Exhibitions Team

When you walk into the exhibition spaces at Christchurch Art Gallery, what you see is the result of months of work behind the scenes by the Exhibitions Team.
From assisting with planning, timetabling, resourcing and scheduling – the domain of Sean Duxfield, the team's leader – to design development and delivery, the team's responsibility is to understand and make real the vision of the artist or curator leading the show.

Exhibition designers Nathan Pohio and Chris Pole work alongside the artist or curator to bring the show's concept to life. From wall configuration to placement of works of art to furniture design, this is where the artist's ideas are actualised. As Sean says, ‘There's a lot of talking done at this stage - what needs to go where, what might not fit – it's quite a process to make sure we can achieve what's required by the artist or curator. And if something's not going to work, we have to come up with new ideas and solutions.'

Graphic designer Peter Bray works with closely the exhibition designers to create the visual look of a show – including entrance and wall signage, as well as external marketing material to make sure there's a consistent feel to the exhibition.

Technicians Simon Lawrence and Scott Jackson have the hands-on job of getting the show up - building and painting walls, hanging the works, lighting and any audio-visual requirements. ‘Simon and Scott – and Nathan, too – are artists,' says Sean. ‘They have that sensibility and awareness that helps them realise other artists' visions.

‘It's a great team – we all know our roles, and what we have to achieve. And between us we have nearly fifty years of experience!'