Galia AmselGalia Amsel’s work is characterised by exploration of colour, form, motion and intervention. The simplicity of her work comes from a “highly developed visual sense” and spatial harmonies founded in “geometry and the resolution of mathematical formulae”. Her basic shapes are the forms of a circle, rectangle or square which have been “broken open or interrupted in some way” and these openings “always create drama and tension.” Inevitably, the “empty spaces… are as important as those occupied by the glass mass.”(1) |
| More about Galia Amsel |
Callum ArnoldCallum Arnold challenges the traditional representation of the landscape as static. His paintings are “reminiscent of a Sunday journey. …Long drives through the landscape are experienced in passing through the car window.” (1) |
| More about Callum Arnold |
Wayne Barrar"Most of my work is centered on the impact on land of the consequences of shifting cultural practices. Occasionally I will venture into the laboratory, as a place of change, in order to investigate human intervention at a ‘micro’ level. At other times I may revisit historical imagery or sites as a reference point…. In order to deal with the complexities and ironies inherent in the relationship between people and the environment, my work has evolved into a number of series – some finite, others ongoing. They may vary in approach and process, but in all of them the central consideration is this inter-relationship between culture and nature in an increasingly complex society."(1) |
| More about Wayne Barrar |
Graham BennettGraham Bennett’s three dimensional work comprises both large environmental installations and small scale sculptures. His art work “emphasises the importance of sea, sky and land, and the agents and instruments that navigate and connect these elements. Since the 70s, Bennett has used a paradigmatic perceptual frame (of horizontals, verticals and diagonals) as his core agent of perception. His works are not images of ‘lived reality’ but rather reflections of the artist’s experience of and enquiries into his Pacific environment.” (1) |
| More about Graham Bennett |
Marc Blake“Memories of what was are left as shadows, rubbed out, scratched off, fuzzy and disappearing into the coloured wood grain. In areas the background becomes the foreground or the sea becomes the sky but all of the elements seem to work together, finding grounding in the grain of the wood. The illusion of three-dimensional space is only suggested by light stains in a natural grain or in the size of the specific elements in the work.” (1) |
| More about Marc Blake |
Claudia Borella“Her clear and purposeful use of line and colour, the subtlety in her material handling and her powerful sense of design restraint all cause the phrase ‘less is more’ to echo through my mind as Claudia Borella’s work continues to investigate the borders between glass making, design and the ‘universal boundaries of language’.” (1) |
| More about Claudia Borella |
Joanna BraithwaiteJoanna Braithwaite juxtaposes objects, animals, humans and insects onto lavish painterly surfaces in unexpected and imaginative ways. She characteristically works in series and her immediate environment often prompts her subject matter. “Braithwaite’s work always contains figurative and realist elements but seldom without a twist which wrenches the work away from simple realism towards the surreal.” (1) |
| More about Joanna Braithwaite |
Nigel BrownNigel Brown has established a reputation as one the most important figurative artists working in New Zealand and is acknowledged as New Zealand’s leading narrative artist. His distinctive works are a blend of symbolic and expressionistic approaches with a deep social concern. |
| More about Nigel Brown |
Christine Cathie"'Amorphisms' have evolved from the ribbon forms - by joining their ends they have become more convoluted, abstract shapes. They allow the viewer to give their own interpretation, and give a lightness and feeling of motion by the way the glass twists and catches the light, and a sense of volume carved out within the surrounding space. These forms have been cast in bright, mostly primary colours, an allusion to the exuberance of free forms and colours of Miro and Calder." (1) |
| More about Christine Cathie |
Garry CurrinHis paintings are "internal landscapes. They have a physicality about them like landscapes, but they also have something more. People see things in them that I don't see". (1) |
| More about Garry Currin |
Neil Dawson"From 'Ferns' in Wellington's Civic Square and 'Chalice' in Christchurch's Cathedral Square, to 'Raindrops' in Manchester, United Kingdom, and the 'Globe' in Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, Neil Dawson's public artworks have become city icons." (1) |
| More about Neil Dawson |
Anita DeSoto"Anita DeSoto creates scenes of beauty reminiscent of the religious paintings of the European past. She presents figures in states of repose, ecstasy, or introversion, like the martyred icons of Renaissance art... The cast of personae exists in realms of the imagination that are neither archaic nor contemporary, but the dramas invoked are relevant today for their exploration of the emotional interplay of human relationships." (1) |
| More about Anita DeSoto |
Nicolas Dillon“The subtle light and gently rippling textures found in many of the paintings elevate them high above purely ornithological illustration. There's even a hint of Rembrant and Vermeer in Dillon's light-infused portraits of the birds that hover over our lives. These paintings establish an enduring link with the natural world.” (1) |
| More about Nicolas Dillon |
Evelyn DunstanEvelyn Dunstan’s works have narrative purposes, methods of making and representational concerns which are atypical in the history of glass practise in NZ. Her works are literal and intricate. Due to significant scale and mass variations Dunstan works on the boundary of what is technically possible with the glass medium and lost wax casting. |
