Holy Gocco demo

Don't know what a Print Gocco is?
Don't have the slightest clue how they are made?
Always wanted to buy a Gocco printer but never gone through with it?
Love traditional forms of print-making?
This Saturday at 1pm, we will be giving a short demonstration of the processes behind producing a simple print with the Gocco machine.

Hope to see you there.
Emma and John.

My Goodness My Gocco

It's our second annual My Goodness, My Gocco exhibition, a celebration of Gocco as a printmaking medium. At Sweets Workshop We love Gocco, and want to keep it alive!

The exhibition features many Australian and International artists, Including (AU) Barbara Coddington, Benconservato, Borderline Rifraf, Emmajane Illustration, Ghost Patrol, John D-C, Magic Jelly, Matthew Roland, (US) Art Shark Designs, Jill Labieniec, Haunted House of Project's and Laura Berger. Click here to read about our artists, and see why they love PRINT GOCCO!

Date: Saturday 14th May - 1st June 2011

Official Opening: 2pm Saturday, 14th May.

Where: Sweets Workshop, Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill 2130

What is Gocco? For those of you that don't know Gocco (プリントゴッコ Purinto Gokko, Print Gocco) is a self-contained compact color printing system invented in 1977 by Noboru Hayama. Gocco became immensely popular in Japan and it is estimated that one-third of Japanese households own a Print Gocco system. The name Print Gocco is derived from the Japanese word gokko (ごっこ), loosely translated as make-believe play.

New Media Section

Just a quick post to let you know that Sweets Workshop has a new Media Section which archives and links you to all Sweets Workshop related media in print and on the web. You can access it directly from the Media tab above.

Colouring In Contest Winner!

Earlier this year we had a group of preschool children from Summer Hill Children's Centre visit us at Sweets Workshop to see the exhibition Play Date by Australian children's book illustrator Andy Geppert. To mark the occasion we ran a little colouring in contest and here is the winning entry from Ellie.Ellie picked up a copy of Andy's award winning book Little Big Tree for her great work.

Calling For Submissions

It's time for our second annual My Goodness, My Gocco exhibition, a celebration of Gocco as a printmaking medium. At Sweets Workshop We love Gocco, and want to keep it alive! We are looking for artists to submit their recent gocco artwork for a chance to go in our exhibition, and be featured on our website.

The exhibition will run from the 14th May till the 1st June at Sweets Workshop.

If you are interested, and would like to show us your gocco designs, please submit a low resolution jpeg to info@sweetsworkshop.com, along with a short bio about yourself, and why you like printing with a gocco machine.

Submissions will be accepted until Friday 29th April. If you have been selected you will be notified Monday 2nd May. We will need to receive artwork by Monday the 9th May.

What is Gocco? For those of you that don't know Gocco (プリントゴッコ Purinto Gokko, Print Gocco) is a self-contained compact color printing system invented in 1977 by Noboru Hayama.

Gocco became immensely popular in Japan and it is estimated that one-third of Japanese households own a Print Gocco system. The name Print Gocco is derived from the Japanese word gokko (ごっこ), loosely translated as make-believe play.

An exhibition by Emma Simmons

Date: Saturday 9th April – Wednesday 4th May 2011

Official Opening: 2pm Saturday, 12th March. Emma will be at the gallery to open her new exhibition

Where: Sweets Workshop, Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill 2130

After living in the Inner West for 7 years,
do you think she’s grown to like it?
The answer is yes.
The Sun Sets in the West is a collection of landscape scenes from the artist’s experience of living in Sydney’s Inner West.
“The day to day landscape is rich with colour, shapes & textures, not to mention, history and personal stories.”
This series of landscapes is built from fabric,
water colour and pencil.

Click here to read our interview with Emma, about her exhibition.

Dungeon Raiders Card Game Launch

Tonight we are excited to host Phil Harding's launch of his new card game 'Dungeon Raiders'. Phil is a local games designer, who won several awards for his games at Premio Archimede 2010, held in Venice earlier this year. He managed to bag second place for 'Builders of Egypt' and third place for 'Cacao', out of a large field of international entrants.

'Dungeon Raiders' is a light-hearted adventure game set in a trap-laden dungeon. The colourful artwork was produced by Phil, and Meredith Walker, a local artist.

We'll have our game faces on from 7pm at Sweets Workshop.

