockroom Grand Opening photo gallery on Facebook.

Ladies & gents.. Stockroom Grand Opening!

a

Today marks the Grand Opening of Stockroom, Jason and Magali's new (ad)venture into the art world!

Having spent the last 3 months bunkered down in Kyneton's historic butter factory as its fourth-ever tenant, Stockroom owners Jason and Magali have spent every waking moment hammering, chiselling, sanding, building, painting and any other physically exhausting reno activity you can think of...

Finally they have emerged, blinking in the light, covered in 150 year-old sawdust and soot, triumphant - and excited! Not only have they built a most unique and amazing art complex - resplendent with a 'clothes forest', 7 artist studios, a makers 'retail concept space', a giant split level retail store and 2 beautiful exhibition spaces - today marks their Grand Opening to the public!

Media interest has been high - this morning Jason was interviewed by Simon Rogers on ABC Central Victoria, the local papers have swarmed over the past couple of weeks, and enquiries from local and overseas publications have been steady, with confirmation that Jason and Magali will feature in the next issue of Green Magazine.

So come on down to Stockroom from 4-8pm this arvo and help celebrate their big achievement. Stockroom is as much about supporting art in the community as it is is about the work of their talented makers, designers and artists. It's also Jason and Magali's way of saying a big THANK YOU to all of their helpers, supporters and the loyal Wolf At The Door clientlee who have been with them for the last 12 months.

Time for some fun!

Visit Stockroom on Facebook.

Odette The Pea Hen sees all...

Wolf At The Door is renowned for stocking 'the unusual'..

It' a place where you can find a majestic Pea Hen, sitting quietly, overlooking the day's proceedings..

Or a wooden Robot Head with a big gap-toothed smile, next to ceramic bones, a giant spark-plug carved out of foam, rings made out of porcelain and hand soap shaped like, well, hands, among other weird and wonderful objet's d'intrigiue.

But back to Odette the Pea Hen. Made by artist Susan Close, she's become a bit of a favorite. She sits on boxes and cages, but when they are bought from under her - and they often are on regular basis - it can get difficult to find the right thing to prop her on. She's often found her way underneath my arm, even when I'm just talking to Wolf's customers, without me even realising she's there.. Until they look down at her, and then at me, and silently ask themsleves whether I might in fact be.. just a little bit mad.. (They could be right.)

Odette seems pretty contented watching the comings and goings at Wolf. But I do know that one day I'll get to work and find out she's no longer here, either bought by someone who likes her even more than I do, or she's gone off down the road to find one of the spectacular peacocks by Daylesford's Jubilee Lake... Can't say I'd blame her. They are pretty spunky.

Happy birthday Wolf!!

Can you believe it's been a year already?!

On Friday July 16 Wolf At The Door will turn one! Since opening, the regional makers space has been a great asset to the arts community in Hepburn Springs and region, also supporting many makers, designers and artists from Melbourne and wider Victoria.

Named after a Radiohead song (yep!), Wolf At The Door has delicately balanced fashion with ceramics, textiles with furniture, printmaking with sculpture, vintage objects with photography, design with makers - all within the once space. It takes a fair bit of nouse and flair.. Which is why Wolf has been able to make an impact on both the region and around the rest of the country. (Check out the great article on Wolf in The Design Files).

Wolf has also built up a loyal and regular clientele over the last year, who have been very encouraging. Wolf also never fails to impress tourists who pour into Hepburn Springs and Daylesford each and every weekend. And Wolf also has many lovely friends on Facebook... (Become one).

Over 60 artists and labels are on Wolf's current roster, with owners Jason Waterhouse and Magali Gentric also curating some 'kick-arse' exhibitions, including Mantle by Melbourne printmakers Beth Conway and Larry Parkinson.

Other artists featured are sculptor David Waters, tapestry artist Michelle Hamer, felt and foam sculptor Stefan Gevers, ceramicists Gregory Bonasera, Kris Coad and Bridget Bodenham, artist and jeweller Bridget Kearney, artist/sculptor Carey Potter, photographers Kim Percy, John Butt and Patrick Jones, lomographer Megan Spencer, printmaker/sculptor John Barter, wind drawing artist Cameron Robbins, and many many more. Oh and let's not forget Jason's own show Lighter Than Air (that's one of his images above), which showcased a bunch of his new sculptures and prints. (Jason is also a finalist in the 2010 McClelland Sculpture Prize.)

Jason and Magali would like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has supported (and continues to support) Wolf At The Door over the last 12 months. They are planning to incorporate the 1 year birthday celebration into their Grand Opening party for Stockroom on July 24. Details to come very soon!

Stockroom - we have lift off!!

Magali Gentric in Stockroom's 'clothes forest'...

