Inaugural Wanganui National is New Exhibition for New Zealand Fine Artists

Inaugural Wanganui National is New Exhibition for New Zealand Fine Artists

The Wanganui National 2009 Amalgamated Tech Art Exhibition and Award has been inaugurated to promote the fine arts in New Zealand, showcased in Wanganui, a city renowned for nurturing and inspiring visual artists.

The exhibition is open to all artists living and working in New Zealand, and offers an array of styles and tastes. Seeded by twelve artists from the Wanganui, Wellington and Hawkes Bay regions, the Wanganui National aims to promote New Zealand artists and the visual arts, and to bring new arts experiences to the city.

Neil Buddle and Esther Topfer are two Wanganui artists seeding the exhibition. Neil Buddle continues to grow and develop his art practice following stints in arts administration. This has meant developing both the commercial and conceptual strands of his work.

His latest work selling in Auckland are prints of New Zealand native trees and how the rich natural resources of our country make our urban environment, intertwining the history of people and land. In addition he is exhibiting in international, national and local exhibitions.

Although currently working primarily as a printmaker, Neil is looking forward to returning to the medium of assemblage for this exhibition. His principal subjects of interest are local politics, landscape, cultural history and erotica.

Esther Topfer is a Diploma of Glass graduate and is completing the last year of her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Wanganui’s Quay School of the Arts. Her exhibition piece is titled Glory, a work of mixed media, paint and screen-printing on glass.

The delicate surface beauty of Esther’s work draws the viewer into a world of eclectism where beliefs of many cultures are magically entwined in a unification of spiritual imagery. By using divergent materials, processes and subjects, Esther is asking the viewer to accept these differences and meld our individual spirituality and beliefs to form a new way of devotion to God, Goddess and Spirit.

The exhibition will have all works for sale and runs during a time of numerous other cultural events in the city, such as the Wanganui Literary Festival and the Wanganui Festival of Glass. A cash award will be given to the artist with the Best in Show as judged by a selection panel.
The exhibition is held at the Wanganui Community Arts Centre. The opening function starts at 5pm on Thursday 17th September and the exhibition shows until Sunday 27th September.

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Webster and Cruz Hot Flavours during Wanganui National

Webster and Cruz Hot Flavours during Wanganui National

Hamish Webster and Thomas Cruz are seeding artists of the Wanganui National 2009 Amalgamated Tech Art Exhibition and Award, and will be hot flavours during festival fortnight taking over Wanganui in September.

The exhibition kicks off the celebrations of fine arts and culture in the city at its opening function on Thursday September 17 at 5pm.

Both artists have taken the opportunity to show in other arts and cultural events in the city held during the Wanganui National. Hamish is in the second year of study for a Diploma in Glass Design and Production and as a participant in the Wanganui Festival of Glass he will have works displayed in Visique Goldsbury Optometrists on Victoria Avenue.

Hasmish is an extremely competent hot-glass blower, and training in other disciplines such as painting and sculpture gives him good steed in his colour and design applications, as well as alternative outlets for his creativity. In glass his main works are vases and perfume bottles that are very popular with collectors.

For the Wanganui National he will show a peice titled Chop Bowl, a graal of bright colour and dark accents, cold worked to open up the vessel and allow the viewer to see the interplay of colour and light that is the essence of glass.

Thomas Cruz will have works in a fundraising art sale held at the Wanganui Riverside Market on Saturday September 19. The art sale is raising funds for a Quay School of the Arts student exhibition at the end of the year, and he has several works on offer.

Thomas is a third year student in a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and is undergoing a painting major. He has acquired a distinctive style of high key colours and subjects of animals and people, treated in a way that is invigorating and refreshing.

His bright paintings are complemented by his choice of supports. In a recent body of work the subjects unfold and reveal themselves around and inside furniture chests and cabinets. By allowing us to possess the beauty of his paintings and store them within our private spaces he has induced in the viewer the most personal and intimate connection with the work.

For the Wanganui National he is presenting Earthly Delights, a tiled peice made in pen and watercolour on paper. This demonstrates a distinctive approach to colour and his recent motifs of animals.

The exhibition will have all works for sale and a cash award will be given to the artist with the Best in Show as judged by a selection panel.

The exhibition is held at the Wanganui Community Arts Centre from Thursday 17th September until Sunday 27th September.

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Deep Profile - Neil Buddle

Neil Buddle – Visual Artist

Despite producing work consistently over the last 10 years, the last 2 years have seen a marked change in my efforts to grow and develop my art practice.

In 2007 I was given the opportunity to take part in the Waitakere Open Studio Weekend (An event I had instigated previously in my role as Community Arts Coordinator for Waitakere City Council). For this event I presented a summary of previous work and a new series of ‘multiple’ paintings entitled, Afterlife. Through this event I sold several works and was fortunate enough to make some new connections. It was partly due to this that I realised that if I was serious about making art and growing as an artist, that from that point I would need to make a concerted effort to develop my practice and importantly, that making art, should pay it’s own way.

Since then, I have produced more work than any other time since art-college. The connections made through the Open Studio Weekend have resulted in the production of 2 sets of kiwiana-inspired prints for gallery shops in Auckland (Pauanesia and The Next Door Gallery). The revenue from these prints has enabled me to not only produce more personal and challenging work, but to enter several established exhibitions as well.

