Three Canberra design powerhouses are collaborating for a very special pop-up

Posted on 9 October, 2023

Local design powerhouses Alice van Meurs of EDITION label, contemporary jeweller Phoebe Porter and First Nations artist Kayannie Denigan are coming together for the ultimate collaboration – and it’s for one day only.

Opening the EDITION label Waramanga studio to the public on Saturday 28 October as part of the Craft + Design Canberra Open Studios, Alice, Phoebe and Kayannie are collaborating to showcase their latest collections, connect with the community and to help to celebrate the abundance of design talent in Canberra.

Meeting in 2014 when they had neighbouring studios at ANCA, Phoebe and Alice are no strangers to working together – the friends have collaborated on numerous projects and events to showcase how their clothing and jewellery can be worn together.

Phoebe Porter and Alice van Meurs.

Hosting Design Canberra Open Studios together for the last three years, what makes this event extra special is it’s the first time Kayannie will be joining them, and all three will be selling limited-edition artwork, clothing and jewellery that have been born from their latest collections.

“This year I had been doing a few collaborations with Kayannie and I just think her work is incredible,” says Alice.

“I have this nice carport space and she’s going to do a pop-up there. Between the three of us, I thought it would be a really nice event for people to come to. They can look at and buy art, jewellery, and fashion.”

Drawn to EDITION label after seeing the 2023 collaboration with the Ikuntji Artists Art Centre in Central Australia, Kayannie worked with Alice this year to design a one-of-a-kind dress featuring a limited-edition print of purple bush tomatoes for real estate agent Holly Komorowski. And with Phoebe creating matching purple earrings, Alice says work like this is a great example of how the trio’s different skills can interplay – something visitors can see on the open day.

“I think it’s great for people in Canberra to see where these pieces are being made because they can really connect to the value of the pieces – they can see where things have been cut, how they’ve been made and they can buy directly from the designers and artists,” says Alice.

“I always have visual diaries out so people can look at the process, talk it through and ask about where we all studied and those kinds of things. It’s really nice to connect with consumers and people interested in your work.”

Running from 10 am until 4 pm, at the intimate event visitors will be able to purchase big and small hand-painted works from Kayannie, precious jewellery from Phoebe’s new Modern Love collection and clothing from Alice’s 2023 collection (just to name a few things).

Photographer: Elena Caldaci.

There will also be a limited number of aprons available, all featuring the purple bush tomato print that first brought the trio together.

Praising the community for their constant support of the arts, Alice is very excited to open her studio once again.

“I find that the Canberra community is very supportive of artists and people giving it a go in the creative industries,” she says.

“There are lots of Open Studios on the 28^th and 29^th of October in the North and South of Canberra…I’m really looking forward to it.”

Photography: Lauren Sutton.