An interview with illustrator, Emma Simmons

Emma's upcoming exhibition, The Sun Set in the West, is on at Sweets Workshop from the 9th April – 6th May 2011.
She will be present for the official opening at 2pm 9/4/11.

What can viewers expect from your exhibition 'The Sun Sets In The West', at Sweets Workshop?
They can expect to see a collection of artworks capturing some of the Inner West’s colourful scenes in fabric, watercolour and pencil. Some of the suburbs I've included are Summer Hill, Petersham, Newtown, Enmore, Ashfield, Balmain and Marrickville.

How do you describe your illustrations style?
My work is collage based. I relish being away from the computer, making and collecting textures, shapes, colours and patterns. As a collector of fabrics, I find it hard to cut them up and shape them into something, for fear of making a big mistake and ruining the item. This has taken me back to the computer, which allows me to build my illustrations through scans, and photos of my fabrics, textures and the things that I create.

When did you start drawing? What first attracted you to illustrating landscapes?
I began drawing recently, lets say in the last 5 years. I started on landscapes as a favour to a friend; she was leaving Australia and wanted something to remember it by. I enjoyed the process of searching for a scene that was typically Sydney and a little nostalgic. I liked the contrast between the built up city and the old cottages, and the way the change in seasons and light could alter the scene.

What is your favorite thing about being an illustrator?
I like illustration, it gives me the opportunity to look at ordinary things in detail. I find it a challenge to converting what is physcally in front of me, into shapes and colours that reflect what I am seeing or feeling. I love a brief, and I love being able to find a way to communicate a message through a graphic or illustration.

Can you describe the processes and mediums you use to illustrate a landscape?
I search for a location, in this case, a familiar location with which I have a connection. I then sketch it in pencil, and work out which fabrics from my collection represent the textures that I am seeing. I then create shapes in watercolour and overlay it onto the fabric to soften the lines and add a different element.

When selecting a landscape to draw do you have certain fabric textures already in mind or is it more a process of trial and error?
Sometimes I will have a fabric in mind, other times I will dive into the fabric box, duck to the shop, or raid the wardrobe for something suitable.

Could you describe your fascination with the affect that time and light have on the appearance of a landscape?
At different times of the day, the light can change the shapes and details of what you are seeing. It can make something ordinary, extra-ordinary and can go from drama to tranquility within a few hours. I was initially drawn to this after seeing Monet's interest in lighting affects on the landscape, with his series 'haystacks'. I was wondering if I could capture the lighting affects of a scene that I saw most days with my fabric and water colour collages.

What do you like most about the Inner West landscape and why did you decide to use it as the foundation of an exhibition?
I have spent a long time living in the Inner West. I think choosing to do this exhibition on the Inner West allowed me to focus on what I enjoy about the places that I use and pass everyday. The Inner West retains a lot of charm by maintaining the quaint, the small, the decorative, the questionable colour choices, the gardens, the architecture and the shapes of it's history.

Some More New Featured Artists & Designers

These photos show a selection of our ever growing list of new and very talented featured Artists And Designers, including: Martha Goes Green, Matthew Roland, Andy Geppert, Hello Sandwich (Ebony Bizys), *bespoke*, Jo Everett, Allira, Borderline Rifraf Illustration (Asher Gilding) & Helen Nehill. Be sure to check out our Featured Artists And Designers Page for more information.

An exhibition in 'Pen & Pencil' by Pam French

Date: Saturday 12th March – Wednesday 6th April 2011

Official Opening: 2pm Saturday, 12th March. Pam will be at the gallery to open her new exhibition

Where: Sweets Workshop, Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill 2130

Pam’s fascination with the wonderful diversity of people and plants is brought together with pen and pencil drawings from the imagination, the subconscious and memory.

Her work varies from large botanical pieces to work on
small tags; instinctive drawings in pen tell stories of their own. These artworks combine to create a distinct and creative body of work.

An interview with artist Pam French

Pam's upcoming exhibition, Pen & Pencil, is on at Sweets Workshop from the 12th March – 6th April 2011.
She will be present for the official opening at 2pm 12/3/11.

How do you describe your style?
I currently work in my studio at home surrounded by natural bush land. I have a variety of plant specimens and bones of small animals in my studio, used as material to inspire drawings. Drawing on a daily basis from life and from the imagination make up an essential part of my work.

Currently what is your preferred Medium?
I work in various mediums, of late I have been focusing on drawing. I take a small notebook with me and if something catches my eye I make a quick note, it may be a quick drawing or a few words.

