Hive!
Program
Meet the residents of Chrome Street Studios in their own maker spaces! Each studio is an adventure into the mind of a creator! Along the way discover our hidden Poetry Room, Expression Room and check out our amazing exhibition in the Corridor Gallery.
Ian Ahles and Bernard Composer stretch the boundaries of what can be played on flute, lute, guitar and recorder with original tunes that blend popular influences with the classical tradition
Grab your broomsticks and capes! Dr Ross McLennan and Ruth Ross-Pe'er take you on a thrilling, chilling, grinning halloween musical that’s crawled from the coffin of a Tim Burton Film!!
Cloned Foot Theory tells stories through beat, melody and electronic synthesis. His music layers rhythm and texture to build a narrative topography that transports the audience.
Tina Bramley heals your soul with poetic words that spark the mind, stir the soul and exit through your toes, linking you to nature with mycelium tendrils.
Virtuoso guitarist Ian Ahles delights your ears on solo guitar!
Bernard “B” Composer - I’ll write you a song….
Bernard has interviewed amazing Brisbane artists and learned about their journey into creativity and the music that inspires them. They described the song they’ve always wanted to hear or sing. Bernard wrote that song!
Our Artists and performers
Bernard Composer “B”
I’ll write you a song….
Great songs make the world go round, start a fire, send us to boogie wonderland, wrap their tender arms around us and make the earth move under our feet.
I’m going to combine my love of a good conversation with my passion for music.
I’ll meet artists, singers, writers and other creative folk. I’ll discover their journey in art and learn about music they love.
They’ll describe to me the song that they’ve always wanted to hear or sing but could never find and I’ll write that song for them.
Amber Simpson
Amber’s love of timber began when she was a child. Growing up in the Southern Highlands of NSW on a property bordered by bushland nature was her playground. Born to a woodworker, the memories of her father’s workshop transcend time and the same spicy scent of timber mingles with linseed oil and varnish in her own studio.
Her work is a synthesis of dualistic ideals. It sits fluidly within the contemporary realm, combining highly edited aspects of modernism through marquetry, contrasted with delicate embellishments in oil that are more akin to realism. Her work is instantly recognisable.
Cloned Foot Theory
Cloned Foot Theory (AKA Matt Page) is a prodigious virtuoso of electronic beats and synths, unfurling transformative soundscapes that transcend conventional boundaries across genres. His music meticulously dissects beats and layers textures, establishing a unique voice in the ever-evolving landscape of electronic music and captivating audiences with innovative compositions and sonic tapestries.
Drawing inspiration from an eclectic array of genres and electronic music pioneers, Cloned Foot Theory regularly embarks on collaborations, forging connections with like-minded musicians and collectively pushing the boundaries of their artistry. His willingness to explore uncharted territories and blend disparate styles results in awe-inspiring fusions that defy categorization.
Cloned Foot Theory’s music resonates deeply with listeners, evoking an array of emotions and transcending the limitations of language.
...and all of a sudden the lights went out, and the regret began to whisper
Alex Hernandez
Originally from Florida, USA, Alex has been honing her skills in traditional oil painting, gouache painting and figure drawing (pencil and charcoal) in Australia since 2021. She currently is under the tutoring of Isabella Allis and Wayne Van Eyk.
In 2022, Alex took up a residency at Chrome St and especially enjoys sharing her passion for the arts with those outside the industry. She recently hosted a painting fundamentals workshop for a team of IT and software engineering specialists. Both in 2022, 2023 and 2024, Alex attended the Plein Air Down Under Festival in Perth.
Her Cuban heritage is often at the forefront of her style: features that suggest detail and rich colours. The audience is invited to interpret the piece freely.
In 2023, Alex took up a residency at Chrome St and especially enjoys sharing her passion for the arts with those outside the industry. She recently hosted a painting fundamentals workshop for a team of IT and software engineering specialists. Both in 2022 and 2023, Alex attended the Plein Air Down Under Festival in Perth.
https://www.hernandez.studio/.
Mitzi Clifford
Mitzi is multilingual singer, actor and song writer. She and Erin Bryne, run “Funk Soul Glee Club”. This monthly sing-along brings together a diverse community of individuals who are passionate about funk/soul/disco classics.
Tina Bramley
Tina’s poetic roots delve deep into rich soil. She articulates her connection to wild places with tendrils words that reveal the cracks in our suburban somnia
She is also an ecotherapist, linking people to places that heal their spirit to build resilience.
The untamed world underpins Tina’s creativity. Recently, in collaboration with three wonderful artists, she released a collection of nature based poetry and illustrated contemplation cards.
Gavin Wong
Gavin is a multiskilled visual artist who uses mixed media to create his contemporary pieces. No textile is inaccessible to Gavin’s striking vision - antiques, upcycled oddities, old paint cans, spray paint, industrial objects, permanent markers, old textbooks and charts, globes and shopping bags.
His recent and popular pursuit has been in figure drawing on a range of common-use surfaces and objects. From Coles paper shopping bags to astronomy constellation charts, Gavin’s precise eye for shape and form in the otherwise mundane shows us that the enchantment of art can be found anywhere.
https://www.instagram.com/gavintwong/
Ross McLennan
Dr. Ross McLennan is a versatile composer, songwriter, sound designer, game creator, poet, and musician with a rich portfolio in the creative arts. His professional experience encompasses sound design for international festivals, soundtracks for award-winning films, and original music for media, including features, shorts, commercials, television, games, and theatre. Ross's work also extends to the concert stage, with an opera and a symphony among his achievements.
