Barry Clarke Scott Eady Peter Miller Aroha Novak Robert Rapson Philip Trusttum

5-26 February 2010 Opening Preview 5 Feb @ 5pm Some artists attending. We hope to see you there too!

Cars and Trucks and Things That Go is a direct reference to Richard Scarry’s preschool picture book of the same name. As children, many will recall with nostalgia searching for 'goldbug' on pages loaded with Scarry characters in all conceivable and inconceivable types of vehicles. In this exhibition, each artist was chosen for their unique approach to vehicular subject matter, which has played a formative role in their work.

For further artist information, images & price enquiries please contact Lydia Baxendell: lydia@gallery33.co.nz

Barry Clarke

Barry Clarke currently resides in Christchurch. A British Merchant Seaman from 1963-1972, the sea has played a vital element in Barry Clarke's artwork. His recent series of rustic boats, painted in relief and wall mounted, are nostalgia of this period in his life. In playful primary hues, cargo, passenger and tanker ships move singularly or in fleets across the gallery walls. Crudely constructed from recycled tin and wood, Clarke's uncomplicated or naive approach is a recollection of accumulated memories. An established reputation as both a jeweller and painter, Clarke has been a practicing artist since 1972. Originally from Surrey, England, Clarke settled in New Zealand during the 1980's.

For further images and information on Barry Clarke click on the links: Art, Jewellery

4 Masted Cargo Ship (2010) oil on tin 130x550mm	Yellow Hulled Coaster (2010) oil on tin 265x1370mm	3 Funnel Cruise Ship (2010) oil on tin 265x1370mm

Passenger Cargo Ship (2010) oil on tin 140x500mm	Convoy of 6 (2010) oil on tin 60-70x175x220mm ea	Blue Passenger Ship (2010) oil on tin 130x675mm

Scott Eady

Scott Eady’s practice frequently involving sculpture and multimedia investigates the blurred lines of masculinity within New Zealand and contemporary culture. His recent works articulate the unsophisticated innocence of a child’s vision often lost too soon. This direction is further development in Kiss Kiss Kiss, a collaboration between Eady and son Ari. Eady’s planes, trucks, rollers and train are the ideal size to hold, inviting the viewer to reenact or recall childhood games. Cast in bronze or aluminium, they serve as a memorial to youth.

Scott Eady currently resides in Dunedin. Graduating with an MFA from Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland in 1999, Eady exhibits nationally on a regular basis. The artist was awarded the prestigious Frances Hodgkins Fellowship at the University of Otago in 2002 and the Wallace Award Development prize in 2003. Eady was included in Warwick Brown's 2009 publication Seen this Century: 100 Contemporary New Zealand Artists. He currently lectures in Sculpture at Otago Polytechnic School of Art in Dunedin.

For further images and information on the artist click on the link: Scott Eady

Peter Miller

Peter Miller's realist depictions of toy cars and trucks from the World War II era own a heightened emotive tension. Miller employs an impressive painting technique providing his works with a vivid sense of realism. The well used vehicles; scratched, paint flaking and rusted with age are chosen carefully to communicate a message. They are at once nostalgic for a past era while making a comment on the world's current throwaway 'plastic' culture. In the manner of Dutch Vanitas Miller alludes to the fragility and transience of life through material belongings. The composition of his paintings amplifies the symbolic meaning where frequently objects sit in isolation, casting long shadows upon an empty ground.

Peter Miller currently resides in Auckland. A practicing artist since 1993, Miller Graduated with a Diploma in Visual Arts from Manukau Institute of Technology in 1998. He was recently included in Warwick Brown's 2009 publication Seen this Century: 100 Contemporary New Zealand Artists.

