Brendan Brown

Exhibition runs 5-30 November

Brendan D Brown is a Perth born, Melbourne based, part time artist.

The works which are on display here are one-off scraperboard originals. The boards are manufactured in the UK through a process of coating thick card in a thin layer of China clay. The clay is then stained solid black with India Ink, which Brendan painstakingly scratches away at with a rusty, pointy nail to reveal, in white, the clay beneath. This takes f****ing ages. Sometimes, while making these pieces, Brendan's hand cramped up so badly that it took two cups of tea before his fingers could be fully straightened. Oh the humanity!

This is Brendan's second exhibition at Ruck Rover in as many years, something he is very proud of.

 Bang. $50.

Wander. $75.

If you cannot make it in during the exhibition but are interested in buying one of Brendan's works, please email us to see images of the other pieces.

Lani Weston

Guardians
Lani Weston

Lani Weston returns for her second, solo exhibition at Mini Art Mart. Lani grew up in Perth, and studied Commerce and Graphic Design. With her excellent understanding of both the business and the creative side of branding, she launched her business elm designs where she works on providing the complete package for businesses.

Lani's earlier work has been dominated by pastels and watercolours, but her latest collection has been strongly influenced by her completed degree, hence it is solely digital.

Guardians is a collection inspired by the sweet and innocent relationships between children and animals. It is nostalgic, sweet and whimsical.

Exhibition runs through October 2012.

Sean Nicholls

The first edition of Mini Art Mart in Ruck Rover General Store's new space in Northbridge sees local artist Sean Nicholls' work on display for the entire month of September.

Nicholls' traditional mediums of working are with drawing and Photoshop, however it was his decision to take a break from university which led to this collection of experiments with paints. Taking time away from university meant he no longer had access to Photoshop, and what results is a detailed collection of one off drawings and paintings. Monochromatic detail is mixed with bold colours to create beautiful and striking works.

When not doing art or working, Sean Nicholls satisfies his obsession with graphic novels, whilst aspiring to become a graphic novel artist.

All original works are available for purchase at $200. Each are framed.

 

More pieces are available to view in store.

Sarah Louise

Heartfelt
June 1 - 30 2012

Sarah Louise is a creative homebody. Believing firmly that home is wherever your heart is, Sarah’s philosophy centres around homewares that have warmth, character and a comforting heart-made quality. When Sarah isn’t baking, fiddling about in her pretty garden or writing songs she can oft be found crafting a little something to make herself or someone she loves smile.

Sarah works with rare and beautiful fabrics, felt, and ribbon to design unique pieces. Sometimes she knits and draws but she isn’t very good at it. Each piece in this exhibition is one of a kind, and will not be recreated.

Carly Nasso

Carly Nasso has had 20 years of exhibiting diminutive, collaged paintings and drawings of curious characters.

After living all her life in the city, Carly and her young family moved to a small Mid Western town on the edge of the wheatbelt in Western Australia. These works are directly influenced by the experience.

These new, one-off works are created with an array of materials including felt, paper, pencil, felt pen, crayon and paint.

The unusual characters are sometimes animalistic and not quite human. They exist in a world where nature and science combine with fantasy and emotion.

Natalie Acton

Natalie Acton brightens the month of April at Ruck Rover with her quirky and heartwarming illustrations.

Living and creating in Fremantle, Natalie draws much of her inspiration from the port town's surrounds. Her work has a vintage/retro spice, and she cites artists such as Del Kathryn Barton, Andrew Nicholls, Fleur Schell, Pippin Drysdale, Tamara de Lempicka and Jodee Knowles and her influences.

Natalie completed a Bachelor of Art and Education in 2008. She potters, prints, designs and sculpts with enthusiasm. All of Natalie's exhibition prints are permaset ink on fabric, mounted on premium, eco-friendly, cotton duck (commonly called canvas, not an actual duck, for animal fans playing at home).

Natalie's works will be adding sparkle and inspiring smiles at Ruck Rover until the end of April.

Lisa Max

Lisa Max returns to Ruck Rover for her third exhibition at Mini Art Mart.

Born in Germany, Lisa attended art school in Austria before heading across the seas to Australia. She settled here for quite some time, but lately she's been feeling the pull of the Continent. Along with her husband Jarrod (a Perth native), Lisa is making the move across the world once more and will head off to Europe later this year. Though they vow to return before too long, this is the last exhibition that we'll see of Lisa's colourful character art on Australian shores for a little while.

The characters of Lisa Max are filled with wonder and excitement. This year they reside on a single item, a used surfboard, where four of loveable chaps have climbed atop one another creating a tower of delight.


Ruck Rover also sells Lisa Max' brilliant Booze Brothers - a set of two stubby holders decorated in her signature style - as well as irresistible, illustrated cushions.

Anne Cobai's artwork available online

Pink and Blue Tattoo, $40

This month we are pleased to offer you a selection of Anne Cobai's prints to purchase online.

You can find them on our web store here. Prices range from $40 to $70. Here's a little taste of what's on offer.

Transition, $60

Ice Cream, $60

All items purchased online will be shipped after the exhibition has closed at the end of February.

Anne's Cross My Heart women's tees can also be picked up online at $50 a pop. Available in small and medium sizes, they are printed on purple, pink, navy, black, brown and light blue tee shirts. These are in stock and are ready to ship immediately.

Cross my Heart tee, $50

Anne Cobai

Anne Cobai is a graphic designer and illustrator living in Perth, Australia. She completed a degree in Graphic Design at Curtin University, graduating in 2008. During the day she works full-time as a graphic designer for a boutique design agency and she devotes her weekends and free time to freelancing and working on personal projects.

Anne Cobai, Cross My Heart

Anne is passionate about music so her work reflects this love as well as her fascination with colour and popular culture. Her illustrations are characterised by bold and colourful images with a high attention to detail. She draws inspiration from a vast array of influences, including contemporary music, tattoo culture, vintage pin-ups, iconography and Renaissance art.

Anne Cobai, Saint Billie Joe

When creating her illustrations, Anne prefers to work digitally, using the vector medium to create bold images with maximum impact. Her illustrations have been published in numerous magazines, including Desktop, AMMO, Semi Permanent, Skin Deep, Inked Aus/NZ and Australian Creative.

Anne is steadily receiving more recognition for her work, both nationally and internationally and she continues to work towards her dream of being fully self-employed and working on designs relating to music, such as album covers and concert posters.

Anne Cobai, Frankettes

For Mini Art Mart, Anne has put together a selection of framed prints in her signature style. She has also made her Cross my Heart tees available to purchase from Ruck Rover throughout February. These come in six different colours and feature her brilliant Cross my Heart artwork.


For more of Anne's work, visit her website or her blog.

Paula Stirland

Paula Stirland brings in the new year with her stunning and uncanny portraits. Born (and even a little raised) in England, this pom turned Perth girl is currently making her mark at Artful Ink, designing tattoos for the bold and unique.

Paula's work is also rampant through the local music scene, where you can see her interests in graphic design, tribal art and tatts manifest itself on posters, logos and album art. And some of the metal and rock groups are even lucky enough to be the object of her camera's gaze.
For our Mini Art Mart, Paula has collected a few of her favourite portraits, and she certainly has a knack for capturing cheeky glints of the eye and curls of the lip. Infused with alternative fashion, shadows, and personality, these sketches are guaranteed to remind you of someone you know.