The Lost At E Minor crew in Newcastle aren’t spoilt for choice in the way of yum cha, and even with the promise of a night of wine and dumplings, the location of the New Shanghai restaurant was at the Charlestown Square mega-mall. Let’s admit, suburban shopping centre Chinese hasn’t often been authentic, nor worthy of visiting more than once. However, as you step onto the pebbled-floors amongst a wooden ambiance to feast on assorted dumplings, there’s a sense that authentic and delicious noodles and dumplings have finally arrived, even if it’s not quite where you might have expected.

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Newcastle, the city that I moved to in 2008 from Sydney, and the place from where Lost At E Minor (and the rest of our business) is run (along with our office in Soho, New York), has just been rebranded. The new brand is simply NEWCASTLE. See Change.

It’s a good time to rebrand Newcastle. City branding makes sense if it’s done well and at a timely moment. I recall the ‘Absolutely. Positively. Wellington’ campaign when I was a child growing up in New Zealand. This branding campaign unlocked something that was brewing in Wellington at the time and helped transform the city into a vibrant, cafe-dominated city.

Newcastle is a city which has escaped its convict and, more recently, steel-city roots. They say Newcastle has more artists per capita than any city in Australia. It has amazing beaches, and in recent years, it has become an increasingly vibrant city to live in.

I certainly feel this buzz. We have Renew Newcastle, on whose board I sit. And a planned relocation of the University into the neglected CBD, which will inject youth into the heart of the city. Increasingly, interesting businesses, cafes, and people are becoming features of the city.

And then there’s the long awaited fast rail which is planned to run from Sydney to Newcastle en route to Brisbane. This will make commuting to Sydney feasible for Novacastrians.

For all this, Lonely Planet recognised Newcastle as one of the 10 hottest cities in the world for 2010.

So regardless of whether this is money well spent, or strong design, let’s brand the city in a more vibrant way and see the change it brings.

Come Closer by The Mischief Engine was shot by Newcastle’s Stu McBratney. But when McBratney was looking for a location, he didn’t choose Newcastle, or even something like Scotland’s Garden of Cosmic Speculation. Instead, McBratney ventured to Arsenal Park, Transylvania, Romania. And it’s breathtaking.

I heard the impressive girls behind the Newcastle art and fashion label, High Tea with Mrs Woo, talk last night. Man, they are an awesome team. These three sisters have been making beautiful, hand-sewn fashion for the past ten years: a labour of love, inspired by their environment, their love of their craft and materials, and their own unique sense of aesthetic. I walked away from their talk — organised by Renew Newcastle — inspired by the beautiful work they create each day.

The funky little office that Lost At E Minor operates from in Australia had a little Mad Men style party the other week. Thanks to our friends at Smirnoff, the Mules and cocktails were flowing and the crowd was in full cheer. Here’s to the fun year that was 2010.

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I met Aaron Craig at a festival some seven years ago and had no idea the kid was an artist. He told cracking tales and had wanderlust in his eye, a likable guy who was always planning an adventure. Since then, he’s lived in various cities around Australia and undertook a sabbatical across the globe, calling Canada home for several years. His travel updates were the sort you longed for.

He’d send amazing photos capturing moments in far-flung cultures and include shots of canvas creations fresh from his backyard. Initial surprise was overcome with anticipation, and I wondered when this backpacker would begin taking art seriously. Years later he’s back in his hometown of Newcastle, Australia, studying design and creating fine art and photography. Aaron was recently featured in Newcastle Regional Art Gallery’s Look See exhibition.

Lost At E Minor is run out of offices in Newcastle, Australia, and New York, USA. Our offices in Newcastle were pretty tired and in need of a make-over. Step in interior designer and stylist Tim Neve. Working on a budget of just $500, he achieved something pretty amazing. The guy is a genius at this stuff.

Look Hear is a free event taking place at the Newcastle Art Gallery in Australia from March 10, and running until the end of the month, at which a selection of designers and artists will present a series of talks about their creative process, methods and techniques, as well as discuss the inspirations behind their creative careers.

Ok, so the leadsinger of this Australian band, Powerage, is barely into his teens, and already he sings like Axl Rose and Brian Johnson’s love child. Perhaps he is? They are unbelievably good, and will rip it up on stage for many years to come. For those about to rock, Powerage salutes you.

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Between October 21-24, the Australian International Animation Festival is heading to Newcastle, just out of Sydney, where 110 films from 26 countries will amaze, delight, amuse and confuse — perhaps all at the same time. There will be ‘two international programs, a showcase of Australian animation, highlights of SIGGRAPH Asia, a digital program for for the brave, a late-night hour of oddness in Late Night Bizarro, and for those under 18, there’s a special kids program of international animated treats’. Tickets are $5 per session or $30 for festival pass to see all eight programs. No pre-sale — at the door and cash only. If you’re in the area, be sure to check it out.

Disney meets couture in The Spring Issue of The Junction + Darby The Magazine, a free zine published in Newcastle, Australia that aims to capture the best in fashion, art and life from the region in general by Lost At E Minor fashion contributor Tim Neve. Out of the dress up box from Abicus comes new season shorty-shorts, nautical stripes and preppy cuts (a’ la Mini Mouse). The fashion and styling whimsically mixing childhood nostalgia with rock attitude, embracing the playfulness of the Australian Spring.

As you flick through the issue online, a lo-fi acoustic guitar soundtrack sets a chilled-out Spring tone by local band Firekites.

SHOOT CREDITS
Fashion: Abicus
Styling + Photography: Tim Neve
Model: Rhiannon
Hair: Lisa Fowler
Make Up: Indulgences

I moved to Newcastle late last year, though I still do a lot of work in Sydney. What a great city Newcastle is. It’s been breath of fresh air for me. For the first few months, I worked on Lost At E Minor and our online pubishing company, Conversant Media, from home. But then I heard about the Renew Newcastle project, launched by one of Australia’s creative stars (in terms of making things happen, not talking the talk), Marcus Westbury.

Inspired to work with interesting and interested people, I put in an application for a shared creative space which would drag people out from their sunrooms into an inspiring environment.

On May 15, we had a party — generously sponsored by our friends at Lovells Lager — to celebrate the launch of The Clinic.

The Clinic is a creative space in Newcastle which apart from us, currently harbours graphic designers Illumination Ink, Neon Zoo; editorial stylist and publisher Tim Neve; and film and music producer Stuart McBratney.

Renew Newcastle and The Clinic show the great power that passionate and creative people can have on shaping their work environment and the community around them. I’m loving being a small part of the process.

Newcastle is now my home town and I’m enjoying meeting some of the interesting people living here. Working under the name of Illumination Ink, Heath Killen has a strong and refined style. His diverse portfolio includes everything from album art to corporate IDs and typography. In addition to his commercial work at Illumination Ink, he’s recently been producing a series of surreal Australian landscapes, some of which are on display at Flickr.

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Firekites, from small town Australia (Newcastle to be exact), are my new musical obsession, and have been since early yesterday when their song Autumn Story randomly burst into my headphones and latched itself deep into my inner ear iPod. I wish they’d been around when I last lived in Sydney; it would have been well worth the two hour drive north to see them play. The whole album (The Bowery) is beautiful, but this song especially rings out with poignancy. I love the subtle sound of the fingers sliding across the guitar frets, the gently whispered vocals, which hint at secrets and cheeky serenades, and the sense of soulful introspection that tangles itself elegantly amongst its minor chord tapestry.