For further images and information on the artist click on the link: Peter Miller

No. 12 Chases The Pack (2008) Oil on linen 305x1220mm	Standing by Waiting for Action (2009) Oil on linen 610x1215 mm	Winner Takes All - Fun Ho! (2010) Oil on linen 305x1220mm

Tireless Worker (2008) Oil on linen 710x1065mm

Aroha Novak

Tanks, the armoured fighting vehicle often used as a symbol for military organisation are the subject matter of Aroha Novak's Baby Battalions. Constructed from pastel shades of knitted wool and cardboard, Novak's child-size tanks draw our attention to the packaged and often romanticised imagery fed to the public via the media. Brutality normalised and idealised nature of violence and war. 

Aroha Novak currently resides in Dunedin. Graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture from the Otago Polytechnic School of Art in 2007 she was awarded the David Con Hutton Memorial Scholarship in the same year.

Baby Battalion Knitted wool, cardboard, felt tip pen, pastel 140x320mm, Box 250mmx400mm	Baby Battalion Knitted wool, cardboard, felt tip pen, pastel 140x320mm, Box 250mmx400mm	Baby Battalion Knitted wool, cardboard, felt tip pen, pastel 140x320mm, Box 250mmx400mm

Robert Rapson

Rapson is well known for his ship, car and planes forms, which often include the surrounding environment. Rich in historical context, each work is based on a specific vehicle (often information the date, model or history are provided on the verso). The authenticity and detail of Rapson's pieces combined with his characteristic loose handling of the clay medium makes for eccentric and original pieces. Rapson has produced a couple of unusual vehicles especially for this show including 'Dizzy Dolphin' and 'Kiwi' that reference Scarry's wacky illustrations.

Robert Rapson currently resides in Wellington. A practicing artist for the last twelve years he has regularly participated in exhibitions in Australia and New Zealand. Rapson has received numerous awards including the Molly Morpeth 3D award in Whakatane, a merit in the Norsewear Award and prizes in The Manukau Sculpture and Vessel exhibition in Auckland. In 2009 he was included in outsider art exhibition Grown: New Work from New Zealand at Galerie Impaire in Paris.

Castel Felice (2010) ceramic and acrylic 150x220mm	Astin Martin (2009) & Honda (2009) ceramic and acrylic 55x210x75mm & 65x180x75mm	Strata Cruiser (2009) ceramic and acrylic 380x300x300mm

Kiwi (2010) ceramic and acrylic 100x200x100mm	Aquitania (2009) ceramic and acrylic 210x490x160mm	Dizzy Dolphin (2010) ceramic and acrylic 110x405x110mm

Philip Trusttum

Trusttum began painting on loose canvases in the 1970’s allowing a suppleness of form to emerge. The artist exuberantly gathers inspiration from sources such as textile art, tapa cloth design and architecture and his subject matter has included a diverse range of themes for instance his grandchildren, tennis, the Pacific, opera, trucks and horses. In 1991, Trusttum began working on a series based on his grandson William. Since this period, a number of series and paintings can be attributed to this re-introduction to play and childhood through William. Trusttum's racing cars look fast. Numbers and branding such as the ubiquitous 'Hotwheels' logo emblazon the sides of the vehicles. The large scale, bold colours and graphic approach to subject matter offer a sense of excitement and anticipation.

Philip Trusttum currently resides in Christchurch. Philip Trusttum graduated with a Diploma in Fine Arts from the University of Canterbury School of Art in 1964. In 1967 he travelled on a Queen Elizabeth 11 Arts Council scholarship, since then has travelled and worked in Europe and North America. He was part of ANZART at the Edinburgh Arts Festival, 1984 - the same year he exhibited on New York's 57th Street at the Jill Kornblee Gallery. He has shown in Sydney, New York, Melbourne, Auckland, Wellington, Dunedin and Christchurch since then. In 1998 he was the only New Zealand artist reviewed in the New York Times. Philip Trusttum is represented in all major public and private collections within New Zealand.

For further images and information on the artist click on the link: Philip Trusttum

No 4 (2008) acrylic on unstretched canvas 1140x1820mm	Supercharged (2008) acrylic on unstretched canvas 1820x1025mm	No 26 (2008) acrylic on unstretched canvas 1150x1820mm

Catalogue essay by Lydia Baxendell 2010