Gold Coast restaurateurs commission celebrated artist to add signature style to new venue

Two Gold Coast restaurateurs and a celebrated artist have joined forces to help revitalise the Tedder Avenue restaurant precinct.

Visual artist, Tracie Eaton has added her signature style to Natalie and Mark Perry's third Gold Coast cafe, The Local Tedder Ave, opening this week.

Mr and Ms Perry, owners of Cafe 7 and The Local Paradise Point, purchased the former Crema Espresso premises at the famed Tedder Avenue cafe strip last month amidst the Covid-19 pandemic with the vision of sharing their joy of connecting people and fostering a meeting place for the benefit of the Main Beach community.

"We live locally, and love Tedder Avenue and the great community village vibe it offers, so when the opportunity came up to own a business here, we jumped at it," said Ms Perry.

"Our driving force is people. Our team is our family, and given the huge impact Covid has had, particularly on the hospitality sector, we want to create jobs and security for people and their families.

"We aim to offer a relaxed environment for our guests to enjoy a coffee, wine or beer. We will be open from early morning to later in the afternoon so guests can still enjoy a cake and coffee in the afternoon or a cheeky vino or two. We aim to appeal to a wide market by offering a good selection of fresh and simple food, an inviting environment, and of course, great customer service. We genuinely appreciate our local customer support."

The husband and wife team are also passionate about supporting the local arts industry, and commissioned Ms Eaton, otherwise known as “Australia’s Artist to the Stars”, to create a bespoke mural on a large 8m x 4.5m wall in the cafe's outdoor seated area. 

"Painting on a large visible wall creates complexity as there are multiple viewing distances from very close to a street away - in fact, the local apartments and other businesses can easily see the wall, so I have needed to consider all of this when creating the design," said Ms Eaton.

"Natalie and I wanted to bring a piece of nature to the concrete space that buildings create so my inspiration for the mural is very much the scenery of Tedder Avenue and surrounds, particularly the jacaranda trees. My intention was to create an atmosphere of space, openness and an invitation to the cafe. Additionally, it is cool that I have turned a very standard business building into an energised vibe.

"I love that Natalie and Mark are embracing the fabulousness that art brings to any environment.  This will totally be an 'instagrammable' location, and will showcase Gold Coast art to locals and tourists alike."

Unlike a lot of murals, Ms Eaton has used techniques and materials similar to her standard painting practice by incorporating texture, multiple-blending and application techniques including pallet knifing for the foliage of the trees, and utilising a combination of standard house paint, acrylic paint and mixed media.

"I love large scale paintings and have created a mural previously at Moficciato restaurant at the Elite Gold Coast hotel in Carrara," said Ms Eaton.

"I also completed a mural and a sculpture installation at Night Quarter when it was on the Gold Coast, a variety of large figurines at Paradise Kids, and have just been commissioned to paint another mural at a golf course in Brisbane."

Ms Eaton has grown to become one of Australia's most sought-after artists following three-years of exclusive commission to create bespoke original art for Hollywood's biggest movie stars for inclusion in gift bags celebrating The Academy Awards' nominees.

"I have a few active projects this side of Christmas, which will certainly keep me busy until the end of November including commission work, my next exhibition due for completion in 2022, and the release of a range that is a new direction for my brand," said Ms Eaton.

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