Droolingly Happy: An Interview with Charlie Maycraft

As I take my first steps into Brisbane’s concrete jungle, I am met with the city’s many peculiarities. The infamous Bin Chicken greets me, as it fervently flounders around for its next feed. The Brisbane Metro snakes around the busways to transport all those who travel within Magandjin.

Sometimes, I cross paths with enlightened figures stepping out of a spiritual experience (12am sweet treats at Pancake Manor). Charlie Maycraft lovingly captures all of Magandjin’s eccentricities in Hot Tarmac, their first-ever solo art show at The

Burrow. I chatted with them after the launch night to get more insight into their work.

Charlie is a multi-disciplinary artist based in South Brisbane. They currently hold an artistic residency at Merivale Studios, as well as an operations role to keep the studio running. Merivale Studios is a multi-disciplinary hub for mid-career to established artists in Fish Lane. Their long-term residency there has helped them take their art ‘seriously’.

‘Applying and getting accepted was a firm “you should do this” in my ear. Before the studio I felt stagnated in my art career and had never done any exhibitions or public artwork – now I feel super confident to do so: which I attribute to the culture at the studio and the encouragement [and] mentorship of director Phoebe. There is also a certain legitimacy about being part of a studio collective that affords me a lot of opportunities in the art world.’

Figure 2 : Merivale Studios (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

Figure 3 : Charlie's desk at Merivale Studios (Photo by Charlie)

Charlie also helps co-ordinate events at Echo & Bounce—a place I consider to be the beating heart of Brisbane’s underground culture. Their association to two cultural institutions within Magandjin has put them ‘in the heart of things’.

‘Every day I’m listening to new ideas from creatives, seeing new works being displayed at either venue, and I obviously make heaps of good connections through this work too. I also get to be naturally creative at work which is a stark contrast to my almost decade long past in customer service/warehouse roles, where I didn’t get to train my artistic muscles and basically put down the tools for a long time. I was also extremely depressed, and now I am not.’

Figure 4 : Echo & Bounce (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

When Brisbane’s tangerine sun takes its slumber, many make their way down to The Burrow—a staple restaurant/live-performance in West End. Using a non-traditional exhibition space like The Burrow offers Charlie ‘accessibility’ as an artist. ‘For full transparency: I didn’t pay any fees nor is The Burrow taking any commission from this exhibition. This is something galleries can’t afford to do as they don’t have any other income like a venue or bar does, so having your first solo show here not only takes the pressure right off, but I could also afford to do it. I think my show concept as a whole is much more suited to this kind of crowd too. Best enjoyed with a beer.’

Many of Magandjin’s icons are featured in Hot Tarmac—The humble Queenslander, the ever-omniscient Castlemaine Perkins brewery with the XXXX sign (Beer Town), and even The Burrow itself. Charlie’s show frames Brisbane as ‘a city with a sense of humour’.

‘It’s also got a lot of heart. Using tons of colour in these works hasn’t been an attempt to use juxtaposition because I think Magandjin is boring (which I don’t), I really do feel lucky living in a place like this and moving down here from the Sunny Coast has been pretty life changing. We have a lot to offer here!’

Figure 5 : Pancake Enlightenment (Photo by Cris Bonquin)

Figure 6 : Beer Town (Photo by Cris Bonquin)

Figure 7 : The Burrow (Photo by Cris Bonquin)

Alongside their deep ties to Brisbane city, Charlie is in touch with their Welsh roots. Despite the vast differences between each regions’ culture and climate, they see a link between them.

‘I have an internal joke that Brisbane is like the Wales of capital cities. Everyone knows about Ireland and Scotland, Sydney and Melbourne. But what about the little guys! I grew up in England but visited Wales almost yearly with the Welsh side of the family, most recently going back a few months ago with my aunts and uncle—where we stayed in a regional mountain-side town called Abergavenny. The little towns of Wales are literally busting with artists, there are so many painters and bakers and knitters and singers, all things I’ve definitely tried to be at some point. I think our state capital and the country capital of Wales, which is Cardiff (or Caerdydd in Welsh) are similar, both having this quiet but metropolitan feel to them, where it’s incredibly easy to feel at home. I think that general easy-going-ness has shaped me as an artist, but as a person I think I could be a little more chill.’

