(Fe29 Gallery)
Over the course of the last year, Viky Garden has taken a break from painting to work on two series of sculptures — Crucibles and The Agony of Flowers. Both series are on display at Fe29 Gallery.
The pieces are allegorical takes on women’s struggles — struggles to make their voices heard in a society attuned to males, struggles to hold on to a personal sense of self when faced with the ravages of time, struggles to remain strong amidst the strictures and bombardments of life.
In Crucibles, plaster figurines are enclosed within papier-mache coverings made from old sewing patterns.
The link with the traditional homemaking role of women is clear, but the figures are also inspired by caryatid statues, female figures which form the supporting columns of classical Greek buildings. These women are weighed down by traditional roles and constricted by the ties of history.
The Agony of Flowers presents gothically inspired sculptures of flowers encased in barbed wire. The flowers bloom, but are enmeshed and strangled. The sense is of beauty in all its forms facing a slow and painful descent and decay. The works are powerful and also attractive.
Both series are accompanied by artistic documentation in the form of dark posed photographs and impressive painted "Mug Shots".
(Otago Art Society)
Tony Williams’ reputation as a master goldsmith is well-deserved, judging by the works shown in his exhibition at Otago Art Society.
The exhibition, which presents new and previously seen pieces, includes many exquisite pieces, culminating in the astonishing Green Man necklace in gold and tourmaline. Other remarkable pieces include the Arachne brooch in silver and whale ivory, a beautiful pendant with moonstone and diamond set within an enamelled arc, and an elegant rutilated quartz pendant.
Rings, of course, are very much in evidence, among them a dynamic jacinth ring, with its fiery zircon poised between two guardian emeralds, and an imposing parti-colored tourmaline ring, with its stone set within filigree gold on a silver base.
Not all of the works on display would normally be defined as jewellery.
Two silver bowls are on display, as is an impressive silver, gilt, and enamel dish. The austere lines of this piece are unusual for the artist, but the dish is every bit as impressive as his more extravagant creations.
An element of fun is never too far from Williams’ work, no more so than in a series of silver and onyx "fish brooches". These works have a wry, smile-inducing charm, as do pieces based on bats, a subject which is close to being a Williams trademark.
Dunedin", Gemma Campbell
(The Artist’s Room)
Gemma Campbell returns to The Artist’s Room with a further series of acrylic paintings drenched in her own brand of magic realism. The use of aluminium for a base to the paint makes the works glow with an inner light.
The current series, as the exhibition title suggests, places the scene squarely in suburban and rural Dunedin, with the protagonists arrayed against a backdrop of state houses, Art Deco villas, and the recognisable scenery of Otago Harbour and Tunnel Beach.
Groups of animals live in harmony in these works, with seals, spoonbills, penguins, and cats happily nestling together, often accompanied by one or more children. More exotic creatures are also present, with tigers, rhinoceroses, and even a pangolin visiting the South.
Campbell’s knack is in making the scenes seem perfectly believable, despite the quiet surrealism associated with the unlikelihood of the congregations.
There is the air of being in a dream and not being aware how odd the actions and events in it are.
Accompanying the acrylics is a small group of remarkably detailed etchings, portraits of individual animals.
Whether it is the feathers of a kea or the mottled markings of a snail’s shell, these works deftly display the artist’s skills at the precise depictions of these creatures.
By James Dignan
