14th October - 2nd November 2010
Mt Eden, Auckland, New Zealand
Ph: (09) 638 8965
Samantha Lissette and John Ioane - Creatures who roam the heart.
nkb Gallery is pleased to present Creatures who Roam the Heart, a new two person exhibition by Samantha Lissette and John Ioane; both of these Sculptors are highly regarded members of New Zealand’s artistic community. While this exhibition is not a ‘collaboration’ as such (each artist completed their own work separately), the artists devised this exhibition around a common conceptual framework.
Samantha Lissette has been exhibiting since 2000. While Lissette has not received any academic ‘fine arts’ training, she does hold a Bachelor of Arts with a Major in Philosophy (completed between the University of Waikato and the University of Auckland). Lissette developed her sculptural talents while working as a set designer/builder, initially for local theatre productions and later for international film productions; she has also spent time designing home ware, which has been sold in boutique stores throughout the country. Lissette now devotes all of her attention to her practise as a professional artist. ‘My artistic practise explores the relationship between design and nature,’ says Lissette, ‘in my work; I merge organic and industrial form in order to examine the vital link between human production and the natural world.’
Some of Lissette’s previous exhibitions include New Zealand Sculpture Onshore (2006, 2008, 2010), Sculpture in the Gardens at The Auckland Botanic Gardens (2005) and Pacific Rim at the Medialia Gallery in New York (2004). Lissette has also completed two permanent public sculptures; one is installed in the Rose Gardens at the Auckland Botanic Gardens (2009) and the other is in Guangzhao, China (2009). Lissette is a member of the prestigious collective Medal Art New Zealand.
John Ioane graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Art in 1985. He is currently working towards his Masters degree at AUT. Ioane works both as a sculptor and as a performance artist; he has exhibited widely throughout New Zealand as well as in New York, Europe, Australia and the Pacific. Within his research based practise, Ioane creates works that are both provocative and seductive; he combines traditional Polynesian art making techniques with new age, industrial materials. For this exhibition, Ioane will be exhibiting a series of wall based sculptures; while they are all abstract forms, they have an innate relationship with Polynesian culture.
Some of Ioanes’ previous exhibitions include John Ioane - Journeyman Artist and the Pacific Paradox (a 25 year selective retrospective) at the Whangerei Museum (2009), 9 Heavens at Whitespace Gallery in Ponsonby (2008) and Paradise Now? at the Asia Society Gallery in New York (2004). Ioane’s work is held in many public collections including those of Te Papa Tongarewa, The Auckland Art Gallery, The University of Auckland and The James Wallace Arts Trust.
John Ioane appears courtesy of Whitspace, Ponsonby.