Art Seen: March 16

In this week's Art Seen, James Dignan looks at exhibitions from Pauline Bellamy, Jason Greig, and the Fe29 Gallery.

Twitcher path, by Pauline Bellamy
Twitcher path, by Pauline Bellamy
‘‘Australian Light’’, Pauline Bellamy (Bellamys Gallery)

Say the words ''Australian light'' when referring to the colour and atmosphere of Australia's wilderness, and the first things which come to mind are usually the harsh oranges, reds, and pinks of the great arid plains. But Australia is a big land, with many terrains and climates, and it is the deep blue-greens of Queensland's subtropical rainforests that Pauline Bellamy explores in her latest exhibition.

The colours may seem more attuned to the landscape on this side of the Tasman, but the misty mugginess of inland Queensland's bush is of a different nature. The warm mists which rolls in saturates the trees as they de-saturate the colour. The world is left in a natural sauna, light almost dripping from the branches.

With her strong lines, Bellamy has rendered this scenery in bold blurred strokes of watercolour and watery acrylic, creating a land that has become almost abstract, the recurring washy verticals creating a puzzle of brown and deep viridian. The wildlife is presented more crisply; a lone kookaburra and trio of jaunty magpies standing out in their solidity from the dreamlike backdrops.

The forest scenes are accompanied by a series of panoramic landscapes, looking across the weirdly sculpted volcanic hills of the region to the shimmering haze of the distance.

 

Twilight of reason, by Jason Greig
Twilight of reason, by Jason Greig
‘‘Twilight of Reason’’, Jason Greig (Brett McDowell Gallery)

A welcome annual event at the Brett McDowell Gallery is a Jason Greig exhibition. This year, the Lyttelton-based artist presents more of his dark, ominous monoprints, adding to them with a small series of exquisite oils.

Greig's work could be facilely described as gothic: the initial feeling from his art is that of plunging into the illustrations from a Victorian horror story. Shades of Poe and M.R. James are easily imagined in these works, and, indeed, one of the pieces is a sinister portrait of horror-master H.P. Lovecraft. Yet the works are better considered alongside those of the symbolist artists of that era. Greig's works are heavily informed by the art of Redon, Rops, Bocklin, and their spiritual antecedent, Goya.

In works such as Twilight of reason and the Ensor-like The dance, Greig's technical mastery of his medium is brought into focus. Portraits such as the delightful The Susan also display his skills.

Greig's signature style, dark full-length portraits against a bold primary colour, is also well represented. One far quieter standout piece, The cowgirl's serenade, uses a shadowy human form as a hillside in a work redolent of the faded light of the very first experiments in the new medium of photography.

 

Cameron of Lochiel Tartan Kaitaka (detail), by Roka Hurihia Ngarimu-Cameron
Cameron of Lochiel Tartan Kaitaka (detail), by Roka Hurihia Ngarimu-Cameron
‘‘To Tatou Whenua, To Tatou Iwi — Our Land, Our People’’, Roka Hurihia Ngarimu-Cameron and friends (Fe29 Gallery)

Fe29 Gallery currently features work by Maori craftswoman and artist Roka Hurihia Ngarimu-Cameron (Te whanau a Apanui, Te Arawa Whakatohea, Ngati Awa, Tuwharetoa, Ngati Airihi), assembled against a backdrop of work by several other artists. Ngarimu-Cameron utilises traditional Maori materials to create her woven work, producing garments which mix traditional and modern influences.

Highlight pieces from Ngarimu-Cameron include Whakapapa, a powerful possum-skin cloak, its surface covered with text from Te Tiriti o Waitangi, The Bible, and text on the evolution of clothing. Some excellent pihe pihe shawls are also on display.

These works are presented alongside a well-chosen array of pieces by artists such as Peter Nicholls, Cecilia Orr, John Drawbridge, and Vivian Keenan, who's astonishing copper collar, in particular, is a dynamic piece which complements the traditional clothing perfectly.

A tableau of work by Ngarimu-Cameron, Nicholls, and Croix Williamson is an attractive central feature of the exhibition's main room.

The most intriguing work, and one which sums up much of the theme of the exhibition, is a cross-cultural, cross-tribal work celebrating the Maori heritage of Ngarimu-Cameron and her husband's Scottish ancestry. Her Cameron of Lochiel tartan kaitaka cloak perfectly represents the blending of whakapapa in both the exhibition and, to a large extent, in New Zealand.

Add a Comment