Artist Profile
I have lived and carved on the West Coast of the South Island since late 1999. I began with two years of study bookended around a brief stint working as a carver-for-hire in the North Island. It was already too late at that point - after my first year, I knew I was where I wanted to be and had found the path I wanted to pursue.
Initially it was jade that drew me over the mountains, but in recent years I have switched my focus to utilising resources that are easily found and free of restrictions. I was a fossicker long before I carved, and for me gathering is almost as important as making. The beaches west of the alps are piled high with a variety of pebbles: greywacke, argillite, quartz, jasper (...and if you're very lucky - pounamu). Already ground into perfect forms through relentless action of swell and tide; just waiting to be picked up and contemplated. I preserve what I can of the original form and surface of these pebbles so they maintain a link to the environment that shaped them. Other materials such as shell, pearls, glass, metal and gemstones break the monotony and provide contrast. Pounamu still holds a special attraction (although used more sparingly these days), and, having grown up in South Australia, I have also embraced the use of Cowell jade or "Aussie Black".
The works presented here encapsulate the major ideas and concepts I have been developing over the last several years: minimalist abstraction, the use of found materials, vessels and containers, combining materials through bonding and binding, and figurative flights of fancy. My aesthetic is distilled from a diverse range of influences and cultures....Oceanic Art, Hepworth & Moore, Japanese Minimalism, the "Stone, Bone, Shell" movement, Mid Century modernist design, and, of course, the environment and creative spirit of the West Coast itself.
Thanks for visiting - I hope you enjoy my work.
Rhys
