KATE FITZHARRIS

DOROTHY HELYER

25 May - 15 June 2007

Overlap brings together the work of Kate Fitzharris and Dorothy Helyer, two artists working in two quite different disciplines (ceramics and mixed media paintings respectively), that nonetheless achieve an aesthetically complementary interplay.

From the malleable medium of clay, Kate Fitzharris shapes and forms whimsical characters such as birds, dolls and animals that seem to be caught somewhere between the human and animal worlds. Whilst each character exhibits features that demarcate its originating form, Fitzharris has imbued each one with an undeniably human identity that is evident not only in the addition of finely made woollen garments worn by some, but also in the incredible depth and breadth of expression condensed into such a physically small being, like the baby bird yearning for nourishment from a mother who is either unaware or disinterested. Other elements such as a radio, chair, colander and buttons and bones are included to underscore, or direct a reading of the beings’ constructed human-ness and also to act as an agent of symbolism in the case of the buttons (attachment) and bones (our life experience written on our bones).

This work makes evident a keen observation of both the human and animal worlds to perhaps offer a meditation, by way of comparison, on aspects of life central to our shared experience, such as communication, interaction, community and the relationship of mother and child.

Fitzharris’ beautifully wrought sculptures are made from either stoneware or earthenware which have undergone a number of processes (application of slips and washes) and firings, after which, some are then adorned or dressed with textiles including wool and cat’s hair.

Fitzharris graduated from Otago Polytechnic School of Art in 1996, has exhibited in Auckland, Dunedin and Christchurch and achieved Merit Awards in both the Waiclay and Portage Ceramic Awards.

Somewhat like an alchemist, Christchurch-based artist Dorothy Helyer engages with the task of creating abstract surfaces that are built up layer upon layer with a variety of media and methods of application. Armed with materials including graphite and natural pigments she adds, subtracts and adds again to eventually finish with a work that speaks metaphorically of the unfailing, unceasing passage of time and the entanglement of memory, as one’s thoughts and emotions interact with something beyond our reach. Each layer or addition of paint could stand in for an action or an event in ones life, whilst the stripping away can be representative of an erasure, a blip in the memory bank, until another layer or reconstruction of that event is added.

Music, in particular Bach, also plays an important role in the conceptualisation and mood of the works and is of course inescapably interwoven with the presence of time. Time dictates the tempo, nuance and overriding structure of the musical piece, and an instance of this structure is in evidence formally in this suite of works by way of the vertical two thirds / one third division. With titles of Interrupted Cadence: Untitled, the influence of music is made clear and suggests a symbolic reading of the uncertainties of life, as an interrupted cadence is a musical expression for a sudden or unexpected change in key, from, in simple terms a major to minor key.

Helyer has a Masters in Fine Arts, has exhibited widely in both Christchurch and Dunedin and was a finalist in the 2005 Anthony Harper and Waikato Art Awards.

Works by Kate Fitzharris - link to images

Works by Dorothy Helyer - link to images