Sian Torrington: How you have held things

We thought those of you who kept track of Sian Torrington's Outer Spaces project in Avonside might be interested to see what she has been up to recently.

Thanks to all those who came out on Saturday to help us launch Sian Torrington's remarkable installation How you have held things at 49 Patten Street in Avonside.

Work continues apace at 49 Patten Street...

A 'win' in post-quake Christchurch isn't always what you'd expect.

Something a little bit gorgeous just washed up on our shores.

One of the things I've noticed the most is how Christchurch has tidied things up.

Often it feels to me as making things is a process which happens in the dark.

"What abstract painting can do better than anything else is [evoke] that sense of recognition that's indefinite yet ecstatic at the same time. It's getting to the emotional underpinning that we all share, that is the substitute for the common or religious belief. I believe abstraction can do that."

Christchurch Art Gallery is excited to be working with Wellington-based artist Sian Torrington on a site-specific sculptural installation that will combine ideas, images and materials that relate to living in Christchurch now.

See below for a message from Sian to find out how you can get involved.

Last chance to view the Holloway Press exhibition at Central Library Peterborough this week so if you are in the neighbourhood and like beautifully printed, designed and hand-crafted books then make sure you head along. 

In preparation for the next issue of Bulletin, Gallery photographer John and I have been out photographing some of the local artists who will be taking part in Rolling Maul when we reopen.

The Gallery's latest exhibition in the Outer Spaces programme, Showhome, has opened in Christchurch, featuring the disconcertingly 'perfect' works of recent University of Canterbury graduate Emily Hartley-Skudder.

The popularity of Reconstruction: Conversations on a City has led to the exhibition being extended until 14 October, and the development of a publication.

If you've not been down to the Central Library Peterborough yet now's a good time to do it.

We're pretty pleased with what we're achieving with our Outer Spaces programme, but it's always good to see what else is out there. And I do mean 'out there'...