ASKEM is a long-time member of the influential SDM Crew. He has painted throughout Melbourne, Australia and beyond for nearly three decades. His traditional graffiti designs feature clear-cut colour palettes and a restrained execution – an approach national and international followers appreciate and respect.
STEVE CROSS is a Perth-based multi-disciplinary artist working with acrylics and oils. His studio-based works have been exhibited nationally since 1988. Steve is also a celebrated street artist, featuring on walls nationally and internationally. Steve began painting walls at 13 years of age, running with some of the country's top writers. Though young, he quickly made a name for himself, gaining respect from his peers and kickstarting life-long friendships. Steve is also one of the country's finest tattoo artists.
Jimmy Dvate (pronounced D-V-8) is a renowned Australian contemporary artist specialising in large-scale murals. Jimmy began painting on the streets of Melbourne in 1997. Today his name is synonymous with graffiti and street art scenes, and his paintings can be found worldwide. With key works in Adelaide and Melbourne Zoos, Phillip Island Nature Park, Darwin, Alice Springs, Wollongong, Benalla, Shepparton and more recently, the silos at Rochester, Goorambat, Waikerie and Picola. His reputation has led to overseas projects in Denmark, London, Belgium and Spain and the Amsterdam Street Art Museum. In America he has exhibited and painted in LA, SF, St Louis, Miami, NYC and Denver while his travels extended as far afield as Tahiti as runner-up in a global street art competition.
Trained in graphic design and visual arts at Monash University, Jimmy’s work has a strong sense of design combined with the accuracy and eye for detail of photorealism. Underpinning his most recent works is his passion for nature and the environment. Inspired by camping trips in the bush as a boy, Jimmy’s focus has increasingly turned to the natural world, especially endangered species and climate change victims. Working with numerous conservation groups has been an enormous honour and has given him access to unique places and species. Working with numerous conservation groups has been a huge honour and has given him access to really special places and species. He painstakingly researches the location of his works, ensuring that the flora and fauna he paints are authentic and indigenous to the area. From rock wallabies to black cockatoos, Blue-tongued Lizards to Tasmanian Devils, Jimmy’s work brilliantly conveys not only his careful research, but also his genuine passion for these creatures and his commitment to conservation. He truly captures the personalities of the subjects he paints with his accuracy and amazing use of colour.
Street Art is Rohan’s passion, although he also loves to draw on paper. He particularly like patterns and is drawn to geometric designs. A few years ago, Rohan found himself on the path towards a criminal record for graffiti. Working collectively with other artists in Blacksmiths Way changed this trajectory providing him with a space to positively channel his creative needs and aspirations. Being part of this artistic community has given Rohan some exciting opportunities.
Rohan also connects a growing group of young and old writers and painters to the Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project.
Tom Gerrard is an Australian painter whose works focus on suburban life. His style developed through his prolific international output on the streets, and he incorporates contemporary techniques such as spray paint and airbrush.
Gerrard’s works compress space through bold flattened colour schemes, employing a signature black outline which frames his graphical forms. The heads appearing throughout Gerrard’s work follow the lineage of graffiti characters, reimagined through the multicultural lens of Gerrard’s youth in Melbourne’s suburbs.
Observation is key to Gerrard’s practice; the architectural elements and domestic objects are taken directly from his environment, at home and through travel.
Gerrard has exhibited in Los Angeles, Barcelona and Tokyo, and his works have been acquired by the National Gallery of Australia and the National Gallery of Victoria. He is an active international muralist, commissioned in London, Berlin, Quito and Rio de Janeiro.
STAMPZ is a Melbourne-based street artist who has been making and painting stencils since he was 16 years old. His creative process involves multiple hand-drawn and hand-cut paper stencils that he paints on walls one layer at a time. His finished works parody well-known Disney and pop culture icons and issues, encouraging contemporary and often rebellious cultural and political conversations. In addition to his paste-ups, Stampz also paints murals, wheat pastes posters and prints stickers.
Intasgram: @stampz_37
ELIZABETH GLEESON, aka Mandala Murals, is a mural artist from the rainforest region of the Dandenong Ranges, east of Naarm (Melbourne). She works internationally and throughout her home country of Australia. Her artworks are based on the mesmerising, patterned nature of the mandala and the philosophy that an ordered, patterned whole can be created out of chaos by repeating and reflecting images, lines and symbols. Viewers are delighted and compelled by her highly detailed and visually complex artworks.
Instagram: @Mandala_Murals
OG23 grew up in Belgrave. As a kid, it was a great place to grow up and explore. I started my art journey as a young graffiti writer, but it wasn't until my mid 20's that I really started paying attention to the art world and practising it myself.
My influences come from a lot of different places, but I would say most recently I’ve been paying attention to mid-century design and illustration as well as Naive art and Folk art. I think that my style of painting would be best described as naive and fun, which is what I also am trying to express. I like to paint without thinking too much about rules and just enjoy it and create something I'm happy with.
Ben Lopez is a Melbourne based Artist/Illustrator. His works are inspired by nature, dreams & the cosmic realms. Depicting surreal scenes with underlying narratives, his illustrations are an exploration of inner and outer worlds.
George Manioudakis, AKA Manofdarkness, has always been motivated to draw, build and create. His perception is that ‘work’ is not a means to an end but a way of life. If I love what I do, it will never feel like work. George believes that being a graffiti artist and graphic designer means producing creative solutions for people, businesses and communities. George specialises in logos, corporate identity, poster & web design, and photography & visual art, including street art and mural design.
CANDELA is an Argentinian artist based in Naarm (Melbourne). She enjoys working with different mediums and scales, from ink illustrations to murals. At the moment, Candela creates work that depicts nature, magic, and the abstract world. Her paintings are embedded with colourful, vibrant visual narratives that captivate people’s attention and stimulate their imagination. Candela considers herself someone who generally finds life's positive and bright side and believes that her colourful and storied artworks brighten community spaces and elevate our everyday lives.
@candela.colors
