 Ano Me He Wharepuungawerewere is a Maori proverb that likens a beautifully carved or weaved house (Wharenui), to that of a beautifully and intricately weaved spider's web. This whakatauki can also be used to express or denote the ideas of a house full of spider webs, collecting dust etc.
Ano me He Wharepuungawerewere began as a woven sculptural object for Changing Threads 2021, inspired by the waiata Te Moemoea o Whakatū by Hone Nuku, by contemporary artist Samara Davis and has evolved into her first solo exhibition of intrinsically made objects exploring the marae and the whāriki (woven mat) as places for connection, understanding, Turangawaewae and the sharing of knowledge. You are invited to an artist talk Saturday 23rd October 1pm and you are invited for community engagement in an ongoing work with Samara every Tuesday and ongoing during the exhibition. Unfortunately due to social distancing restrictions we have had to cancel the opening. Stay tuned for a closing celebration on November 6th  Sadly today we say goodbye to Maggy J's fabulous exhibition NO EXIT. I will miss the diaphumous Victorian nighties crocheted in copper wire made from solenoids from the Nelson Cathedral organ. If you missed Maggy's artist talk you can find it via this link...
At Alert Level 2 unfortunately the celebration that was planned for tomorrow 11 Oct for NO EXIT Maggy J, He Me Wharepuungawerewere - Samara Davis RE: - Stan Bowski, Richard Sellars & Kathaleen Bartha and Repose - Vicki Smith is cancelled. We'd love to see you come and support these exceptional local artists and enjoy these extra special shows. Samara Davis will be giving an artist talk Tuesday 12th 1pm & Saturday 23rd at 1pm. Repose "live performance" as part of Mobilise/Demobilise Digital Arts Festival 15 - 17 Oct is Saturday 16th Oct 11am.  Join us this Saturday 1pm for a talk by established contemporary artist Margaret Johnston. Maggy will share her art practice, which is environmentally and feminist based where "I endeavour to highlight environmental issues that we are in the position to make changes and help improve the health of the planet. My work also addresses gender equality issues and the position of women in art, and in the world.
‘Womanly’ skills of weaving, crochet and knitting are employed in order to move them from the realm of craft, into the white cube space of Fine Art. NO EXIT is a development of Johnston's sculptural, environmental and gender equality directed art practice. We are caught in a cul-de-sac. Our world, our horizons and our control over our lives has been diminished. No Exit. The work presented here, deliberately celebrating the hand-made, recognises this situation, but illustrates the beauty and the pathways that are still inherent in our lives."  "Working in patchwork, stained glass, carpentry and ceramics has encouraged me to experiment with mediums and how they can be combined. Childhood memories of doing patchwork with my mother, and working in stained glass as a young adult have had a particular influence on my compositional style.
Inspiration comes in the form of peaceful landscapes including night skies, houses, birds, fish and maps. I aim to convey a feeling of home and of our place in the divine universe." We have had to postpone the opening celebration. We are hoping for a closing celebration in the final week in the meantime do come and see gorgeous new works by Allison Tuckwell in this joyful exhibition. In the meantime in keeping with our Covid support for our visual artists here is the exhibition online if you can't make it into the gallery. Selected works are available as prints. A celebration of the Space Overlooked As someone who has moved around their whole life, Williams has a fascination with the banal interstitial spaces that we move through and occupy every day. Her imagery for the most part, comprises of quiet solitary space - staircases, empty rooms, corridors and the like. These empty rooms have a haunting emptiness and anonymity about them, and yet also a familiarity. The physical process of painting is an important part of William's practise. Her works call for attention to the material surface of the picture. Each painting is made up of layers upon layers of paint, and often these layers are dragged and scraped back to reveal and conceal. This exhibition is a celebration of the space overlooked. It seeks to draw the observer into a moment. To surprise, delight and remind. 'Mimicking the body with a felt, sensed approach to our skeletal frame and draped soft skin coverings. Light, shadows, movement and gestural impressions convey the fleeting presence of our bodies.' Oceania Distance & Diversity |
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It's safe to say that Nelson Jewellery Week has been a smash! It has been a privilege working with the Contemporary Jewellery community this week, who as a tribe seem to show a particular generosity of spirit and collegial support for each other and the arts community. Helping to celebrate 10 years of The Handshake Project, brain child of Peter Deckers and Hilda Gascard, has been a privilege. Handshake Project is a mentoring programme which partners established contemporary jewellers with emerging jewellers and provides support and a 'handshake' collaboration which results in an exhibition or activity. Handshake Project is known and has travelled around the world and we are very fortunate to have been part of their story. Their legacy in Nelson has been our first Nelson Jewellery Week in which several Nelson galleries and venues have presented Contemporary Jewellery in exhibition or in talk or in an activity and Nelson has responded with enthusiasm and delight. From the divine collaboration of Exquisite Corpse, Project 21 at 18A Project Space, Vanguard St, to Badgers making Badges it has been a treat and one we hope to continue. Art's Council Nelson was proud to present Nelson Jewellery Week and we hope that it is the first of many. Thank you to Mark Heathfield for these photographs. Here are the links to more pictures of the first couple of days...
https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0g5ON9t3nJL96
https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0gJ0DiRHGZGRFw
https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0g5ON9t3nJL96
https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0gJ0DiRHGZGRFw