| More about Evelyn Dunstan |
John EdgarAcclaimed sculptor John Edgar has been exhibiting since 1979 including three New Zealand public touring exhibitions “Calculus” 2002-2004, “Lie Of The Land” 1998-1999, and “Making Amends” 1993-1995. In 2004, Edgar installed a major commission at the Auckland Domain titled ‘Transformer’. |
| More about John Edgar |
Simon Edwards“The landscape has been the source of my work…The work places itself somewhere between a modernistic reliance on the essential qualities (of the materials and methods of painting), and an awareness of traditional forms of the landscape. I use this as a departure point, for entering into a process of layering and rubbing back, setting up a dialogue between myself, the medium and the landscape. The work becomes a result of reacting to what is happening on the surface at the time, and building on chance effects that present themselves, contributing to a sense of space, distance and movement.” (1) |
| More about Simon Edwards |
Neil Frazer“The oddly compelling nature of Neil Frazer’s body of work is not solely the result of his handling of paint. The power of the works hinges on his creation of a duality of spatial illusion and material literalness on a scale that is all-involving. The picture plane is rendered elusive, replaced by optical recession and tactile fact, resisting a complete assimilation of the image. The works all operate on this frontal/recessive contradiction, evoking simultaneously thick, constructive curtains of paint and veiled depths.” (1) |
| More about Neil Frazer |
Dick Frizzell“It was while working in the environment of commercial advertising that Frizzell began to pluck familiar objects from their usual context and turn them into arresting images. Several products that were ‘household’ names to New Zealanders in the late 1970’s became icons in Frizzell’s hands. From sources as varied as canned fish wrappers, corner shop signage and junk mail, he turned images into paintings, giving titles that introduced unexpected associations.”(1) |
| More about Dick Frizzell |
Charlotte HandyCharlotte Handy’s paintings explore “the tensions between abstract and literal, land and sea, surface and depth.” (1) The atmospheres established move between the realms of implied, real and imaginary while Handy dissolves perspective to play games with the viewer’s perception. Key in these paintings is the state of constant visual flux: nothing is fixed or certain or final. |
| More about Charlotte Handy |
Rebecca HarrisHarris’s work is concerned with the timelessness of the human condition. The concepts of adaptation and acculturation in NZ are relevant to both early settlers and contemporary society. |
| More about Rebecca Harris |
Niki Hastings-McFallNiki Hastings-McFall’s personal research into her own heritage, beliefs and cultural diversity has informed her art practice which reflects on the merging of cultures and New Zealand’s role in the creation of an urban Pacific. Her previous works have used a variety of media including shells, glass beads, metal, filmstrip, and plastic which she has crafted into exquisite Pacific lei and breastplates. |
| More about Niki Hastings-McFall |
Sue Hawker"Glass is a mesmerising medium with its refractive, reflective and transparent qualities. I harness these qualities when designing and creating my forms. In fact, I create art with light itself".(1) |
| More about Sue Hawker |
Michael HightMichael Hight is a painter, sculptor and assembler, working with paint, canvas, tin, wood and found objects. His most recent series of work has focused on beehives. He continues to explore this subject through both abstract assemblages and realist paintings. Hight regularly exhibits at both Milford Galleries Dunedin and milford galleries queenstown. |
| More about Michael Hight |
Megan Huffadine"Domestic Activity and the small rituals that are part of everyday life are the focus of Megan Huffadine's mixed media work, and she brings a questioning, thoughtful analysis to her highly individual pieces." (1) |
| More about Megan Huffadine |
Bruce HuntCritically acclaimed artist Bruce Hunt conveys an authoritative sense of location and vernacular, his paintings capturing the enduring majesty of the Central Otago landscape. |
| More about Bruce Hunt |
Luke JacombNew Zealand glass artist Luke Jacomb has received considerable critical attention, awards and inclusion in major museum collections worldwide. |
| More about Luke Jacomb |
Hannah KiddFranz Josef based sculptor Hannah Kidd predominantly crafts and welds sculptural creations from steel rod and corrugated iron as a means to investigate people and the relationships they have with their surrounding environment. “Kidd’s works remind us we are New Zealanders and explore our relationships with each other and our environments”. (1) |
| More about Hannah Kidd |
Peata LarkinPeata Larkin "has come up with an ingenious way to express her Maori culture and join the digital revolution, without having to either become the slave of the computer or be bound by traditional working methods. The result is art with international appeal, using the well-proven grid format, yet with a firm base in pre-European design concepts." (1) |
| More about Peata Larkin |
Andy Leleisi uao“Leleisi’uao began his artistic career as a widely celebrated social commentator on Samoans living in New Zealand; his paintings controversially exploring issues associated the Samoan diaspora. As he has developed his style, he has begun to both internalize and universalize these themes, exploring fantastical worlds and opening his art to a global audience.”(1) |
| More about Andy Leleisi uao |
Toni MackinnonToni Mackinnon uses optical effects, hard-edged black and white patterns, a collagic process and numerous photographic sources as the basis of her work. |
| More about Toni Mackinnon |
