About Artspark
Artspark is a sun-filled art and sewing studio located in the middle of Rozelle. Our eco-friendly garden with edible plants is a home to chickens and guinea pigs. The garden is a perfect place to relax, play and source materials for projects. Students will have opportunities to tend to plants, and to associate with animals in kind ways.
Artspark provides school term classes, holiday workshops, weekend parties and events for children and adults. We encourage students to think and be creative. Students will explore and learn in a safe, respectful, supportive, fun and considered environment. We will show how Art is linked to a range of topics – society, our physical world, nature and culture. We believe art-making is also a valuable tool for self expression and gaining independence.
Artspark has had several different owners over the years, and each has brought something special to the studio. Artspark was first established in 2004 by artist Jane Lancaster. Artists Diane Vukelic and Jessi Alexander-Head expanded the studio to its current location and began offering sewing classes between 2008 and 2012. Sandrine Lonchampt, a photographer and architect, took over Artspark in May 2012. She added the unique eco-garden and its animals to the studio. ChiChi Bracken and Natalie Morel-Lewis joined the managing team in July 2013. ChiChi is the present owner. This quote from sculptor Churyo Sato speaks to her approach to creativity:
“ The purpose of artmaking is not to draw a good picture or make things with well-formed line.
Draw the things you see carefully and make the things you think with your heart.
Then you will understand how wonderful nature is and what kind of person you want to become –
That is the purpose” – Churyo Sato (“To person who will read this book,” Art for Children 1, 1980)
Our Creative Team
Artspark is a love story growing with many creative forces. What makes Artspark even more special is that we have a wonderful team of teachers
ChiChi Bracken
ChiChi started to sew from a young age. Graduating from a design school, she worked as a designer in Tokyo. Upon moving to Australia, she sold her original works through markets, shops and galleries. ChiChi appreciates craftsmanship rather than automated systems. She loves to incorporate reflections of her life in her works.
Taja Rezo
As a child, Taja loved to figure out how things were made – from garments, to furniture, to machines – by examining them from the inside. She grew up in a family where craftsmanship and education were valued, with parents who were teachers, a grandmother who was a seamstress, and a grandfather who was a carpenter. She went on to study fashion and textiles at the University of Zagreb. In Croatia and Italy, she worked in fashion design, textile design and production, and government. After moving to Australia and starting a family, she eventually began to teach sewing at Artspark. Family and nature are important parts of her life, and she loves getting to share the exciting process of learning to design and sew with children and adults at Artspark.
Christine Gunn
Christine is a local mother and artist who has always loved drawing and painting. Her favourite things are cats, coffee and chocolate, and she believes that art has a magical way of connecting people to each other, as well as the world around us.