An educator and academic, Ross is passionate about sharing his expertise. He has published extensively on creativity, music and emotion, film sound, game audio, and transformational learning within digital design and the creative industries. He holds a Bachelor of Music from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, a Master of Philosophy from the University of Cambridge, and a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Queensland.
Isabella Allis
Practicing artist and art educator, Isabella Allis, runs regular adult art classes at Chrome Street Studios. She tailors her art instruction around each individual student, considering their chosen pathway in art and helping to develop their unique artistic voice. Isabella strongly believes in the benefit of having a strong technical foundation in art, developing skills through practice and observation, and then being able to apply these skills in any chosen way.
Her weekly classes bring together a small art community where art students can socialise with like-minded people, share ideas and resources and paint or draw in a social setting, whilst receiving instruction and mentoring from Isabella.
https://www.isabellaallis.com/
Ian Ahles
Ian started his musical life shredding on metal guitar. He still loves to head bang but his skills and repertoire have exponentially expanded. He studied classical music at the Queensland Conservatorium of music and founded the noted Riverside Guitar Ensemble as part of his Honours project. He’s also performed with Persian Australian singer Shirin Maid, Praetorian, Dragonsmead and Born from the Ashes.
Ian has also formed a new metal band “Ahles” and will be releasing his album “Between Dreams and the Waking World” in 2025.
Ian is frequently found playing in many local music theatre productions and has supported “Metallurgy, Paul Di’Anno (Iron Maiden), Alestorm, Anvil and Ross the Boss (Manowar).
Purple Chang
Purple was born in Taiwan and migrated to Australia in 1997.
Nowadays, she is a Brisbane-based artist who works through multiple mediums of art. She started painting in 2012 as a way to heal herself after losing both of her parents in the previous year.
A principal theme in Purple’s work is ‘the ways of seeing’ - this is a deep dive into how she perceives the world coloured by family, immigration, loss and healing from prolonged sadness. She is also passionate about experimenting with different mediums. Cultural diversity shows in her art, especially in still-life settings, by showing objects from home. In 2024, she was selected as a finalist in Lethbridge Gallery’s Small Scale Art Award for ‘Poetic Nonsense’ - small oil paintings of miscellaneous objects.
https://www.purplechang.com/
Michael Cahayagan
Michael Cahayagan is a creative designer. He loves creating powerful visual narratives that explore cross cultural themes. Michael uses photoshop, motion-graphics and multimedia design to create murals, and projected work. His art has featured at Queensland’s BrisAsia Festival 2023, various businesses and other exhibitions. He is passionate about artistic collaborations and aspire to explore uncharted visual storytelling opportunities.
Kaylene McGill
Kaylene is a multiskilled visual artist. Her ability to move from printmaking to painting to the use of coloured pencils demonstrates her stylistic versatility.
Kaylene studied at Queensland College of Art and graduated in 1984, then travelled extensively throughout Australia and Asia, returning to Brisbane in 1990. On her return, she held a solo show every year and participated in 28 group shows (Metro arts, Ipswich Art Gallery, Bartleme Gallery, Vision Arts Gallery – many of these galleries no longer exist!) until she returned to QCA to undertake postgraduate visual arts studies at QCA. Unable to afford anything, she stopped making art for about 15 years and got a real job by studying Landscape Architecture! In recent years, she has returned to making art and held an exhibition at WAG last year, Looking Back which received much praise for its celebration of detailed yet everyday scenes of her surroundings during the lockdown.
https://wag.com.au/files/5916/9321/1256/Kaylene_McGill-Looking_Back-web-catalogue.pdf
Danny Kwok - Violin
Talented violinist Danny Kwok has performed with the Auckland Youth Orchestra, Brisbane Philharmonic Orchestra and Queensland Medical Orchestra. He also sings in the Ignite Choir. Danny loves music theatre and is currently in the pit orchestra for Twisted The Musical.
Lisa Crowle - ‘Cello
Lisa grew up in Sydney learning cello with Jennifer Erikkson and Tess Jones. She played with the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra, touring and a number of community orchestras in Sydney and Canberra before moving to Queensland in 2007. She now leads the cello section in the Gold Coast Philharmonic Orchestra.
Lisa is passionate about music and loves playing all styles. When she’s not lurking in musical theatre orchestra she can be found playing pop/folk/country tunes with the Sweet Nuthins.
Lisa has a day job serving the people of Queensland which, long story short, led to here.
Brenden Blackman - Violin
Brendon has been playing the violin for over 20 years. He has completed exams in practical violin and theory through the Australian Music Examination Board (AMEB) and studied music courses at the Griffith Conservatorium. Brendon has also completed the Conductor in Training program through Brisbane Regional Youth Orchestra under the tutelage of Shaun Dorney and Erin Siobhan.
His music has taken place in many different ensembles and symphony orchestras around Brisbane including the Brisbane Philharmonic Orchestra, Redland Sinfonia, Amadeus Orchestra, Phoenix Ensemble, Queensland Musical Theatre and La Dolce Vita Music. His performance highlights were at Carnegie Hall in 2017 and at the 2010 world Expo in China. He has been travelling and performing locally through regional Queensland and internationally to China, America and New Zealand
Sammy Luke - Viola
Mistress of the bow, Sammy explores her love of music through community orchestra and supporting local music theatre productions.