Paul Martinson“Martinson believes we are, at any time the sum of our entire experience which includes on one hand the connections we make throughout our life with all other creatures on the planet, even fleetingly (this comprises the great range of relationships we make), everyday experience, and the swirling, interlocking personal reality of our subconscious, and all that it comprises.” (1) |
| More about Paul Martinson |
Karl MaughanKarl Maughan has been painting gardens since the mid-1980s and this accomplished concentration on subject has made him a nationally and internationally recognised and recognisable New Zealand artist. Maughan has been exhibiting with Milford Galleries Dunedin since 1993. |
| More about Karl Maughan |
Richard Orjis“His work is designed to illustrate non-existent, shadowy social groups. In his own words: "I create ritualistic or cult-like imagery that deals with the conflict between humans and nature, nature being defined as environments, both physical and psychological, that are not created or controlled by humans. While natural landscapes can be sublime in their beauty, they are also places that can be dangerous, hostile and destructive. Furthermore, the night offers an historical stage for rituals to take place, as the blackness gives a sense of mystery and ambiguity that is consistent throughout my work.” (1) |
| More about Richard Orjis |
Jenna PackerJenna Packer paints metaphorical and alternate histories commenting on journeys of discovery, evolution, the survival instinct of escape, fragility and the endless possibilities of life. |
| More about Jenna Packer |
Neal Palmer“Vividness, hyper-reality and sheer painterly skill… Brilliant technique…” (1) |
| More about Neal Palmer |
Stanley PalmerStanley Palmer's rugged and beautiful landscapes are expressive, emotive and distinctively New Zealand. Using painting and printing techniques, he has developed a unique and personal style that captures the essence and colours of our natural coastlines, rural scenes and native flora. |
| More about Stanley Palmer |
John Parker“I subscribe to the well rounded aesthetic ideal, I guess. All the things I do relate, they are all visual. They all concern the drama of reactions to shape and colour and arrangement.” John Parker works as a potter, set and costume designer and film critic. He draws no distinction between his interests. “The same themes flow through your work and the same processes of stylisation, fine-tuning and attention to detail apply.” (1) |
| More about John Parker |
Reuben Paterson"Now well-established artist, Reuben Paterson's exquisite use of a material we employ to give the everyday a sprinkle of magic dust - glitter - lifts things out of the real world to let us consider them anew.The patterns and images he adapts are seductive in their familiarity an kitschness, but also in how they have become suddenly, shimmeringly strange." (1) |
| More about Reuben Paterson |
Mike Petre“My work is a personal response to memory and experiences associated with spending a large part of my life immersed in rural environments. My paintings are not an attempt to elevate, idealise or romanticise the rural, but rather a means of exploring the notion of what it is, and what it means to be a ‘local’, and developing a visual language to convey this. New Zealand has a rich and varied history of landscape painting yet I feel little has been attempted within the visual arts to explore issues of localised rural experience and landscape. Historically New Zealand landscape painting depicts ‘visiting the landscape’ with all its implied transferral of ‘Urban Experience’, - a romanticising experience.” (1) |
| More about Mike Petre |
Lorraine Rastorfer"Lorraine Rastorfer's paintings combined formal elegance with an uplifting sense of motion rooted in human dynamics... She has discovered a process of 'weaving' multiple layers of transparent paint an iridescent varnish to create a charged atmosphere. Precise and random elements join to animate the surface." (1) |
| More about Lorraine Rastorfer |
Elizabeth ReesRees’ works explore the relationship between the body and mind and the environment in which we exist. Within her recent canvases she depicts the body in motion, moving toward or away from the unknown. “What are we fleeing from? What are we hurtling towards? What are we leaving behind and what do we hope to find? Each to one's own path and motivation we are in motion in the passage of life and time. Each painting freeze-frames a moment; the last step has gone and the next is yet to come.” 1 |
| More about Elizabeth Rees |
Ann RobinsonAnn Robinson is an internationally significant glass artist and an acclaimed innovator who has been at the forefront of the extraordinary achievement of New Zealand glass. |
| More about Ann Robinson |
Emily SiddellEmily Siddell's work is influenced by a sense of place and her passion for gardening, and the unique qualities of glass. Her works have a strong Pacific influence; motifs, patterns and crafting techniques are explored and celebrated in her beautiful and delicate glass works. |
| More about Emily Siddell |
Terry Stringer“When I was young I would stare at sepia photographs of classical art in an encyclopedia…. So ‘Great Art’ reached down to me in New Zealand. This is the past that my sculpture remembers. We are all made whole out of the parts of our childhoods… I seek to tell my story in fragments.” (1) |
| More about Terry Stringer |
Christine ThackerChristine Thacker is an established ceramicist with an international reputation for innovative form and approach to the medium. |
| More about Christine Thacker |
Gary Waldrom"Waldrom's past exhibitions have shown him to be a homegrown master of the human parade as masquerade, employing a cast of simpering imps and changelings to explore expressions registered by the face - is particular the saturnine leer, the half-smirk, the impertinent and questioning gaze. From such looks he conjures parables and allegories for our current moment." (1) |
| More about Gary Waldrom |