The term “artist” is often too loosely applied, but it’s just as often held in too high esteem. This is particularly so regarding the division between art and advertising, two things that are often thought to be mutually exclusive. We have no trouble calling anyone who stacks three lunch boxes on top of each other an artist (as long as they’re displayed in a gallery), but for some reason it’s more awkward to apply the term to someone who makes a living satisfying the demands of client vision.

The answer to prompting deeper thought regarding this division between the commercial and the creative? Blur the line even further. Showcase Gallery officially launched in Darlinghurst last week, and hopes to do just this by bringing the personal works of top creatives out of the closets and desktop folders and onto the stark gallery walls. These are the artworks they create when they’re not creating artworks for a living, the ones that fall by the wayside as they lend their talents to feeding the cogs of the ever-churning commercial machine. “The space validates and calls to action that artistic and creative impulse which often gets lost as they forge ahead with their commercial careers,” explains gallery director Kellie Nichol-Smith.

The Showcase Gallery Launch Exhibition runs until August 13, and if you’re one of those people who Matthew McConaughey has fooled into thinking that being a successful advertiser means coming up with cheesy slogans like “Frost Yourself”, you should probably check it out. Photographer Mark Mawson is releasing himself from the constrains of commercial briefs with a colourful series of purposefully uncontrolled watery blobs that resemble clouds of smoke, designer and paper artist Bianca Chang hand-cut sheets of 80gsm recycled paper into long term pieces of art, and art director Paul Meates begins his illustrations with no endpoint in mind — resulting in shells sprouting octopus legs and badly-drawn soldiers morphing into panda bears. Other artworks gracing the gallery walls come courtesy of Chuck Bradley, Nicholas Alan Cope, Terry Chrisholm and Jed DePyper.

But Showcase isn’t all about blurring lines and contradicting the teachings of Mad Men and What Women Want. It also encourages collaboration and provides a viewing platform to allow creatives to find larger international audiences. “The gallery’s concept is original and creates a meeting ground where ideas can be exchanged through a growing network of peers,” Bianca Chang explains. “I originally developed my art practice to appeal to other graphic designers — Showcase will help me to broaden my reach.” Mark Mawson agrees, adding that while his personal work has attracted a lot of interest overseas, there was “something missing” from the local scene.

In keeping with Showcase’s celebration of grey areas the gallery itself can be found inside Desk Space, an office environment that encourages commercial and creative collaboration. We strongly suggest popping in for the launch exhibition, even if only for the more voyeuristic reason that it’s cool to see what our top creatives do when they’re not working. Though that word itself isn’t exactly clear-cut either...