ARTS & CULTURE

13 February – 7 March

Patricia Piccinini is one of the most popular – and controversial – artists in the world.

She has had over 55 solo shows in the past 13 years including Brazil (where over 1.2 million visitors came to see her show), USA, Germany, UK, Finland, Australia, Sweden, Slovenia, Ireland, Lithuania and now... Ponsonby/Grey Lynn!

Patricia’s work can be confronting, engaging, touching and deeply emotional and for this carefully selected New Zealand show (her first in over a decade) we’ve worked with the artist to select a broad range of highlights, including her famous ‘Metamorphosis’ from 2017 (pictured) which is not to be missed!

Known for her imaginative, yet strangely familiar, ultra-lifelike chimera works (human/animal hybrids), Piccinini invites us to think about our place in a world where advances in biotechnology and digital technologies are challenging the boundaries of humanity.

Given the importance of this show, I’m delighted to announce that we’ll also be opening on Sundays starting from 14 February,11am-4pm. Entry as always is free.

See you at the Auckland Art Fair! Scott Lawrie Gallery will have two booths at this year’s Auckland Art Fair at The Cloud where we’ll be showing some magnificent work from local and international artists. Dates are 24-28 February, tickets from: www.artfair.co.nz

Contact scott@scottlawrie.com for more info. See you in the gallery soon! Free parking at 15 Williamson Avenue.

Open Thursday to Saturday 11am-5pm. Sundays 11am-4pm.  PN

SCOTT LAWRIE GALLERY, 2 Murdoch Road, www.scottlawrie.com Te Whakahoki Penny Howard (Te Mahurehure, Ngapuhi) was impelled to create the paintings and drawings in this body of work through a profound sense of anger.

Her perusal of recent online sales of historic Maori artefacts – taonga tüturu – at the British auction house, Sothebys, at huge prices, motivated her to re-capture them. And by extending from their photographic images, she is ensuring they are brought back to us, if not literally, at least figuratively: te hokinga ki tenei kainga o Aotearoa New Zealand.

Penny is re-claiming our existential heritage and her work incorporates not only these taonga, but also the red thread of te mauri interconnecting Maori, and them as always living tupuna or ancestors ever deeply vested to the land. More, her depiction of nga manu – birds – in her drawings, is a further visceral embodiment of this ever-present spiritual interconnectedness of taonga and the entire Maori ethos; te ao Maori katoa. The birds are kaitiaki of these taonga, ready to escort them back to where they ontologically belong. They were always ready to return to the landscapes backgrounding the paintings: just look at their eyes.

It is important to note that all the taonga represented in this work – and of course many more such treasures – have been in the hands of Pakeha collectors for at least two centuries. How were they first obtained? Some were traded for such articles as tobacco, axes and pots, to early whalers and sealers. Others were somehow attained by first-contact collectors such as Joseph Banks. Some were sold for minimal sums of money by later colonial collectors. Others were traded by local New Zealand museums, in their effort to obtain similar indigenous artefacts from overseas. Some were stolen outright.  PN www.whitespace.co.nz

Penny Howard Sotheby’s Lot 14, Whakahoki, painting on board

~ 13 Feb - 07 Mar 2021

2 Murdoch Rd, Grey Lynn (Off 15 Williamson Ave) Thurs to Sun, 11 – 5pm scottlawrie.com

Orexart starts the year in its new space with an exciting exhibition by Richard McWhannell.

John Wayne, El Paso to Encinal, 2019 Oil on canvas on board. 300 x 200mm ‘From El Paso to Encinal: The John Wayne Tour’, was inspired by a journey the artist made through South Texas, the borderlands between the US and Mexico.

An epic landscape in every sense of the word, the territory has been a site of revolt and revolution for centuries. Traces of past and present conflict are everywhere, from the Spanish colonial architecture and shrines, through to the border patrol vehicles and Trump’s ill-fated wall.

The borderlands also loom large in McWhannell’s personal history: the land of cowboy films and their tales of bandits and desperados, of Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove, the ballads of Marty Robbins and, of course, the Uber Cowboy, John Wayne.

Every town, every road, every name evokes a song, a film, a Cormack McCarthy novel and McWhannell’s paintings are populated with the faces and places of legend, but the vast and resolutely untamed desert remains the star of the show.

OREX, 221 Ponsonby Road, www.orexart.co.nz

Rosa’s Cantina, El Paso, TX, 2019 Oil on canvas on board. 200 x 300mm

308 Vista Hill Drive, El Paso TX.2019 Oil on canvas on board. 300 x 500mm

The St Matthew’s First Tuesday concert series beings with an organ concert on the great Henry Willis pipe organ.

The concert on Tuesday 2 March at 12.10pm will feature a new and shining star organist, recently moved to Waikato from South Africa.

Eon Malan enjoys a successful career as a church organist, collaborative pianist and choral conductor. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Eon started with piano tuition at the age of six. First Tuesday is his first solo organ concert in Auckland. He holds a Graduate Diploma in Organ Performance (cum laude) from Stellenbosch University. He has also performed in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand.

