SOLD: Beautiful Happyzine

January 26th, 2009

What have wishing wells, dandelion seeds, and butterflies got to do with polluted waterways and stunningly beautiful models? In the exhibition ‘Veneer’ – a child like innocence, combined with the understated yet powerful presence of nature bring a lightness to key messages around the unsustainable nature of a consumerist culture.

For Emma Humphries – Artist in Residence for the Refinery Gallery for the past year – this was an enjoyable way to tackle some some serious issues via the multimedia disciplines of painting and sculpture.

” I have this concern for what’s going on in our world, but I wanted to be fun and light, not just doom and gloom. As a Mother you’ve got that sense of wanting things to be fun and enjoyable , especially because my kids have to live with the artwork through the creative process, so I’ve found a way to deal with a deep, dark subject with a light hearted veneer.”

“Fabric dyes and house hold paint are so often pollutants for waterways. Nature’s fragility is often overlooked, how big of an issue do we have to make of our world’s vulnerability before people get it? Most of the women in the pictures are fashion models that I’ve ‘borrowed’. Some patterns are from the fashion industry as well. We seem to be ruled by fashion and consumerism. There’s this overuse of cheap stuff, made in China.”

Much of ‘Veneer’ was created using recycled paint, donated by Resene Paints. Emma chose to use as much recycled material as possible.
“I wanted the material to speak to me through the process. I had no idea of the paint’s capability and limitations as a sculptural medium. I spent a long time with the material experimenting and playing with it. It’s been important for me that the play and sense of fun have prevailed through the process. ”

The inspiration for this body of work came from Emma’s research into the Atlantic Conveyor Belt Circulation Slowdown (which is playing a catastrophic role in Global Warming). “The subject was so consuming and potentially overwhelming that I wanted to show within all this chaos there are still glimmers of beautify, specs of hope.”

And so the light appears in the form of a wishing well, “wishing everything well with the environment, which is represented through the daisy chains, and the dandelions seeds.
Wishes shows hope. You need faith to make a wish.”

Butterflies are also dotted through Emma’s work.
“I love butterflies they’re the symbols of new life. They’re one of the only creatures that don’t damage anything. To me they’re like dancing flowers.”

‘Veneer’ exhibited at the Refinery Art Gallery, Halifax Street, Nelson. It closed 7 Feb, 2009.

For more information and images contact: Emma Humphries, ph 03 5489449

Tags: hope