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Hargreaves invites the viewer to be confronted by the void contained within the internal space of the structure that has been blackened Upon reflection this canny use of sculptural architecture allows another kind of vision to emerge.

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For more information on the exhibition click here

An interactive visual art programme, designed to challenge and stimulate its audience, will take centre stage at the eighth Splore festival, from February 19 – 21. The biennale three-day summer festival at Tapapakanga Regional Park is renowned for integrating creative disciplines.

Under the direction of new Art Curator, Shea O’Neill, this year’s art programme will see eye catching installations, spill over from ‘The Art Trail’, and weave throughout the site, allowing artworks to merge with the stunning natural setting of woods, beach and sea.

Designed as site specific interactive artworks, the art displays are by a diverse cross section of contemporary New Zealand artists, including architects, film makers, painters, writers, video artists, sculptors, photographers, spatial designers and performance artists. To complement the overall aesthetic feel of the festival, the projects have been chosen for their interactivity and innovation.

Speaking of the Splore 2010 programme, O’Neill said “In response to the unique challenges of the Splore environment, this year’s eclectic line up of talented artists have pushed the boundaries of art and technology, to produce an interactive art adventure, that will open your mind, warp your senses and enlighten your imagination. Expect retro, future, giant, neon, steam-punk, cycle-powered, nude, time travelling, pop art, multimedia, experimental, interactive, FUN.”

O’Neill, who is behind the sideroom.com online magazine, selected 21 projects to feature at the festival.  He says the selection process was purely project focused, rather than name based.

“The Splore ethos is to provide artists’ with a unique opportunity to present their works in sublime natural surrounds where audiences are responsive to art that invites participation and engagement, and challenges everyday notions of what art is,” he says.

It may sound utopian, a place where music, art and nature merge to inspire a weekend of joyous celebration but Splore is rapidly becoming known as one of the most energetic and inspirational multi-media contemporary arts events in the country. Amongst this year’s artists are acclaimed interdisciplinary artists; Christian Nicholson and Brydee Rood, painters; Liam Moore and Tracey Tawhiao, sculptors; Chris Hargreaves and Stuart Forsyth, multimedia artists; The Hang Out and Nikki Hastings-McFall, and sound artist; Fraser Bruce.

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[View with PicLens]

Price on Application.

MDF, Photographic Adhesive Film.

1100mm x 900mm x 400mm.

Work Sold.

[View with PicLens]

Deserted Vessel : Sanctuary. 2009.

Aluminum, Acrylic Mirror, Plywood, Stainless Steel.

To visit the Auckland Botanical Gardens website please click here.

Twenty New Zealand sculptors have been named to take part in this summer’s Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens exhibition at the Auckland Botanic Gardens in Manurewa.

The curatorial panel of Alexa Johnston, Leo Jew and Lisa Reihana made their selection from a list of 72 proposals including many artists that took part in the 2007-08 exhibition.

“Once again there was a great deal of interest from artists wanting to take part and exhibit their work in Auckland’s wonderful Botanic Gardens,” says Ms Johnston.

“We are all very pleased with the selection and are confident that this will be as memorable and enjoyable an exhibition as last time. Selection criteria included the relevance of the sculpture to a garden setting and its suitability to both the outdoors and a public open space.”

Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens is a three-month exhibition of large-scale outdoor sculpture set amid the garden collections at the Auckland Botanic Gardens. This year’s exhibition runs from Saturday 7 November 2009 to Sunday 14 February 2010. Entry to Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens is free.

The selection includes Barry Lett, winner of the inaugural Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens Supreme Award (McConnell Property) and Peter Lange, whose work Campsite was purchased by the Friends of the Auckland Botanic Gardens for its permanent sculpture collection. Campsite can be seen on the central lawn in front of the main lakes.

This year’s participating artists will gather at the gardens in early April to select sites for their sculptures, meet with the show’s sponsors and patrons, and spend some time getting to know a little more about the Auckland Botanic Gardens.
Naming right sponsor Stoneleigh, a Pernod Ricard brand, returns to support the exhibition. Details of this year’s Supreme Award will be announced in the coming weeks.

More than 314,000 people visited the inaugural Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens between November 2007 and the end of January 2008. The duration of the second show has been extended by two weeks to allow more people to enjoy the artworks and visit the gardens while the show is on.

