Mutha Tucka and IDa4

For his wild creativity and larger-than-life appearance, we would like you to meet a friend of F6.Studios the fabulously bitchy Mutha Tucka. His outrageous costumes, candy-floss wigs and inspired make-up ensure he stands out from the crowd even in Newcastle's LBGT scene where, the most colourful of characters congregate.

Many of his costumes have been made at F6.Studios, fashioned from the most unexpected materials. He has been known to create a dress from several luminous safety jackets and dissect numerous barbie dolls to create fabulous accessories. He is a one of a kind and a truly inspiring character.

One of our artists here at the studios, Chris Fleming (of IDa4) has featured Mutha Tucka alongside a range of other colourful characters in his street art piece "The League of Extraordinary Wreckheads" at the bottom of Hotspur Street, Sandyford. Fleming is a talented spray and stencil artist whose work can be seen across Newcastle, including the top of Chillingham Road in Heaton, the Albatross Backpackers Inn and Barca Arts Cafe in Tynemouth. He also creates witty stencils that quote things such as 'I LOVE YOU MORE THAN GREGGS', an image of Mary carrying a Tesco carrier bag, and iconic sprayed vinyl discs.

To see more of IDa4, check out his website at:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/IDa4/153902111347906?id=153902111347906&sk=app_172798269505101

Image credits to 'I AM VIP', Phillips Photography, Mutha Tucka and Chris Fleming.

"Drawings An' That"

If you happen to be in Newcastle City-centre over the next couple of days, worth a look in is the debut solo exhibition of Katie Chappell, illustrator here at F6. Studios. The illustrations are displayed on the second floor of the library next to the cafe, and include a range of drawings presenting her favourite places in Newcastle as well as other drawings from 2011-2012. Chappell graduated from Sunderland University with her degree in Illustration & Design in 2012, and she continues to create illustrations for a range of clients, which have included The Crack Magazine, Julie Hodgson (children's illustrator) and Charles Gillman Cosmetics Paris to name a few.

Below is a picture of her 'Sad Owl' illustration which is part of the current exhibition. Her drawings have a distinct naive and graphic quality which range from simplistic black and white images to more colourful, lively pieces, with pen and ink being her weapons of choice. On Katie's 'About Me' page on her website, she states 'I really love urban sketching and organise Sketch Crawls in and around Newcastle' showing how her passion for the drawings she does and her love of the city influences the work she does.

Below are some photographs from the current exhibition, showing 'The Grainger Market', 'The Cumberland Arms', 'The Cluny' and 'Tea Sutra' from around Newcastle. To see which other parts of Newcastle Katie has drawn, whether it be your favourite cafe, street or landmark, her playfully earnest animal drawings or just for a visit, the opening times for the exhibition are 8.30am-8.00pm.

To see more of Katie's work and up-and-coming projects, her are some links to keep you in the know:

http://katiechappell.com

http://www.katiesillustration.blogspot.co.uk

http://instagram.com/katiedraws

https://twitter.com/katiedraws

https://www.facebook.com/katiechappellillustration

She generally works on commissions, so if there's anything you'd like her to draw, don't be shy in dropping her a message!

"Fashion Northumbria" 2013

The Northumbria degree exhibition was a hotbed of creativity of emerging fashion designers, communicators and marketers. Their defined aesthetics and confidence in their areas of specialism were confirmed by the range of work displayed, which included unique concepts such as sports lingerie and fashion-focussed skiwear. We believe here at F6. Studios in supporting local talent, and these recent graduates certainly don't disappoint!

'Our mountains are our catwalk' - Aimee Beagrie

Challenging general perceptions of how skiwear should appear, Beagrie's distinctive prints are fresh, colourful and have a loose expressive style. The prints reflect the concept of the garments, "digitally manipulating the idea of snowboarders and skiers movements to create mark making". Her previous experience includes working for the prestigious British brand Burberry as a CAD designer, and her work has received praise by Katie White of 'The Ting Tings', who stated "her prints really stood out, they are really beautiful" in her 'Search for new design talent'. Check out her website http://aimeebeagrie.co.uk

'Bustia' - Jasmine Ives-Keeler

Fashion marketing student Ives-Keeler has created her brand 'Bustia' based on the idea of combining sportswear and lingerie for a multi-purpose garment. The block coloured cups paired with bold, graphic prints give a unique urban edge to the sports-lingerie, a fusion of styles that has rarely worked so successfully together. 'Bustia' promotes body confidence both at the gym and in the bedroom, and if we're honest there's not many sports-bras on the market that look this good. Find the full range on http://bustia.co.uk

'Littlenistas' - Maria Sandra Wijaya

'Littlenistas', the luxury children's wear brand created by fashion marketing student Maria Sandra Wijaya is bold, contemporary and retro in its design. Although the clothes are very colourful with a playful appearance, Wijaya's clothes are made sophisticated by creating prints which do not appear exclusively designed for children's wear — they could be just as easily applied to womenswear with their pin-prick polka-dots and block repeats, making them perfect for fashion-forward little madams!

