Each month, DEPOT Shop | Toi Toa highlights one of the talented makers whose work is available in our gallery shop. For August 2026, we are proud to feature all around creative artist and Studio D3 member Steve Bolton. Like his works, can be described as quirky, a one-of-one and never to be repeated!
There are artists who carefully map out every idea before the first brushstroke. Then there’s Steve Bolton.
For Steve, creativity is simply part of everyday life. It’s not something reserved for the studio or switched on when inspiration strikes.
“I create something every day,” he says. “I don’t consciously think about it.”
That lifelong curiosity has seen Steve work across painting, printmaking, cartooning, collage and sculpture, developing a practice that’s playful, thoughtful and unmistakably his own.
“I’ve always done it, since I was little. I still do all sorts now; paint, draw, a bit of sculpture, a bit of everything. Collage – you name it, nothing is off the menu.”
Many people first encountered Steve’s work through his cartoons, published everywhere from The Listener to The Guardian and numerous industry magazines. While cartooning was about publication, his move into exhibiting felt like the natural next chapter.
“It wasn’t really a change of focus,” he explains. “Just a change in what I was doing. The natural progression of cartooning is to publish it. The natural progression of painting is to show it.”
That progression has led to 120, Steve’s ambitious new exhibition opening at DEPOT Lounge this September. As the title suggests, the exhibition features exactly 120 original paintings-each one completely unique.
“It’s MASSIVE!” Steve laughs. “The logistics alone of putting this together has been huge, let alone the painting.”
Each work begins not with a sketchbook, but with a jigsaw. Rather than working within a traditional square or rectangle, Steve cuts every plywood panel freehand before the painting begins.
“They’re not planned. I try not to think about them too much – I just draw with the jigsaw.”
Only once the shapes are cut and primed do the paintings begin to reveal themselves.
“The images are abstract – kind of like dreamscapes or doodles. They suit the shape they’re on.”
While the exhibition has no single narrative, every work shares a common emotional thread.
“Every piece has a mood or a feeling to it.”
Those moods emerge from Steve’s remarkably rich inner world.
“My internal life is extremely rich,” he says. “I’m painting things I remember, things I feel, ideas that I like.”
Stars, planets and fragments of astronomy appear throughout the exhibition – echoes of childhood fascinations with science and space—alongside visual jokes, references to art history and recurring motifs that reward a closer look.
“The unifying concept is they’re bright and quite happy. There’s not a lot of doom and gloom in there.”
That sense of joy extends well beyond Steve’s own practice.
Alongside exhibiting, he teaches drawing and painting, helping people discover that making art doesn’t require perfection—it simply requires permission to begin.
“People often think art is intimidating or mysterious, like they can’t do it,” he says. “I teach the fundamentals, but really I emphasise having fun.”
One of the biggest barriers he sees is confidence.
“As adults we forget how to do it. We think our person doesn’t look right, or the arms are too long. Those are all incorrect assumptions.”
Instead, Steve encourages students to observe rather than overthink.
“Draw what you see, don’t draw what you think.”
His classes are refreshingly free of judgement.
“There’s no wrong at all, ever, in my classes. Every time you pick up a brush or a pen, that’s something good.”
Accessibility is a philosophy that carries through to 120 as well. Every painting in the exhibition is priced at $120, making original artwork attainable for first-time collectors and long-time supporters alike.
“My goal is that people will come along and enjoy it, but also be able to afford something if they like it. I like all my work to be accessible and open to people.”
The project has occupied much of the past year, with planning beginning in January and the pace steadily increasing as opening day approaches.
Even now, the final works are being catalogued, named and carefully organised.
“There’s 120 of them,” Steve smiles. “The database is important to make sure everyone gets the right one!”
Despite a career that has included murals, published cartoons, exhibitions and collaborative projects like The Gelli Plate Adventures with Stacey Edgar, Steve’s greatest achievement isn’t tied to a particular exhibition or accolade.
“The real highlight for me is simply doing it each day. That’s the best bit.”
It’s a sentiment that perfectly captures both the artist and his work: curious, generous, quietly humorous and always making.
Visitors to the DEPOT Shop will also find Steve’s distinctive monotype prints alongside his paintings. Unlike traditional prints, monotypes are created only once – each impression is completely unique, impossible to reproduce exactly and never repeated. Much like Steve himself, they’re thoughtful, a little quirky, and unmistakably one of a kind.
Whether it’s an original painting from 120 or a monotype print from the DEPOT Shop, Steve’s work invites people to collect something genuinely singular.
120 opens at DEPOT Lounge, 29 Clarence Street, from 4–26 September, bringing together 120 original paintings, each priced at $120. It’s an ambitious exhibition built on imagination, humour and accessibility—an opportunity to own an original Steve Bolton work, while discovering an artist who proves that the most memorable creativity often comes from simply following your curiosity.
