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SALE up to 50% off...
Thursday 1st, Friday 2nd July 10am-1pm
Saturday 3rd July 11am-1pm, or you buy online here.
Combined Artist Studios & Gallery, 11 Bankart Street, Raglan I thought it was about time for a mid-winter art sale! Here is a collection of my work included in the SALE EXHIBITION at my studio. Click on the image to see a larger view and details about the work. If you are interested in buying one please email me amandawatson "at" clear.net.nz or phone 027 671 3320 with the title. Thanks, enjoy!
| Sir James Warnock Watson [ large view ] | Lady Mary Lillian Hargreaves [ large view ] | Duke Robert Alexander John Marcon [ large view ] | Duchess Edith Walden Resby [ large view ] | Resuscitation the First [ large view ] | Resuscitation the Second [ large view ] | SOLD [ large view ] | They held perfectly still [ large view ] | | [ large view ] | [ large view ] | SOLD [ large view ] | untitled sphere [ large view ] | untitled sphere 2 [ large view ] | nebulae 2 [ large view ] | nebulae 3 [ large view ] | nebulae 4 [ large view ] | nebulae [ large view ] | | | | | | Artist Statement – Object Portraits 2010
This body of work speaks about heritage and histories, and the changing meanings of objects according to context. Memory, hinting at lives gone before us, showing how we each leave our mark on the earth.
I have taken Colonial New Zealand objects that are personal to me (handcrafted Doilies that my Grandmothers would have made and used, domestic utensils etc) and set them up as a ‘still life’, photographed their shadows, and used these as references for my paintings. In a sense I am painting what is not there.
This series of paintings are titled after my four Grandparents (using 17thc portraiture 'sir' & 'lady' titles etc), to further emphasise their portrait nature. The compositions in the paintings show that the ‘subjects’ have posed for the painting, keeping still for a long time for the artist to capture every detail. The fall of light and shadow, treatment of tone, and treatment of the background reflect this. A quiet atmosphere surrounds the ‘subjects’. The four portraits hold a sense of character, and so it was easy to name them after each of my Grandparents. There even seems to be clear delineation between male and female. The portraits have their own characters. There is a sense of the living within the paintings.
Also, I have looked at 17th Century Dutch portraiture and incorporated some elements from this genre into my work: Traditional painting mediums – oil on canvas, treatment of paint in ‘backgrounds’ (gentle fading), use of light and shadow, sense of subjects standing still posing for a long time for the artist, shapes silhouetted/outlined against ‘background’, giving objects human character (reflected in the titles – my Grandparents).
Producing this series of paintings was a very therapeutic kind of project. One of my Grandfathers (“Grandad” – who lives close to me in Hamilton) I have the privilege of enjoying conversations and good company with. The other three of my Grandparents are very real in my memory. I hope I have captured some of their personality through the paint.
Shell and bone, shadow and memory. The portraits explore the biomorphic art movement, where the painting reflects biological elements (bone and shell, skeletal formations, rythym and pattern found in plants and people’s cell structure.
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