ARTS & CULTURE

IGNITING CREATIVITY THROUGH DRAMA CLASSES

Despite the challenges that Covid-19 continued to present in term 1, Tim Bray Theatre Company’s Youth Theatre classes have continued with fun and creativity for their students.

The brand new Extraordinarily Creative drama classes at Te Oro in Glen Innes for autistic and neurodivergent children and teens have been working their “magic” (according to a dad!) with the new students. Extraordinarily Creative continues to be popular on the North Shore at Meadowood Community House. Spaces are available in Term 2 at both venues.

Tim Bray Youth Theatre will run taster April holiday programmes for autistic and neurodivergent students interested in trialling the Extraordinarily Creative drama classes.

“In six months they have taught our anxious and reclusive boy that he has a voice worth hearing,” - Karen A., parent.

TBYT has announced a new venue for their ever-popular Hit the Stage! 5-day holiday programme at North Shore’s Rose Centre Theatre in Belmont, 19 - 23 April.

Tim Bray Youth Theatre’s Term 2 weekly drama classes for 5-19yrs begin the week of 2 May at TAPAC and enrolments are open now. Classes are also offered on the North Shore. These classes continue to engage the students’ creativity, selfconfidence and self-expression through drama techniques.

For more information: TIM BRAY THEATRE COMPANY; T: 09 486-2261; www.timbray.org.nz/youth-theatre E: youth.theatre@timbray.org.nz

TIM BRAY

YOUTH THEATRE

Western Springs, Takapuna, Browns Bay 5–19 years Our tutors fire young imaginations and ignite the creative minds of tomorrow.

DRAMADRAMA WeeklyWeekly

Glen Innes and North Shore 5–16yrs For autistic and neurodivergent youth to find their own voice and place

www.timbray.org.nz 09-486-2261

The Covert Theatre in Mackelvie Street, Ponsonby is NZ’s home of improvised comedy. With workshops and shows every night of the week there is something for everyone. Be sure to check out www.coverttheatre.com

I’M ALL ABOUT AUCTIONS

"When selling, auctions are still the way to go," says local agent Keri Ropati. “With an auction it is all about creating competition in a market place which is currently busy with stock.

As the property market responds to changing economic conditions the local Westmere market is holding strong in its value - the trick to sale success for your property is your sale method, marketing and sales person/team.

Property Guru, John Bowering/Head Auctioneer for Ray White confirms “the average days on market via an auction are significantly lower than any other form of sale method in the marketplace”. Auctions are made to call out all the unconditional offers, and in a market that is steadying, unconditional offers win over conditional offers every time.

For Keri this means she is able to give property owners a clear time frame and marketing strategy that will ensure their property has the best chance of attracting buyers who are ready to purchase. Auctions give the vendors a straight clean sale; no waiting on banks or purchasers needing to sell.

“If you’re thinking of selling, give me a call,” says Keri. “We can grab a coffee and chat property."

KERI ROPATI, M: 021 530 807; E: keri.ropati@raywhite.com www.vongroup.co.nz Licensee Salesperson | Ray White, Von Group Limited Licensed (REAA 2008)

KERI ROPATI

Connecting people & property

Keri Ropati 021 530 807 keri.ropati@raywhite.com vongroup.co.nz

FB.com/keriRopati.RealEstate

Patricia Piccinini ‘Scarlet Bloom’, 2019 © The artist

SENSATION_22 AT SCOTT LAWRIE

Saturday 9 to 30 April, 2022.

Powerful work from world-class artist Patricia Piccinini, as well as a mix of younger and senior artists from New Zealand and Australia.

After a couple of years of being adopted by Ponsonby locals, we’re delighted to let you know our new space in Mount Eden has officially opened – and it’s less than a 10 minute drive away from the old space in Murdoch Road.

The new gallery is at The Steelworks in Coles Avenue (off Valley Road) and is in a purpose-designed space created by the team at Axiom Projects and Paul Clarke, architect of Studio2 Architects.

Our second show in the new gallery is a sensational show of new work from our represented artists – and a few surprise guests!

Entitled Sensation_22, you’ll see powerful work from worldclass artists such as Patricia Piccinini as well as a mix of younger and senior artists from New Zealand and Australia, including a major work by late modernist abstract painter Roy Good who we are thrilled to represent.

Showcasing work across the three new gallery spaces and a permanent digital wall, it’s a show that we promise you’ll find something to love or hate, but we promise nothing in between! (SCOTT LAWRIE, DIRECTOR)

OPENING DAY 9 APRIL – 11am to 5pm. All welcome!