After much anticipation, 6 weeks of solid, round-the-clock hard work and toil - and with much generous support from family and friends - Stockroom opened its doors at 10am, Thursday July 8, 2010!

Interest in their new art venture has been high. The local media swooped, with interviews and pics running (or about to) in the Bendigo Advertiser, Daylesford Advocate, Macedon Ranges Telegraph and the Macedon Leader. Jason also appeared on ABC Radio Central Victoria on Thursday morning, speaking with Breakfast presenter Jo Printz, only hours before the doors officially opened.

Since Thursday, Stockroom has been inundated with people. This weekend is proving massive, with standing room only on Saturday, and heaps of praise and support from those who passed through (locals and tourists alike). Artists are also very keen to check out the studio and exhibition spaces. Stockroom seems to be a welcome addition to the Piper Street retail and arts landscape.

Have you heard? Piper Street is the new 'it' place on the style map (actually said to me by a well-known Melbourne stylist when we spoke last week about Stockroom). And recently the Weekend Australian newspaper hailed Piper Street as one of Victoria's "newly minted style centres", in a Goldfields travel article.

You'll be able to hear Jason live on RRR-FM this coming Thursday July 15, at 10.30am. He'll be speaking with Smart Arts presenter Richard Watts about Stockroom, Wolf At The Door (turning 1!), and his own work as a sculptor. Tune in to 102.7 on the FM band.

Feel free to get on down to Stockrom and say hello to Jason and Magali - they'd love to see you. 96-98 Piper Street, Kyneton, Wed - Mon, 10am - 5pm, ph. 5422 3215. And why not befriend Stockroom on Facebook?

And more good news to come about Stockroom - stay tuned to this blog!

The local Wolf community.

Living locally has its advantages...

Yesterday one of Wolf's dedicated makers dropped by: Tania Rose, aka Owl Designs.

Tania lives locally in Daylesford and makes drop dead gorgeous summer halter neck tops and other pieces of clothing. Only yesterday she didn't look very summery - quite the opposite. She came in rugged up in big boots and a thick Fair Isle jumper, not the image you'd expect for a designer whose range is so light and summery! It was a chilly-as winter's day and she had spent much of it chopping wood and clearing her property (the remnants of which she was fishing out of her hair as we chatted.)

That's the great thing about Wolf At The Door - Jason and Magali love to stock and support local makers' and designers' work. Bridget Bodenham and John Barter are another two local makers, whose work is featured at Wolf - both very popular. John is a print-maker and sculptor, and has a big thing for robots (he made the cool Robot Head that featured on Wolf's Facebook last week). And his Dalek prints never cease to put a smile on the face of Wolf's customers.

And Bridget is a talented ceramicist whose pieces are all unique, resplendent with hand drawn bird and animal motifs. She makes cups, plates, bowls and the most exquisite porcelain jewellery. Yesterday a woman drove all the way from Melbourne to buy 2 of her dimple rings in one hit (pic above).

It's nice to be able to support people who make things that have nothing to do with a factory or mass production... And it's really nice when they visit too!

"Would you like a bag with your Bucket?"

Mr. Bucket has been popular today..

Sold several of his tee shirts, in quick succession... In fact at one stage the whole shop was locked in heavy debate around the Mr. Bucket table, about which colours and designs were the best - or funniest. The ladies took a back seat for a while as the menfolk raged over their fashion choices... Two bought tee's for themselves ("Rebel With A Bucket" designs, one black, one brown), while another couple bought one for their son. They went through every bucket, every design, carefully matching the tee shirt with their son's personality.

It all got very raucous and lively, as you'd expect from anything Mr. Bucket was involved in.

The best part was at the end, when, dutifully, the good Wolf patrons were asked as they paid for their Mr. B tee shirts, "would you like a bag with your Bucket..?" The answers were a unanimous "no".

That's good for the environment - "Go green with Mr. Bucket!"

Men with power tools & an enchanted clothes forest...

Things are moving at a rate of knots at Stockroom!

This week: a clothes forest magically grew out of the floor.. Jason reports that "a forest of 20 candle bark trees sprouted from the floor and grew into the roof".. It's where you'll be able to find a myriad of locally made clothes from heaps of talented designers - and a tree-house changing room! Things are getting stranger by the minute at that Stockroom, I tell you..

Some of this magic might have had something to do with a few blokes you can find on the premises, helping young Mr. Jason assemble his big 'makers factory'... Pete, Bob and Jake the Sparky. They kindly posed for portrait photos this week which came up a treat. Get to know your power tools and the men behind them! All for a good cause.. Check out the album on Facebook.

Big week

Very cool news.. Wolf At The Door - and Jason and Magali's house - were featured this week in The Design Files!