Recently Eon started with a monthly lunchtime organ concert series at St Andrew’s Church in Cambridge which has garnered him and the picturesque venue a wide following. Eon is also assistant organist of the Cathedral in Hamilton and a teacher at St Peter’s school.

The series will continue from March to November 2021 and highlights are The Royal New Zealand Navy Band (May), Music Ensembles of Auckland Grammar School (June), University of Waikato Voices (September) and a range of other concerts featuring the concert grand piano with flute, violin, and solo voice.  PN

www.stmatthews.nz

New Soloist / New Sound Tuesday 2nd March, 12.10-12.50pm

Music by Buxtehude, Bohm, Cesar Frack, Guy Bovet

The first exhibition of 2021 at {Suite} will introduce the work of Wellington based painter Kate Yesberg, who has recently joined the gallery stable, alongside another well established Wellington artist, Geoffrey Notman, who will have his first exhibition in Auckland in recent years.

This exhibition represents a new direction for the work of Geoffrey Notman, whose previous series have shown New Zealand coastlines, fishing and boats, with a strong nostalgic pull, almost photo-real in style. His move towards abstraction has clear links with his earlier works; the paintings in this exhibition are titled Fishing, Harbour and Net, the marine theme always present, only represented in a new and dynamic way. While in Covid-19 lockdown, Notman was unable to get out and research his usual nautical subjects and he was jolted into exploring abstraction. The paintings, with their pleasing harmonies of grey, blue and charcoal have small pops of colour and interlocking shapes which appear to fit together like the pieces of a jigsaw.

By comparison, Kate Yesberg describes her paintings as inner or emotional landscapes which represent her moments of clarity. Starting with a black canvas as a base, the artist builds her layers and colours, drawing on inspiration from mid-century design and form to create colourful and rhythmic compositions. Kate often reflects on the female artists who have come before her, such as Agnes Martin and Hilma Af Klint, both abstract painters who have had a profound impact within the realms of 20th century art history and showed courage, patience and clarity in their work.

The exhibition opens on Thursday 28 January and run through to Saturday 20 February. Please drop by the gallery on Thursday 28 from 5pm for a glass of wine and to view the exhibition. Kate Yesberg will give a floor talk about her work on Saturday 30 January at 11am. All are welcome.

The exhibition can be viewed online at www.suite.co.nz and a full online catalogue of all available works at our galleries in Auckland and Wellington can be viewed by contacting the gallery.  PN

{Suite} GALLERY, 189 Ponsonby Road, T: 09 218 4399, www.suite.co.nz

Kate Yesberg, Robert X, acrylic on canvas, 1200 x 1200mm

Learn to paint and draw over the 13 session course at our newest venue - Pt Chev Tennis Club. You will explore four different media: drawing, painting with watercolour, acrylics, and oil pastels.

Discover how to paint faces, figures, friends, family and stunning landscapes. Learn artists’ secrets to create beautiful pieces of original art.

Even if you have never picked up a brush before, we will guide you through to make it easy and fun!

On completing the 13 weeks of tuition, you will have 12 pieces of original art to showcase at the final session which is an art exhibition. You can meet with all your new friends in a special social environment. Your family is also invited to share in your success. This is an extremely enjoyable way to develop your creative side.

Step by Step Easy Lessons

• 13 week course, three-hour classes, once a week

• Final session is an art exhibition

• Morning and afternoon sessions

• Beginners to improvers

• Fun, easy, social event

• All materials supplied in-class

Limited Spaces - Don’t miss out, call us for a friendly chat today! Call 0800 006 200 or visit our website www.seasons-art-class-ptchevalier.com

Tim Bray Theatre Company, which is celebrating 30 years in 2021, begins its Term 1 Youth Theatre Drama Classes for ages 5-19 the week of 9th February at the Auckland Performing Arts Centre (TAPAC), Western Springs. Classes are also offered on the North Shore in Takapuna and Browns Bay.

Tim Bray Youth Theatre has been offering classes at TAPAC since 2012. The classes encourage self-confidence, self-expression and focus. Drama is an enjoyable way for students to explore their imaginations and to harness and express their creativity where they also learn various acting techniques such as improvisation, voice, characterisation, movement and scene work.

In Term 1 2021 the Tim Bray Youth Theatre is launching a brandnew programme which has especially been created for ages 1719. This exciting new performance-focused class, led by tutor Suzy Sampson, is for young actors who need a place to learn and to perform, and who are passionate about theatre and all it involves. Celebrated actor Michael Hurst is the guest tutor on Shakespearean characters in Term 1.

Tim Bray Youth Theatre is also launching a new pilot programme on the North Shore for children and teenagers who are differently wired to find their own voice and place. These weekly classes, Extraordinarily Creative, have been developed in collaboration with Children’s Autism Foundation.  PN For more information on classes, or to enrol you can visit: www.timbray.org.nz/youth-theatre/#Weekly Or call T: 09 486-2261

Western Springs, Takapuna and Browns Bay locations for 5-19 year olds. Enrol for Term 1 now.

Everyone left Auckland over the holidays, except for a happy few who enjoyed our city without traffic. The exodus from city to country provides the provinces with a booming economy, especially in these days of closed borders.