Roy Good, ‘Bisecting Planes – Blue/Grey’, 2015 © The artist

SIÂN QUENNELL TORRINGTON AT OREX PONSONBY

9 April – 7 May

Siân Quennell Torrington explores relationships of interconnectivity through the expressive language of colour, mark making, and structural props that hold her drawings and sculptures together in an unconstrained tangle of hidden meanings, joy and pure fun.

Her work has been commissioned for public art institutions, including ‘Soft Is Stronger Than Hard’ at City Gallery Wellington, and ‘The Way You Have Held Things’ for Christchurch Art Gallery and just lately in a solo show ‘I’m Glad You’re Here, Just The Way You Are’ at Toi Pōneke Gallery in Wellington.

Since graduating MFA with distinction from Massey University in 2010, she has had numerous solo and groups shows and this is her explosive entry onto Ponsonby Road, Auckland.

Says the writer Alice Tappenden, “They are explosions, they are chaos at the edge of control, they are witches wands, they are body armour, they are a queer cry, they are a rallying call.”

Siân Quennell Torrington with drawing

Keep it warm watercolour pencil, pastel, oil pastel, charcoal on paper assemblage, 350mm x 550mm framed, 2021 Float and expand, pastel, oil pastel, charcoal assemblage on paper, 465mm x 610mm, 2021

Tia Ansell, 2022, Zee, 64 x 50 x 6, Acyrlic on cotton handmade weaving in aluminium frame

TIA ANSELL EXHIBITION AT {SUITE}

Tia Ansell: Red Light Horizon, 6 April – 30 April.

Operating primarily within the domains of painting and weaving, New Zealand born Melbourne based artist Tia Ansell makes handcrafted assemblages that blend mediums and styles, reflecting a fascination with the intersections between culture and consumerism, craft and high art.

Ansell’s upcoming exhibition at {Suite} Ponsonby, 189 Ponsonby Road, Auckland, presents a series of intricately rendered weaving-paintings, the canvases self-woven on a loom from either cotton, wool, bamboo or silk, which provide the substrate for the painted surfaces. Through this unique and painstaking process, Ansell creates elaborate lattices and geometric patterns that reference her surrounding urban landscapes.

Inspired by the art movements of Constructivism and Bauhaus, the works speak to ideas around mass production and industrialism, thematics that are reinforced by her methodical and repetitive technique. Though inset within aluminium frames based on museum storage trays, the works cannot be separated from their institutional context, the metal serving to both protect and confine the material and culture it represents. Against the aluminium, the designs of interlacing wefts and paint reflect, extending the illusion of repeated pattern.

This latest exhibition marks a shift in Ansell’s approach, with the artist working on a bigger loom which allows her to create at a larger scale than previous works.

{Suite} GALLERY, 189 Ponsonby Road, T: 09 218 4399, www.suite.co.nz

Photography: Kimberley Annan

Dr. Charlotte Francis Gemma Lee Photography: Lola Media

FIRST TUESDAY AT ST MATTHEW-IN-THE-CITY

The First Tuesday Lunch Hour Concert on 3 May at St Matthew-in-the-City will feature the magic violin and piano combination of the Francis-Lee Duo.

Formed in 2016, the ensemble features Charlotte Francis (violin) and Gemma Lee (piano). These highly experienced chamber musicians will present a concert of music by Schubert, Beethoven, Niels Gade and Monti. The programme is of a joyous nature and is guaranteed to lift spirits in these conflicted times.

The beautiful space of St Matthew’s and its fine acoustic will reward with the fine violin and piano music in the presentation for First Tuesday.

Charlotte Francis grew up in Brisbane and began learning violin and piano at the age of five. She holds a Bachelor of Music (Honours) from University of Auckland and a PhD in classics from the University of Otago.

Born in South Korea and raised in New Zealand, Gemma Lee is a collaborative pianist with a Master of Music (First class Honours) from the University of Auckland. She teaches at two Auckland High Schools and also manages Lewis Eady Music School.

This will be the second appearance by Francis-Lee Duo as part of the First Tuesday series. The July 2021 performance drew a big audience and was greeted with enthusiastic applause, happening, as it did, in one of the windows of opportunity between strict Covid-19 settings.

Further First Tuesday Concerts for 2022 will include performances by St. Matthew’s Voices, The Royal New Zealand Navy Band, and Nicholas Forbes (organ). Piano and string soloists, and vocal ensembles are also part of the First Tuesday programme.

The First Tuesday Concert series is currently taking place under Covid Red Light conditions which means admittance is limited to 200 people and vaccine passes and masks are required. Please scan in and observe physical distancing of one metre.

