Graphite, topography and a sense of unforeseen disruption come together in Katie Thomas’s 4.25 metre Westenra Terrace, a frottage rubbing from a road surface on the Cashmere hills, transformed by the 2011 Ōtautahi Christchurch earthquakes. Thomas found herself drawn to the clusters of lines appearing on city roads, including temporary repairs intended to prevent further damage. Her interest in these amorphous ‘found drawings’ resulted in several large-scale rubbings (she was assisted during the process by thoughtful neighbours turning up with protective orange cones). The large drawings also became reference material – plus-sized notebooks to feed into her painting practice.

(Die Cuts and Derivations, 11 March – 2 July 2023)