'Little Spoon' - Hannah Bourne

Another children's wear designer Hannah Borne, has also designed smart, colourful and fashion-forward clothing for young girls. Apart from the sweet, simple designs, one of the great things about Bourne's brand 'Little Spoon' is that it prides itself on longevity, not being exclusively trend-orientated but creating garments that have the quality of "growing with your child", with the option of lengthening or expanding certain areas of the garments, a quality that is bound to come in useful! Find her latest work at http://hannahlouisebourne.tumblr.com

Wingspan - Amie Read

Read's business 'Wingspan' specialises in luxury luggage and travel bags, and the muted yet richly coloured pallet makes it a versatile choice for any destination. She states the bags are designed to adhere to the individuals needs depending on the holiday or trip, with individual inside pockets labelled for 'take off' or 'landing'. In addition to their timeless, luxury designs, Wingspan help support the local economy by recognising the quality and craftsmanship of British workers and by having most products manufactured here in the North-East of England.

Omen Publications - Katie Griffin

Fashion marketing student Katie Griffin taps into one of it's growing areas in the form of a think-tank publication which forecasts fashions future trends. Many established design companies gain insight and knowledge on up-and-coming trends through publications of this nature, but Griffin's company is 'aimed at individuals working or interested in what is creative'. The company will offer futuristic animated imagery and videos to bring themes to life, and the first issue focusses on 'the unbound admiration of the structure of the world' through exploring the contributions of maths, science and technology. Find 'Issue 01' free on her Tumblr at http://katiejeangriffin.tumblr.com

"The Show" 2013 - CCAD

The annual show at Cleveland College of Art and Design is usually a good place to start when looking for a wealth of talented, emerging designers. This year didn't disappoint as F6. Studios decided to see what all the hype was about. Sticking to Hartlepool's nautical roots with bunting, fish and deckchair stripes, we were warmly welcomed into the exhibition which consisted of a rich mix of fashion, accessories, interior and gift designers...

Unfortunately there are far many more designers we would have liked to mention, (pictures are on the F6. Studios Facebook page, look at them!!), but here are a select few that really stood out for their unique and original work.

Kayleigh Falcus

Fashion accessories by Kayleigh Falcus demonstrated every day objects in a simplistic minimal aesthetic. Her use of oversized, laser-cut neon perspex on heavy, industrial-looking chains lends a contemporary, street-led appearance, and the use of a local train ticket from Newcastle to Hartlepool avoids the stereotype of city-themed expectations by keeping it local and giving the collection a more personal touch. Her products have been recently showcased at Newcastle Fashion Week.

Libby Lagun

Graphic-style fashion textiles by Libby Lagun show an innovative combination of sophisticated digital print with balances of metallic silver and neon yellow. Techniques include printed, smooth embossed leather and eye-catching plastics contrast with wood and graduated opacity prints. Although very bold and graphic in style, her work is kept feminine with rounded lines, gorgeous silks and flashes of fuchsia. She has recently exhibited at New Designers and continues to teach the textiles degree at Newcastle College.

 Laura Moscrop

Loosely based on the cult French film Amelie, Moscrop's surface designs show everyday objects in a naive and playful way. She uses selective complimentary colour to highlight segments of her continuous line drawings, and the result is a delightful balance of bold and delicate. She has recently sold her designs at the Indigo trade show in Paris, and has secured a placement working at Trend Bible.

Gavin Vaughan

Vaughan's avant-garde masks combine luxury materials such as metallic pig-skin leather, beetle wings and Swarovski crystals to create a collection based on 18th Century outlaws. His choice of materials combined with techniques of laser-cutting and heavy embellishment, along with the placement, results in beautiful unique and engaging wearable art. He has recently exhibited his work at New Designers and has also been selected to exhibit at Texprint.

Ashleigh Jennifer Wilson

Wilson's combines analytical illustrations with screen-printed foils and dried flowers to create subtle multi-dimensional wallpapers. Her attention to detail and delicate imagery shows her appreciation in traditional techniques and utilising them in a contemporary fashion, and the use of layering dried flowers on her woodland-themed wallpaper is ingenious in bringing the imagery to life. She has previously sold her designs in Paris to company 'White Stuff', which is now selling her designs in John Lewis.

To see more pictures from the exhibition, there will be plenty on our Facebook page very soon that are definitely worth a look at! https://www.facebook.com/F6.Studios

Northern Creative Solutions (NCS)

We recently had a couple of our talented artists here at F6. Studios showcasing their work at 'The Art Trail' exhibition at Broadacre House, organised by NCS. Each artist was given a space to respond to, which ranged from walls to cupboards to elevators, and the results were inspiring to see!

Lucie Cox from F6. Studios showed off her work on a rotating filing system and hanging from ceiling lights. Her work demonstrates the vulnerability of relationships, writing quotes such as 'You hid all traces of indifference with semi-affectionate gestures' and 'cant you see past one exterior?' onto luggage tags, and combining text with her photography and small items for a sensitive, witty and thought-provoking exhibit.

Stu Murray-Borbjerg is another one of our artists at F6. Studios, and he combines figurative drawing with multi-media mark making which results in a contemporary, street appearance with undertones of expressionism. The nature of his work means his paintings work particularly well on such a large scale, and his juxtaposition of aggressive brush strokes with  fine text makes a refreshing and engaging piece of art.

Also worth a mention is Jane Park who works on floor 2 of Commercial Union House, who utilised her elevator space to great effect! Her installation piece included plenty of live leafy plants and part of a wooden fence to create a garden environment, and she has created a great visual backdrop by layering numerous fabric samples, creating a wonderful bohemian contrast with the surrounding space.