This Summer, GAZMAN has collaborated with Mornington Peninsula-based artist duo Jack & Josh to create GAZ TOWN, a collection of illustrations & art, drawing inspiration from Australia’s vast coastal landscape, its lively beaches, and the diverse fauna and wildlife that call it home. Jack & Josh boast a combined 20 years of experience in the field of graphic design. In recent years, they've gained recognition as an artist duo known for their whimsical Australian-inspired creations. Their unique style shines through as they artfully blend the beauty of local flora and fauna into their work, favouring a minimal colour palette of subdued tones. Notably, they have collaborated with a range of local businesses and Australian companies, including renowned names like Furphy, Australian Open, ANZ, Melbourne Storm, URBN SURF, Channel 9 and now GAZMAN. We were lucky to have a chat with Jack & Josh and dive into their backstory, how they became the creative duo known as Jack & Josh, their unique artistic flair, and what fuels their creative inspiration. Can you tell us a bit about your background, how your friendship came about and how the Jack & Josh brand came to life? [Josh] So yeah, we were designers & illustrators working as freelancers separately, and there was a job that came up for Jack. [Jack] Yeah, and it was a bigger project, it was on the side of a pub, and I was like, I might need an extra hand with this like, So I asked Josh if he wanted to help out with it, and he was like, yeah, for sure. So then we got going on that, and then it kind of worked really well, and then it was just a lot easier painting together, so from then on, we kind of just, we were working together on separate projects, but getting a lot of jobs together, and then we just ended up starting a partnership, and it's been pretty good since. How long have you been doing this? [Josh] It's been approximately five years now. Yeah, it's funny because, you know, working together is so much more enjoyable. We were actually talking about it the other day, like, 'Man, this would have been terrible if we were doing it solo, especially in the rain.' So, it's just really fun, and that's why we've stuck with it. What do you enjoy most about being an artist? [Jack] I think, especially with murals, it's the chance to work outdoors that's so great. Many artists end up cooped up in a studio, but for us, we're out in the sunshine, of course, there's the hail too, but it's awesome to be able to have conversations with people on the street while you're painting and get that instant connection. Looking at your portfolio of work & brands you have worked with, did you ever envision Jack & Josh to be as successful as it is? [Josh] Well, you know, We haven't really dwelled on it too much, but in the early years, things were moving pretty fast. It was quite exciting, and we were just enjoying the ride. I think that enjoyment was a big part of what brought us success. We were fortunate because every mural we painted essentially became a massive billboard for our brand. It's a great way to attract more work when people see what we've accomplished in the past. Our previous works tend to dictate what we get to do in the future. But honestly, we never set out to create these elaborate murals for the sake of success. It was more about doing what we loved, and the fact that it also served as advertising was a nice bonus. When you put your name on the bottom of it, people notice, and we've been fortunate in that we haven't had to push too hard to secure work. Where does the inspiration of your artistic style come from? Is this a style you have both used from the beginning or is this a style that has evolved as Jack & Josh have evolved? [Josh] I'd say it's definitely evolved, for sure. We're deeply inspired by the local flora and fauna, and we really enjoy depicting native animals, trees, flowers, and such in our work. However, our style also leaves room for a bit of versatility, allowing us to adapt to different projects when needed. We've tailored our style to suit various jobs, and we can even adjust it to align with a client's branding. Again, looking at your portfolio of work and the murals you have done, do you have a project that stands out as one of your favourites? [Jack] My favorite? It's got to be GAZMAN, definitely GAZMAN it’s been really good, like, doing the GAZMAN stuff not only just the illustration work, but also the mural and getting to see it all come to life in your marketing material and website and rolled out into all the GAZMAN stores nationwide. [Josh] I really enjoyed doing the events and stuff, like we did the Australian Open and that was with ANZ.,just like a pop-up thing, you know, for the event. So it might be up for like, I don't know, two weeks or whatever, ten days. Yeah. And then, Melbourne Cup, we did one with Furphy. That was a big one in the birdcage area. Can you tell us about the story & inspiration behind the GAZ TOWN illustrations & mural? [Josh] Yeah, we definitely aimed to infuse our work with that local flora and fauna. It was a great fit with our style, and it aligned well with what you guys were looking for. We didn't specifically model the beach scene on any one particular beach, but we tried to capture a bit of the essence from all the stunning beaches across Australia, drawing inspiration from various regions and locations." As writers have writer's block, do you ever get Artist's block and how do you overcome this, is there anything that helps with your creative process? [Jack] Yeah, for sure, it's definitely a thing, some days work for you and you have all these great ideas and some days we might just be kind of in the studio, pacing around. We would spend a whole day in the studio on something and get nowhere and you're going over things that just won't work or it might happen and come to you in the last ten minutes of the day. Then ways to prevent it that works for us, we're lucky enough to peel out and go for a surf and things like that, so, we certainly do that when the surf's good, that kind of freshens up our minds. Yeah. Even before work, like, we see it's like, gonna be a nice morning, we'll kind of come in a bit later and make sure we get a surf in. Yeah, I think we find the days in the studio the hardest because you're using a lot more brain power and we just love to be outside, so, you know, being cooped up inside all day can be a bit draining for us. Our studio's about three meters wide too. So yeah, it's tiny. But sometimes the ideas come to us super quick and other days it's just, you know, alright, come back in it tomorrow with some fresh eyes. Do you have any advice for people starting out in the creative design & art space or have you received any advice from someone that has really resonated with you and helped with your artistic vision & growth? [Josh] I mean advice for anyone who was starting, wanting to paint murals, I would say just go out and do it. It can be a bit daunting for people because you're in the public eye. There's, you know, I remember. the first time I did a live paint and like my hand was shaking because I was so nervous that all these people were watching me paint and now it's just like, I don't even think about it. So I think a lot of people would have that fear of being in the public eye and getting judged and I just say, just go and do it, the more you do it the easier it gets or even if you’re starting out like find a wall where you can get comfortable painting at home or something like that that you can just keep rolling over and redoing and then once you're comfortable, go out and do it, that'd be the main advice. [Jack] Yeah, I think just do what you love and follow your passion, that's kind of like what's helped me. I have had Josh mentor me for a bit of it. Like in the early days, I was at uni and he was working out of his studio. I got to do some gigs with him while I was still at uni. I think finding a mentor like Josh or someone with that experience and knowledge is always a good one too because you can just really soak up a lot of what he is trying to teach, and you can learn fast with hands-on experience. If you'd like to see more of this duo's work visit their site at https://www.jackandjosh.com.au/ or visit their Instagram page here.