Ken Hall
Notes
Swings by Ethel Spowers
This article first appeared in The Press on 12 January 2018 as 'A champion of the pioneering linocut'.
Notes
Among the sandhills by Adrian Stokes
This article first appeared as 'Sandhills painting's life as nomadic as artist's' in The Press, 15 August 2017.
Notes
Portrait of John Marshman by Samuel Butler
This article first appeared as 'Painting's fascinating life mirrors subject's ' in The Press, 15 May 2017.
Commentary
Such Human Tide
The exhibition He Waka Eke Noa brings together colonial-era, mainly Māori, portraiture alongside objects linked to colonisation – it’s a predictably uncomfortable mix. While the degree of discomfort may depend on one’s background or degree of connection to an enduringly difficult past, objects related to emigration and colonisation can be a useful lenses. As relics from a specific period in global history, when the movement of (particularly) European people was happening at an unprecedented scale, they hold stories with a measure of complexity that obliges an open-minded reading. There is no denying that they speak of losses and gains, of injustices and rewards.
Notes
Making Ligurian Lace by H H La Thangue
This article first appeared as 'Artist chased the sun for the right light, warmth' in The Press, 19 October 2016.
Commentary
Hair Story
In drawing attention to the theatre of personal grooming, Bad Hair Day brings together portraiture and caricature with a variety of less readily classifiable works of art. The densely packed selection spans a vast historical range. And in putting bowl cuts and bushy beards alongside wayward wigs and whiskers, it highlights the sometimes comical aspects of hair, especially when styles are extreme. If wry intent is discernible throughout the exhibition, however, we shouldn’t let this fool us: hair is a topic that easily turns serious.
Notes
Spring by Joan Dukes
This article first appeared in The Press as 'Spring, a breath of fresh air' on 7 July 2016.
Notes
Untitled by Connie Samaras
This article first appeared as 'Seal of approval for video' in The Press on 20 April 2016.
Notes
Persimmon (Study of a Racehorse) by Elizabeth Harrison
This article first appeared as 'A quietly classical presence' in The Press on 19 January 2016.
Notes
Study (Woman in a wide black hat) by Raymond McIntyre
This article first appeared as 'The Muse' in The Press on 25 August 2015.