Where do you find inspiration?
My inspiration comes from so many aspects of life. When I walk most days through the bush on my place I often return with “a find” and add it to my table to be studied. Family and friends give me dead insects and unusual looking things. I start with technical draws, put every thing away drawing again from memory. My imagination and hand are off, and I don’t always know where I will end up. Hopefully something interesting will emerge.

What drew you to botanics?
I have always had a love for the bush. I enjoy to garden and work outside. I live near the Mt Annan Botanical Gardens I go there to for time out to draw.

Why faces on tags? Well I have a thing for tags. I usually use them on the gifts I give. I like to draw people so I put them together.

What can viewers expect from your exhibition at Sweets Workshop?
I think in this show, you will find a mix of my recent work - large botanical drawings to small botanical illustrations on tags. My interpretation of people in their work place, more tags. Drawings from the imagination. Stream of consciousness drawings based on organic shapes, thoughts and dreams.

A 'Play Date' with Andy Geppert

Date: Saturday 12th February – Wednesday 3rd March 2011

Official Opening: 2pm Saturday 12th Feb. Andy will join us to speak about his processes, playful artworks and characters.

Where: Sweets Workshop, Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill 2130

Play Date is a collection of works by ANDY GEPPERT that aims to reconnect us with the joy, innocence and
playful imagination of our childhood.

As a self taught illustrator Andy has developed a style that lives between traditional sketching and digital illustration.
Play Date is his first exhibition and follows on from the recent success of winning the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Crichton Award for his book illustration work in 2010.

Andy hopes his colourful images will be accepted as innocently one child asking another
"will you be my friend?"

Interview with illustrator Andy Geppert

Andy's upcoming exhibition, Play Date, is on at Sweets Workshop from the 12th February – 3rd March 2011.
He will be in the gallery at 2pm 12/2/11 to chat about his new exhibition.

Here's a bit of an introduction to Andy, as well as his charming artwork that will take you back to your 'wild' childhood imagination.


When did you first start drawing?
I can honestly say that I’ve had a love for drawing as soon as I could clumsily grasp a crayon. Unfortunately as I grew older other things like study and work eventually got in the way.

2 years ago I began searching for an outlet to create beautiful things, I wanted a medium that I could dive into and work on until I was happy with the end result. Children’s book illustration seemed to flow on easily from my job as an Art Director, as many skills were transferable, particularly the visual storytelling aspect.


What was your favorite thing to draw as a child?
Apart from messy scribbles, E.T. was the first childhood character that I can remember drawing and re-drawing. As a 9 year old I think it was the first colouring in competition that I won. (Or at least that’s what my mum and dad told me)


Currently what is your favorite Medium?
Digital illustration is my favorite medium at this stage, simply because I can make mistakes. I love the fact I can mould a drawing until it matches what was in my head to start with.

How do you describe your illustrations style?
Simple, light and naïve. I have created a style that lives between traditional sketching and digital illustration. My technique is one that blends hand sketching with a soft watercolour feel.


What inspires you when you are creating your sweet characters?
A lot of my inspiration comes from my amazing 5 year old daughter Lani. As well as my books I started illustrating a visual diary for her. It was my way of remembering the innocent and beautiful way she viewed the world. Children’s imaginations are so wild and raw, and I love how their minds collide things together that adults’ minds often miss.

The style of my work is also loosely influenced from my memory of high school art classes. I distinctly remember studying Toulouse-Lautrec, and his posters for the Moulin Rouge.

And other strong influences include:
Oliver Jeffers is a children’s book illustrator who I believe is setting the benchmark for children’s book story telling. And a photographer friend, Matt Hoyle from NY who convinced me to follow my new found passion.


Tell us a bit about the creation process behind your recent award winning children's book Little Big Tree?
‘Little Big Tree’ came about whilst working with Tim Brown in advertising. Tim came from a previous publishing roll and also shared a passion for children’s books. So we began working on a plan to venture into the world of children’s stories.

We found that many children’s books had stunning illustrations let down by the storyline or great stories badly executed. With this in mind, each night after work I began illustrating Tim’s story page by page, and after about nine months we ended up with a finished book.

I found illustrating ‘Little Big Tree’ hugely enjoyable. Something clicked during the design process and I suddenly found it all became a lot easier. Creating each character and seeing them come to life was a very fulfilling experience; I loved showing friends the new characters for the first time.