Sculptors chosen to exhibit in Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens 2009-10 are:

• Russell Beck
• Todd Butterworth
• Bing Dawe
• John Edgar
• Fiona Garlick
• Aiko Groot
• Chris Hargreaves
• Christine Hellyar
• Tui Hobson
• Gaye Jurisich
• Peter Lange
• Barry Lett
• Dave McCracken
• Phil Neary
• Phil Newbury
• Jamie Pickernell
• Colleen Ryan-Priest
• Jeff Thomson
• Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi
• Richard Wedekind

For further information:
Contact Micheline Newton, Visitor Services Manager Auckland Botanic Gardens, 09 267 1457 ext 229
Suzanne Stickney, ARC Communications, 09 366 2000 ext 8273 or 021 412 001.

A Leap Into The Void : Reflections of Immaterial Sensitivity, 2008.
Macrocarpa, Stainless Steel.
3000mm x 600mm x 3500mm (LxWxH)
Exhibited at Headland Scultpure on the Gulf, Jan 2009 – Feb 2009.
Curator: Jenny Harper, Justin Paton,
Price on Application.

A leap into the void featured in the New Zealand Herald, January 24, 2009.

Blind Refuge, 2008.
Aluminium, Nylon Rope, Stainless Steel.
2200mm x 800mm x 1000mm (LxWxH)
Exhibited at Brick Bay Sculpture Park,  Dec 2008 – Feb 2012.
Curators: Dr Robin Woodward, Brian Butler and Kate Darrow
Price on Application.

WAIHEKE ISLAND 18 June 2008 – headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF, New Zealand’s premier outdoor sculpture exhibition, has today revealed the names of the 26 successful artists who will be presenting artworks at the upcoming 2009 exhibition, following a review of the 107 submissions received from sculptors throughout the country.

The event is held every two years on Waiheke Island, with works installed over two kilometres of the magnificent Matiatia-Church Bay walkway. The 2009 exhibition will run for three weeks from 23 January to 15 February 2009.

According to Dilys Grant, Project Director, headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF “there are no limits to the creative responses that the unique coastal landscape engenders. Each of our 26 successful artists has presented inspiring concepts that challenge our preconceived notions of public sculpture and its response to our environment. Some of the installations will shadow the landscape, float on the ocean, scale trees, crash land, and some will even ambush the unsuspecting on the walk itself!

“There is a healthy mix of previous exhibitors to headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF, nine in total, along with an impressive number of new artists to the event. And the 2009 artists hail from all over New Zealand, including six from the South Island, underlining the truly national status the event has now achieved.”

The full list is as follows: Tony Bond, Paul Cullen, Charlotte Fisher, Meiling Lee, Kazu Nakagawa, Pauline Rhodes, Jeff Thomson, Leon van den Eijkel, Richard Wedekind, Graham Bennett, Lucy Bucknall, Gill Gatfield, Chris Hargreaves, Robert Jahnke, Gaye Jurisich, Nic Moon, Stephen Mulqueen, Christian Nicolson, Louise Palmer, Louise Purvis, Paul Radford, Brydee Rood, Graham Snowden, Serene Thain, Fletcher Vaughan, and Graham Fletcher.

The three selectors for the 2009 exhibition were Jenny Harper, Director, Christchurch Art Gallery; Helen Kedgley, Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, Pataka Museum and Art Gallery, Porirua; and Justin Paton, Senior Curator, Christchurch Art Gallery.

About headland Sculpture on the Gulf

headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF is New Zealand’s premier outdoor sculpture exhibition, held every two years to showcase the country’s leading sculptors. The event takes place on the magnificent two kilometre Matiatia–Church Bay coastal walkway, a public track administered by Auckland City, located at the western tip of Waiheke Island in the Hauraki Gulf. The exhibition is a not-for-profit event and is free to the public.

In 2009, headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF will be held over a three week period from 23 January to 15 February 2009, and will feature the 26 art works. During the previous event in 2007, more than 20,000 people visited the exhibition.

First held in 2003, headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF arose from a desire to host a sculptural event outside gallery walls in a way that would acknowledge, embrace and enhance the stunning coastal scenery of Waiheke Island.

Consequently, one of the main criteria for the selection of works is their appropriateness to the site; how they fit into the landscape; and what visual and physical connection as well as interaction they have with the environment.

Placing the works and the public under the sky, beside the sea, in valleys and on headlands creates a unique opportunity to experience thought-provoking and innovative works for sale by New Zealand’s leading sculptors in a stunning location.

More information on headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF is available at www.sculptureonthegulf.co.nz

ENDS

Media contacts:

Dilys Grant, Project Director, headland SCULPTURE ON THE GULF
Waiheke Island, New Zealand
Tel: + 21 375 945, Email: dilys.grant@sculptureonthegulf.co.nz

Nicholas O’Flaherty, Bullet PR Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand
Tel: +64 21 303 181, Email: nicholaso@bulletpr.co.nz