TDF is a fantastic weekly blog that features the best in local design from around Australia, run by the very dedicated Lucy Feagins.

There's also a great interview with them and lovely shots of Wolf At The Door and their house too.

So if you'd like to get to know the lovely Jason and Magali a little more - and their particular philosophy on life, art, making things and what they care about - just click here! (The story and photos are about half way down the front page...)

Ode to the humble dress

We've had a big dress day today.. Must be something in the Winter air here in Hepburn.. A will to bring summer back!

Two of our very special dresses have walked themselves out the door in rapid succession today. Have to say that I'm impressed.

The beautiful blue print 'Audrey' dress (above) from Queen Clothing hasn't been hanging on the wall for very long. She's a scene stealer. A woman and her friend - up for a birthday weekend - were drawn straight to it. It was a lovely thing to see, a beautiful, classic dress make a 'modern grrl' so very happy, specially on her birthday. She literally transformed when she put it on. Into an Amazon!

The other was the Sneak Design 'Hoodie' dress which is enviably cool I have to say... The woman who tried it on happened to be wearing striking red gumboots.. The look was perfect! She also could see much possibility in the mirror.

All from trying on a dress.

There's something so graceful about wearing a dress. Maybe sometimes we need to be reminded of this? Perhaps in the age where trackie dacks have been made chic by the likes of 'Britney' and 'Nicole'.. With ugg boots. Yep. Not sure how that happened. "Long live the dress!" I say.

Wolf At The Door featured in Thaw!

It's always a bit exciting when your business gets some air time somewhere.. In this case we're super-excited at Wolf At The Door to be featured in the current issue of Thaw Magazine which came out yesterday!

Thaw is a really nicely-designed small format magazine which features innovative artists, designers, makers and creative types who dwell in the Ballarat and Central Vic region - plus cool places to visit. And on page 21 of the Thaw Winter Issue (08) you can find a really cute interview with Magali, one of Wolf's directors - who also just happens to be pictured! Thaw is always a great read and a testament to the dedication of editor Kim Anderson and her team, who really know how to ferret out the good local talent!

It comes at a really good time for Wolf's owners Magali and Jason... They are bunkered down building and renovating their new art complex in Kyneton, Stockroom. They've been hard at work getting it ready for it's big opening in early July.

With Wolf about to turn ONE and Stockroom about to open, watch out for more features in magazines and publications over the coming months! Very exciting!

Plus you can hear Jason being interviewed live by Richard Watts on Smart Arts, 102.7 RRR-FM, Thursday July 15 at 10.30am. Mega-star!

Up a ladder - and loving it!!

In case you haven't heard, Jason and Magali have big plans for Kyneton. Right now they are converting an historic 1860s wool factory into the most unique arts complex in the region!

Called Stockroom and due to open late June/early July, it will feature an exhibition space, a retail store, artist studios, plus a 'retail concept space' for makers, where they can exhibit, promote and sell their work direct to the public. We're talking hand-made products, design, art, craft, locally-made and designed furniture and fashion - plus the odd vintage piece or two. It's just like Wolf - only on a grand scale!

Anyone who's been to Wolf At The Door will know that both Jason and Magali are passionate about art and community. At Stockroom they will continue to support makers and artists by curating exhibitions and running special events that engage audiences and the local community alike.

They're looking for makers, artists and designers who share their unique vision. Spaces are filling up fast at Stockroom; if you'd like to be a part of the most ambitious and unique arts complex in the region, get in contact with Magali on i@wolfatthedoor.com.au. There's nothing like it and the possibilities are endless!

We'll keep you posted with opening details and festivities.. In the meantime you can follow Stockroom's progress on Facebook, and check out the image gallery.

Exciting times are ahead! It's all part of the ever-growing Wolf At The Door community... Up a ladder - in the name of art. Go Jason!

"And I would do anything for... art."

Today, the best art story...

A new customer to Wolf At The Door came by to put a deposit on a layby, a Valentin Design stag-head sculpture.

Excited about it, he ended up telling the story behind his purchase. A nearby resident, he'd been eyeing off the stag head in the window for months, becoming a bit obsessed with it, trying to work out how he could buy it on his (then) limited income. Telling his friends about his dilemma, they advised him to get another job.

He's ended up with not two jobs but five! "And all because of that stag head which I have changed my life for! The lengths I've gone to to get it.." he said, laughing. Plus it is his very first art purchase, and he loves it so much that he's going to change his entire room around to complement the piece. That's what you call art-love!

Forget "I would do anything for love". Reckon Meatloaf should write a song about art!

philosoface

starting a blog

wolf at the door is starting a blog, watch this space to follow updates on art and design showcased in the gallery. we're happy to answer your questions about artists, makers design and objects.