Figure 8 : Wales (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

Figure 9 : Wales (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

Figure 10 : Brisbane (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

Figure 11 : Brisbane (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

It’s hard to pick a favourite from Charlie’s online art shop, but their ‘David Lynch Understander’ sticker always gets a chuckle out of me. Lynch’s avant-garde cinematography has been a cornerstone for a generation of artists, and after seeing Charlie record six watches of Mulholland Drive on Letterboxd, it’s safe to say that they are one of them.

‘I remember first watching Mulholland Drive back in around 2019, I truly didn’t really get it at the time. I went in for a second viewing and I slipped into a different timeline where I not only fully understood the movie but was convinced I was the only person to really get it. I think David Lynch was incredible at confusing people, which also served you in ways you didn’t know yet. He kind of abolished the idea of strict timelines of events, of how a movie was “supposed” to be lit or framed. I always remember a quote from The Fabelmans where David Lynch as John Ford says, referring to cinematography, “When the horizon’s at the bottom, it's interesting. When the horizon’s at the top, it’s interesting. When the horizon's in the middle, it's boring as shit”. That quote is so

helpful to me it’s not even funny.’

Figure 12 : David Lynch Understander Sticker (Photo by Charlie Maycraft)

There’s a seamlessness in the way Charlie moves between the analogue and the digital. They exhibited six abstract pencil drawings at last year's Salon, whereas Hot Tarmac featured 12 digital art prints. They initially ‘struggle[d] with trying to decide which medium [they] wanted to use, feeling that they had different purposes and uses’. However, everything became ‘easier’ when they ‘realise[d] [they] can literally do whatever [they] want’.

‘Ultimately, I like to use digital for my big detailed pieces, and a lot of my illustrations I feel are suited better to my digital method. It helps me being able to work on something for a while and not needing to be at the studio for it, or being able to experiment and not “waste” materials. When it comes to paint and pencil, I like to explore my abstract and impressionist tendencies. It’s a way more therapeutic method of creating, that’s for sure, but when I have a specific “thing” in my head I find it easier to communicate that with my digital drawings. It wasn’t always that way however, my first delve into the arts in high school was charcoal realism—something that did not mesh well with my white

bedsheets.’

Charlie isn’t one to ‘grieve or be sad’ through their art. When they ‘feel rubbish’, they ‘just want to make the most obnoxious bright pink bullshit you’ve ever seen’. You can really feel an unapologetic joyfulness emanating out of their art. It has an iridescent brightness that leaves no room for darkness to creep in.

‘I lost a job last year and tried to paint something solemn and depressing to “help” me out of my funk, I never even completed the painting and it sits at my studio just bumming me out even more. I think I’m an optimistic person. I see myself as that meme of the dog with the lollipop and propellor hat more often than not. And I think I just want my art to make people feel equally, droolingly happy.’

See Charlie's exhibition Hot Tarmac at The Burrow in West End before the end of April.

We promise you won't want to miss it!

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Cris is a graphic designer and writer based in Magandjin/Brisbane. His series, “In Review”, gives readers his perspective on cultural events within Magandjin’s arts community. Outside of his writing, he experiments with mediums like graphic design and photography to develop his artistic practice.

Charlie Maycraft is a local South Brisbane based artist, working in a range of mediums from acrylic paints, to pencil, to digital illustration. Currently fixated on abstract works, Charlie likes to tap into childish curiosity free of their Year 12 art teacher’s notion of what a piece of art can look like. They like to explore with bright colours and sharp lines while still maintaining a certain softness and dreamlike quality.