SPLICE Exhibition at Thistle Hall

A COLLECTIVE EXHIBITION... OPENING NIGHT 5.30pm Monday 7th December, then open daily 9.00am to 5.30pm Tuesday to Saturday, and 10.00am - 1.00pm Sunday 13 December.

A diverse selection of drawings, paintings, jewellery, sculpture and photography from a collective of emerging Wellington artists and jewellers.

This exhibition fuses a variety of techniques and media from a teddy bear crocheted from recycled shopping bags, painted recycled paper on board, fine and contemporary jewellery to experimental photography.

Artists exhibiting:
Michael Bennington-Barr
Alice Jones
Ashley Church
Joanna Tindling
Emma Anderson
Meryth Dobbie
Jamie Mackman
Kelly Bennington-Barr
Nadine Smith
Marisa McLuckie
Julia Middleton
Sam Kelly

Splice is a weeklong exhibition that showcase’s a diverse selection of works by talented local artists.  In Thistle Hall from Monday the 7th to Sunday the 13th December 2009, you will find a cross-media mix-tape of artists and art works ranging from a multicoloured teddy bear crocheted with recycled shopping bags, painted recycled paper on board, fine and contemporary jewellery to experimental photography.

Each of the twelve emerging artists have brought something very unique to Splice and this promises to be a colorful, diverse exhibition that exposes some of Wellingtons next kept secrets.

Contemporary painters Michael Bennington-Barr, Joanna Tindling and Meryth Dobbie each go beyond conventional painting techniques to create beautiful but very different art works. Michael has explored texture, layers and juxtaposition, working with recycled paper on board as a subtly textured background with an acrylic upper layer, while Joanna is strongly influenced by music and popular culture with her pieces having an urban feel to them. Meryth however, favors oil painting as the vibrant colors are well suited to her diverse range of styles.

Kelly Bennington-Barr, Julia Middleton, Sam Kelly, Marisa McLuckie and Nadine Smith have made the most of this contemporary platform. These five skilled jewellers will each be showing collections of carefully crafted and very intriguing works. The pieces are diverse in their styles and themes, from Nadines creations that playfully manipulate the idea of machines as extensions of our bodies, and suggest the creation of new and hybrid species to preserve our physical being, to Marisa’s Piko Art range which is based on the koru (spiral), a symbol of growth, love and peace.

Emma Anderson, Ashley Church and Alice Jones are young photographers with a passion for the camera and all that it can offer. Each photograph begins a dialogue with the audience and forces a questioning of conventional mediums and subjects within photography while also complimenting the beautifully distinctive drawings of Alice’s.

Finally there is the stunningly colorful creation by Jamie Mackman. This crocheted teddy bear, made entirely of recycled fabric shopping bags, plays on the theme of "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" which is a serious issue regarding our ever expanding disposable consumption but is often overlooked and ignored for convenience.

With so much talent and variation, Splice promises to be a very entertaining and thought provoking exhibition.

Don’t miss your opportunity to see some of the best up and coming artists from around Wellington. Open daily from 9am – 5.30pm at Thistle Hall 7-13 December 2009.

Media Opportunity: Opening night Monday 7th December 5pm.