He’s done it again but more brilliantly than the last time... And he’s unfolding an artwork right before our very eyes, allowing us to be close enough to experience each stage in the works inception... I was in awe when I first walked into the gallery and felt the need for a people empty video to show off the work...
If you looked deeply inside a painting you would probably see one of Simon’s works, as the majority of artist’s including myself are only concerned with dealing with the surface of the canvas... I know that sounds a bit weird but just think about it for a second!!!
Playing with the approach of being able to adjust the viewers perception... Just loved ‘Ramp’ and ‘Hinge Drop’ and the lovely ‘Prop for Red’... And sitting on the spacious veranda sipping on a refreshing glass of wine and smelling the sweet smell of Quiss Quarliss helps to reflect on the quiet works inside...
Found myself in dire need of a history lesson and Pat Larter was the one!!! Or was it just a reminder of my dizzy disco days... I knew of ‘International Mail Art’, but wasn’t altogether familiar with these highly decorative paintings and her approach with the medium she used so lovingly and I can’t pick a favourite as I love them all...
These works ooze everything that came out of the 80’s and 90’s... Wearing 4 inch heels and scary blue eye shadow dancing to alternative pop in rented out warehouses... And that wonderful Art Boom that we all love and miss dearly!!!
Pat had an eye for detail and applied the glittery paint to perfection... This really is a must see show as it will offer up a trip down memory lane...
Nine artists in New Zealand - Jan Senbergs, Euan Mcleod, Idris Murphy, Ann Thomson, Julie Harris, Judith Van Heeren, Peter Simpson, Steve Lopes and David Keeling...
A beautiful, beautiful show curated by Owen Craven and inspired by the diverse landscape of New Zealand. Every piece in this exhibition showed a different perspective, creating historical reference for future artist’s and I will no doubt gush... It takes a seasoned Curator to bring together such a group of Artists as these and send them off into the wild blue yonder and then select works that best represent each Artist’s representation of the landscape. One would hope the works would work together and they do beautifully!
I loved ‘Rock-face-Castlepoint’ by well heeled painter Jan Senbergs, his large black oil stick drawing describing the ruthless ocean edge and ‘Rocky Landscape Mt Ruapehu’ with it’s descriptive oil stick strokes... Steve Lopes diptych ‘Mt Ruapehu Figure’, oil on board and ‘Untitled Figures, Mt Ruapehu’ oil on canvas showed a jovial exuberance from the groups youngest artist. ‘Landscape with kereru (after Walter Buller)’ and ‘Landscape with Kaka parrots and thermal pool’ oil on linen by Judith Van Heeren offered up a reminiscent of early colonial paintings... One of my favourite painters Euan McLeod, ‘Castlepoint Hillside’ and Castlepoint Light House’ and ‘Poplars Castlepoint’ and ‘Small Mt Ngaurahoe’ all oil on canvas showed us a different light to the others, as I have not had the pleasure of visiting New Zealand as yet, I gather it is less harsher than Australia...
A spritely Ann Thomson going at it with guns blazing with her ’Stone Images I & II’, acrylic, collage and charcoal on canvas broke up the serenity between Euan and Idris Murphy’s ‘3 parts of night (triptych)’ acrylic on board. Peter Simpson’s ‘Slippage Ruapehu’ and ‘rolling Skies Ruapehu’ oil on linen were a breathtaking surprise and stopped me in my tracks! ‘Castlepoint Night’, ‘Second Field Study 9(Diptych)’ and ‘Castlepoint’ oil on linen by David Keeling with his eerie night and day versions of the same landscape. ‘NZ Walkthrough, thinking of Colin McCahon’ by Julie Harris, gouache and ink on paper on canvas offers a perfect balance...
I have walked around this series of works quite a number of times since it opened and do feel the need to walk around again and maybe again as it offers the feeling of visiting a distant land that you may not have visited before...
2010 was edging to an end... Jimmy was off making Art and I really felt the need to liberate my senses via a holiday... And seeing this show didn’t officially close until February 2011, I had some time up my sleeve to finish this post!!!
I am and always shall be a fan of Fiona Hall... And seeing for the first time framed etchings, I became even more besotted!!! These finely detailed series of 6 botanical descriptions in earthy colours which exude a deep seeded dedication for exploring and refining historical reference through the eyes of an exceptional conceptual artist were complimented with Michael Parekowhai's 3 small hand finished bronze trees, ‘The Moment of Cubism’ which looked ready to be planted out...
Organic movie posters encased in perspex expressing the wild imagination of Rohan Wealleans... I loved them, an enormous amount of effort had gone into making these works, bringing them alive in an almost Triffid kind of way... Guess Jesus had to make an appearance too! Seeing it is a Christmas show, with Daniel Boyd creating an exaggerated death mask and 2 digital images manipulated with paint... Oh and if you looked close enough you would swear the eyes moved... Spooky!! Also drawn to Kathy Temin’s ‘Small Black Garden’ a black fur sculpture in the back room, wanting to walk all around it but unable to and laughing with it’s ‘black humour’ and desperately wanting to stroke it... You would always hear that Gallery security guard saying in your head ‘Do not touch the artwork’... But some works need to be touched... just go for it!!!
‘Bubhi and the dark star’ ink jet on paper with fire by Lindy Lee made me question was the idea for this work dragged from the ashes of a memory, as a celestial morphed face seemed to appear coming out of the work...
The Gallery’s back room was thrown into more colour with 3 paintings by Angela Brennan, a nice balance to the other artist’s works... ‘I survived the Ampatuan massacre and all I got was this painting 1, 2 & 3’ really!! You did well David Griggs... You don’t normally get paintings when you survive a massacre especially really big ones!!! I wouldn’t say no...
It was lovely to be bathed in Newell Harry's neon light while sipping on a gin & tonic, my fav ‘Never Odd or Even’ must be the colour green, I’m always so attracted to it...
9 artist’s in this show, a mixed bag of works but somehow compliment each other!!!
Written by Fleur
9th December - 18th December 2010 - 18th January - 5th February 2011 www.roslynoxley9.com
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