At a time when galleries in major centres are closed for summer, the regional galleries see a huge influx of visitors. Local artist Evan Woodruffe has held a summer exhibition spot at PAULNACHE, Gisborne-based but internationally renowned art gallery, since 2014. In their January show, PAULNACHE included Woodruffe alongside John Walsh (Ngati Porou), and Virginia Leonard, whose wild ceramics Evan introduced to Director Matthew Nache back in 2015.

Their audience was a noisy and enthusiastic jumble from around the country, mingling with local art aficionados to take in the paintings and sculptures while sampling local wines and beer. The atmosphere was relaxed and joyful – everyone was on holiday and knew they were seeing some high-hitting artwork.

All three artists have shown with PAULNACHE across Australasia, and their enthusiasm for creating works for the gallery’s home base is evident in the large works displayed.

Immediately inside the door is Evan’s huge 1.85m x 2.8m painting, made up from thousands of tiny marks and bold gestures, while in the second exhibition space Virginia’s stacked ceramic sculpture towers over 2 meters high, glinting with gold and glossy textures.

It’s a warm welcome in Gisborne. After the opening, John and Evan (Virginia remained in Auckland) decamped with a large chunk of the crowd to Siduri Wine Bar, run by Sam Millton (of Millton Wines) who offers an incredible array of wines, vintage champagne, aperitifs and old fashioned cocktails. The merriment continued well into the night. Evan received several invitations from collectors to drop by for tea in the days following so experienced some of the picturesque locations and bountiful gardens of the area. Art really does bring the people together.

If you’re travelling around the country this year, make sure to see the regional galleries – there’s exciting work to be seen outside the urban centres. (EVAN WOODRUFFE/STUDIO ART SUPPLIES)  PN www.studioart.co.nz

Virginia Leonard’s work at PAULNACHE

Evan Woodruffe & Jeanne Clayton with his work

Matt Nache, a visitor from the Hawkes Bay, and Evan in front of his works Photos Tracey McMillan

Inspired by his children’s reading habits, New Zealand director and long-time Ponsonby resident Dan Salmon recently wrote Neands, his first book aimed at the ‘kidult’ market.

“When my son was about 12 or 13, I realised that there weren’t a lot of books out there for either early teens or young adults; there seemed to be a gap between the two. It was the same with my daughter. They would end up reading books for kids and then ones for adults all by the time they were 13.”

Neands centers around a young boy named Charlie Rutherford who finds himself in the middle of a world-wide pandemic, one that’s forced everyone around him to regress into a more primitive, and violent state. As he digs deeper, he discovers that genes that’ve remained dormant in us for eons have suddenly awoken to devastating effect.

During a trip to Ethiopia, Dan visited the national museum of Addis Ababa and saw a display of the various stages of humanity’s evolution. While it didn’t directly inform the book, it fascinated him and helped tap into his imagination. “I had started reading about DNA and discovered that a lot of us still have around three percent of Neanderthal genes within us. It’s an intriguing concept, and it’s one that got me thinking about what effect they could have on us. I thought about how America is today, about the age of prejudice and anger that we’re living in. The Neanderthal’s a metaphor for that, while at the same time it’s an interesting and exciting story.”

While fiction is a bit of a departure for him, it’s something he’s clearly enjoyed. Despite making a living as a documentary director, he firmly believes that books still have a place in the 21st century.

“We need to remember how intimate and important reading is. It gives us the experience that our screens can’t touch.”  PN

To learn more about Dan, please visit www.nzonscreen.com/profile/dan-salmon/biography

To find out more about Neands, go to NEANDS www.whatbooknext.com

Taking on the world can be pretty tough, but Max Barrett (Drums), Toby Barrett (Saxophone), Tyler Diprose (Bass), and Lucas Kewell (Piano/keys) - members of the Jazz quartet, Toby and The Rest, are determined to give it their all.

Despite only forming a little over 18 months ago, these four teenagers are already making a name for themselves, and recently recorded their very first album, ‘Special Delivery’, to be released in the New Year. While some people might label them as simply lucky, their adopted manager Robin Kewell told me it’s not an easy road.

“It’s hard to make it in the world of music as New Zealand is so far away from the rest of the world. It’s also tricky because to know if someone’s any good, you’ve got to be able to hear them or see them perform.”

While he’s definitely a proud dad, he truly believes they’ve got the right stuff to make a real go of it.

“I’ve been in the music/film business for years and I’ve seen some of the world’s top bands. You recognise talent when you see it, and these guys definitely have it.”

Like many bands out there, one of their biggest obstacles is scheduling, trying to find a time to practice while fitting it in around their education.

“School’s important, and they’re encouraged and supported by Avondale College music teacher Mike Robinson. They all want to be musicians; that’s their goal and they’re determined to go down that route, so it’s all about striking the right balance between college, study, and their live performances.”

And as for their music, where does their inspiration come from? The answer might surprise you.

“We all like our own types of music; some of us listen to Punk-Rock, others lean more towards Classic Jazz. These different sounds go on to influence our own music and gives it a unique character,” said piano player Lucas Kewell.  PN