Deborah Forkert - Remains of the Day

For five years Deborah Forkert has worked with the dried paper covers of used tea bags, experimenting with and developing a variety of textures, connection methods, spatial patterns and linear joins. In conversation with her, Forkert's enthusiasm for the materiality of the covers shows as she waxes lyrical about the brands, colours and texture tendencies. She describes each patterned cover as 'a moment captured in time with a memory imprinted on it', each a unique individual, which forms a collective as beautiful as a stained glass window. 

  

She notes the 'threads' of continuity of rituals and traditions of society's past, present, and future, and extends the use of her medium into that of a metaphorical fabric - a narrative of sorts. Using memories of her childhood for inspiration, she also sees the fabric’s similarity to tapa cloth, and has appropriated and extended this humble, yet ethereal material to make frequent reference to many of her Pacific and New Zealand roots.

'Memories of My Mother's Piupiu: Dawn'.  recycled teabags, mixed media on plywood

 

 

 Forkert's solo exhibition 'Remains of the Day' opens at the Cottleston Gallery at 6pm on the 4th January 2017.

Decision - a virtual visit

'Decision' by German-based artist Sheena Mayer was very well received.  She flies out from Auckland today and many in the local art community will miss her.  It has been so wonderful to see such a quietly confident artist working for the last two months in the studio during her artist in residency.  Her encapsulations and delicate black ink monotypes reflect her explorations into the concept of Wandering.
Here is a wee look at the exhibition as it was in the front room at the Cottleston.

 

Sheena Mayer with some of her monotypes from her solo show 'Decision'

Decision

Sheena Mayer is from Germany and her degree in Art (MLitt) is from the prestigious Glasgow School of Art.
While Artist in Residence at the Cottleston, Sheena has begun a body of work that will be continued when she returns home.  'Decision' consists of these first ideas in the form of monotypes and 'capsules' of found objects.

wan • der
verb /' wån-d(ə-)r / to walk / explore / amble in an unplanned or aimless way with a complete openness to the unknown.

The exhibition 'Decision' will open in the corner room at Cottleston on 10 December at 11 am and close on the 17th at 4.30pm.  All welcome.