I am currently working on a new set of kiwiana prints for Pauanesia, a major series of prints (Hopefully for a 1st solo/dealer gallery show?) that follow on from a 2005 body of work called ‘Sightline’, in addition to entering the Whanganui National Art Award and the Sarjeant Review Show.

Whilst working pre-eminently in print over the last 2 years, I have retained my passion for Assemblage. This exhibition has given me the opportunity to re-engage with assemblage, under the umbrella of ‘Amalgamated Tech’.

Exhibitions 07-09:

2007

Waitakere Open Studio Weekend – Blink Gallery, Waitakere City, Auckland, New Zealand

The Art of Assemblage (Tribute to Peter Sauerbier) – Corban Estate Arts Centre, Waitakere City, Auckland, New Zealand

2008

Silk Cut Lino Award 2008 (Selected Artist) – Glen Eira City Gallery, Melbourne, Australia

Carey and Smith Review Show 2008 – Sarjeant Gallery, Whanganui, New Zealand

2009

Metonymy 2009 – Aotea Centre, Auckland, New Zealand

Ivan Rebroff is my Security Blanket – Federal Gallery, UCOL, Whanganui

Upcoming Shows

Wanganui National Art Award 2009 – Community Arts Centre, Whanganui, New Zealand

Retail Outlets:

Pauanesia - Queen Street, CBD, Auckland

Next Door Gallery - Hinemoa Street, Birkenhead, Auckland

Internet:

Different Drum – Neil Buddle Personal website

Diglog – DIG Collective Blog

Picasa – Neil Buddle – Web Gallery

Email – digreverend@gmail.com

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Seeded Artists Profiles

Seeded Artists Profiles

Tiffany Hough

Tiffany Hough is from Napier and is a painter, musician and dj. She was commissioned to fit out Hell’s Pizza in Greenmeadows with motifs that matches the wicked and playful image of the company and fits perfectly with her playful and savvy personality.

A very dynamic artist with bold brush strokes and lots of paint.

Pamela Tui-Airini Roy

Pamela Tui-Airini Roy, a graduate of the Quay School of Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree majoring in Photography in 2006, she won the White pages Art Award with her piece ‘The Mountain, The River and I”.

She is currently involved in The Aerosol Project, a graffitti art programme encouraging Wanganui youth to channel their creativity into murals throughout the city.

Esther Topfer

Since graduating from the Quay School of the Arts, Diploma in Glass Design and Production course in 2005, Esther is currently working towards her Fine Arts Degree in Printmaking.

She is exploring innovative ways of combining both media. Her themes are contemporary. Youth culture and feminist thinking are re-occurring themes in her work. She creates a diverse variety of both functional and sculptural works.

Elysabeth Wolter

Elysabeth Wolter is a graduate of the Quay School of Arts with a Diploma in Glass Design and Production Course.

Important features in her work are colour, light, repetition and space, combining these elements to create depth and variation.

She has an interest in holistic thinking and textiles.

Neil Buddle

Neil Buddle is a visual artist, musician and DJ. Originally hailing from the U.K, he has been marooned in New Zealand for the past 10 years . Having worked in Local Goverment Arts-Coordination for 6 years, Neil is now focussing on his own practice. Working in printmaking and assemblage, Neil's areas of investigation are currently landscape, erotica, local politics and self-sabotaging behaviour. He has a fetish for linoleum.
http://www.differentdrum.webs.com/ http://www.diglog.blogspot.com/

Thomas Cruz

Thomas Cruz, from the Galapagos Islands, is an international Year 3 BFA student at the Quay School of the Arts and is majoring in the discipline of painting.

Working on a variety of supports, Cruz works are bright and vibrational in colour, and with a unique expressive style. His works are popular with private collectors.

Red

Red of the R1000F Studio is a printmaker with passion and exceptional ability, but also blends works through film making, sculpture and construction.

His debut with the R1000F Swarm Exhibition of 2007 was quickly followed by a solo show and is now a regular exhibitor.

Craig Watson

Craig Watson is a graduate of the Diploma of Art and Creativity from Wellington’s TLC.

As a printmaker, he has already had several commissions for book illustrations, but is also a painter with a very empathetic feel to his portrait and representational subjects, while being bold with his abstract and conceptual works.

Hamish Webster

Hamish Webster is a student doing the Diploma in Glass Design and Production at Wanganui Glass School. Working mainly in hot glass, Hamish has a bold and confident approach to form and colour in his glass works.

He is a Wanganui Incorporated Scholarship recipient from the Wanganui Glass School.

Aaron Potaka

Aaron Potaka is convener of the Wanganui National and is also exhibiting. Another student from the Quay School of the Arts and a recipient of a Maori Education Trust Scholarship, he will be showing pieces in painting and printmaking. His works too, are in private collections.

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Wanganui National 2009 Inaugural Seedings

Wanganui National 2009 Inaugural Seedings Named

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is seeded by ten artists from the Wanganui, Wellington, and the Hawke's Bay regions.

Wanganui

Pamela Tui-Airini Roy

Esther Topfer

Elizabeth Wolter

Neil Buddle

Thomas Cruz

Aaron Potaka

Red

Hamish Webster

Wellington

Craig Watson

Hawkes Bay

Tiffany Hough

The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios

Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios