COPYWRITINGEarth without art is just ‘eh’
The Art Bag Project was born back in 2012 - I won't take any credit for its inception (that was a brain child of Single O founder, Emma Cohen with the help of some Surry Hills locals - Maud, The Monkeys and M35). In short, a rotation of artists strut their stuff on kilo bags in lieu of a dirty big logo.
I have been lucky enough to collaborate on a few Art Bags at Single O - working on creative concepts and back of bag copy. Often this tells the story of the artist, sometimes it tells the story of the work and usually it’s both of that plus a hot take on whatever is floating in the zeitgeist. Take a peek at a few examples below.
Freshness. Noun. (1) The state of being recently made or obtained or not having decayed. (2) The quality of being pleasantly new or different.
A word, Kaz Komatsu, the creator of the beauty you’re holding, is pretty familiar with. Recently, the Japan-born, Sydney-raised artist moved over the border to Melbourne. ‘I was going to the same exhibitions, seeing the same people and was curious to see what the Melbourne art scene was like’. Change brings freshness and freshness brings inspiration. Maybe that explains the line between creatives and restlessness?
This brings us to the inspiration of this work, Morning Market, a corner store where freshness can be found in abundance. It’s also where you’ll find Kaz, on occasion, sipping a cold brew (or an oat mocha) in the sun.
It's where Melburnians shop for fresh produce, flowers, bread, house baked goods and fresh coffee — they've brewed with Single O from day dot.
Whilst you make your way through this kilo, take a look at the art through fresh eyes. Through a new perspective, the graphic details transform and reveal themselves (is that a bean or a butt? a foot or a hand?)
And be sure to store these beans and art, appropriately. After all, freshness is where it’s at.
Get ready to start your engines. Introducing artist Jimmy Jordan and his hot rod, where steam wands hisses replace the roaring revs of an engine. Coffee is the vehicle transporting us from asleep to awake. Specialty coffee offers the scenic route, where the commute becomes an adventure. And as Ethiopian legend has it, we owe this journey to goats.
Let us explain. Coffee was discovered after a goat herder, Kaldi, noticed that when his goats were nibbling on the bright red cherries of a certain bush, they became very energetic. Kaldi took a nibble himself to confirm the effects. Fast forward a few decades and this cherry powers the journey of billions per day.
Speaking of powering journeys, Soulmate café in Newtown serves us fine fuel, from breakfast burgers to iced oat lattes for its loyal locals (creatives, dog walkers, hospitality community). It’s where we met Jimmy, powered on batch brew, in mid-shift. You see, when Jimmy is not surfing, skating, or sketching, you’ll find him in the kitchen, rolling bagels and flipping bacon, in his role as chef.
Jimmy represents an awesome portion of the hospo crew that manages artist endeavours along with their hospitality gig and we’re stoked to be representing emerging artists juggling two professions. No matter your form of transportation, whether it’s a batch, oat latte or espresso, enjoy the journey that coffee takes you on. And a big thank you to Soulmate, Jimmy, and to the goats.