After receiving 3,000 books on our doorstep we entered it into the Children's Book Council of Australia’s (CBCA) Crichton Award for new illustrators. And to our disbelief we received a shortlist and then 4 months later at a ceremony in Customs House we were announced as joint winners alongside Andrew Joyner.

‘Little Big Tree’ has now generated huge interest and is selling well throughout Australia and soon Taiwan.


What can viewers expect from your exhibition Play Date at Sweets Workshop?
Play Date is a collection of 2 years worth of late nights and excitement. After such a great year in 2010 it has been a very rewarding process to take stock and reflect of the journey so far.

There will be around 12-14 bright playful illustrations ranging in size from tiny ovals to large canvas prints.

If nothing else I hope the viewers are reminded of a time when;
their imaginations ran wild,
when skipping was fun,
and childhood laughter filled the air.

Featured Artist's Christmas Showcase

A Special Christmas Showcase of Affordable Art, Gift Ideas and Decorations By Our Featured Artists.

Date: 7/12/10 -24/12/10,

Where: Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill NSW 2130

Opening times: From Tuesday 14/12/10 we will have extended shopping hours until Christmas.
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday: 10am - 6.30pm
Thursday: 10am - 7pm
Saturday: 9am - 5.30pm
Sunday 19/12/10: 10am - 2pm

Food Fight Radio Interview

Here is a Radio Interview we did for FOOD FIGHT with Ange on 2ser's Arts and Culture Program, Talking Through Your Arts.

Some New Featured Artists and Designers

These photos show a selection of our ever growing list of new and very talented featured Artists And Designers, including: Print maker Laura Carey, Photographer Jackie Cooper, Wah-Wah Wears Jewellery, Jeweller Gemma Johnson and s.p.y.downunder homewares. Be sure to check out our Featured Artists And Designers Page for more information.

A Few Photos From FOOD FIGHT The Sweet Tooth-Stuff Edition

Thanks to everyone who attended Food Fight and helped to make our exhibition & publication launch such a smashing success.

Food Fight is a yearly collaborative exhibition and accompanying publication, which is held as part of the Summer Hill Food Festival, which this year took on the guise of The Grand Food Bazaar.

1930000 Air Miles To Go

An Exhibition By Kate Banazi

Date: 6/11/10 -25/11/10,
Official Opening: Saturday 6/11/10 at 12pm

Where: Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill NSW 2130

"Since I was very much younger I have been enthralled by the idea of Astronauts and Space travel.

I was devastated when my parents told me in no uncertain terms that I would never first hand see the Earth from above.

Things have changed, but I may wait until there's a charter flight."

FOOD FIGHT The Sweet Tooth-Stuff Edition

Food Fight is a yearly collaborative exhibition and accompanying publication produced by Sweets Workshop.

Date: 17/10/10 -5/11/10, Official Opening: Sunday 17/10/10 at 10am

Where: Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill NSW 2130

Food Fight is all about food, pitting image against text, recipe against illustration, photograph against story. In the ring this year is the sweet tooth – a dedicated look at all things deliciously sweet.

The exhibition & publication launch will be on Sunday the 17th of October, Yes you heard right we will be opening on Sunday to co-inside with the Summer Hill Food Festival, The Grand Food Bazaar. So you can also sample some great gourmet cuisine, enjoy live music and find out a bit about living sustainably while your out and about in Summer Hill.

The publication is filled with artwork, photography, recipes and food stories which have been contributed by many local, interstate and international artist, designers and writers it is printed on 100% recycled stock and is a limited edition print run.

The exhibition shall run until the 5th of November.

Little One

Date: 18/9/10 -7/10/10, Official Opening: 18/9/10 at 1pm

Where: Shop 4, 58-60 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill NSW 2130

Grown-ups never understand anything for themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery, “Le Petit Prince”, 1943
Children see things and feel things that adults don’t. I am inspired by the naive and whimsical illustrations of vintage 1940’s children’s books that I have collected from op shops and flea markets. I love the aesthetics of the print – the different colour layers, the texture and ageing of the paper and the imperfections in the registration, which I think contrast delightfully with the utopian imagery.

In this series of work, I endeavour to capture the mischievousness and playful essence of childhood from a nostalgic adult perspective. I am celebrating the imaginary worlds of children along with their endearing and loveable antics. This series reminisces sentimental memories of my own childhood and reflects a longing for the simple and carefree.