ST MATTHEW-IN-THE-CITY, 132 Hobson Street, T: 09 379 0625, www.stmatthews.nz

EASTER

AT ST MATTHEW IN-THE-CITY PALM SUNDAY: 10 April | 10am MAUNDY THURSDAY: 14 April | 7pm GOOD FRIDAY: 15 April | 10am / 5pm concert HOLY SATURDAY: 16 April | 8pm EASTER SUNDAY: 17 April | 10am

Book a space to attend in person or watch our services online: stmatthews.nz

FRANCIS-LEE DUO

Singing Violin and Piano

Music by Schubert, Beethoven, Niels Gade and Monti Tuesday 3rd May 12.10pm - 12.50pm

Photography by Adrian Malloch. Bronwyn Cornishs' sculpture at ARTIS Gallery.

ARTFUL CURATION IN YOUR OWN HOME…

What is the backstory of Artful Curation? How did you meet? We met five years ago doing voluntary work at our sons’ school art show fundraiser (Clare doing the art curation and Julie the marketing). A friendship began and mutual respect for the expertise they brought to New Zealand art. Fast forward five years and Artful Curation is launched.

How does the technology work? Using our VR (Virtual Reality) and AR (Augmented Reality) technology, we help you visualize the artwork in your own space. From the clients’ perspective it’s pretty simple. You hover over the QR code provided which leads to the VR template, from there you follow the instructions to see the art in your home. The viewer can then overlay the artwork [to scale] into their living room, kitchen, bedroom, garden and so on, bringing the artworks to life before committing and taking away the risk while being convinced that you are investing in something you love. It gives that little bit of extra confidence in the decision making. It’s almost a “try before you buy” process, which is novel and the whole family can get involved with the selection.

Is there a timeline with clients? We like to refer to the timeline as an organic process where your art experience can be quickly executed or be a meandering journey as you like. We take our guidance from our clients when it comes to timeline. Our objective is that you walk away feeling totally connected to your artworks no matter how long it takes to get there. And hopefully the journey is enjoyable.

I like the concept of try before you buy Is that a successful strategy? Everyone is at a different stage in their journey/experience with art. Some clients are very confident and know what they want, whereas others just need a little help with the selection of artworks or with the connection of the artworks throughout the home and with the family. Clare is a talented art curator and helps to bring the artworks to life in a co-ordinated manner so the total collection feels fluid and connected [this includes existing artworks and new artworks]. So, the 'try before you buy' technology enables the client to confidentially see the works in their house, cutting down time spent reviewing artwork options. This is particularly relevant for those people who are time poor.

Tell us about some of the artists you work with. We are so lucky to be working with some of New Zealand’s most wonderfully talented artists. This can come via a commission in collaboration with the dealer gallery, such as David McCracken in collaboration with the Gow Langsford Gallery, as well as working from an idea or inspiration and coming up with a totally bespoke, client specific art installation and experience that pushes boundaries for all involved. How cool is that! But our key focus is to match artworks/artists with the client, so we look to a large pool of talented artists whom we work with.

One of the things you emphasize is that you are independent. Why is this important? Because we are independent, we are able to cherry-pick from all the galleries and their treasure-trove backrooms.

And we have a network of galleries sourcing artworks on our behalf with eyes in every part of New Zealand and the world making us incredibly mobile and able to deliver the variety, quality and creativity which our clients deserve.

Are there any trends that you are seeing in art collecting at the moment? With Covid-19 and the need to spend more time at home, we are seeing interest in connecting people’s interiors with the exteriors, and interest in outdoor artworks. We have a great stable of artists who are delivering very beautiful artworks for gardens, courtyards and exteriors of buildings, in different proportions depending on space available. And with our technology we are able to present these in an easy to relate to way.

Why do you think your service is special or different to what else is out there? We offer a wraparound service from art procurement to installation and documentation. The process of art selection is enhanced and made more comfortable by being able to see some of the works in virtual and augmented reality in our clients home or garden before committing. From client feedback we believe it to be the intuitive artwork selection, project management, including the client wish list, and sometimes pushing boundaries that makes what we offer special. That comes from the close relationship that we form with our clients and the research we put into each individual client art selection and curation. We understand our clients’ needs and aim to deliver beyond expectation.

As our clients in Los Angeles commented: "What amazes me is the detail that everything is thought through. The artworks all work individually, they all work together as a linked collection and work with the interior of our home. Plus, the aesthetics make us individually happy and as a family. Just so successful, we couldn’t be happier."

Call Julie on 027 503 5116; or Clare on 021 0222 7293; www.artfulcuration.art

Art Elevates Spaces. Let Us Elevate Your Life.

Don’t know where to start? Time poor? Just want some help buying some art or displaying your existing artworks?

We offer a wraparound service from art procurement to installation and documentation. If you would like to find out more please visit us at: www.artfulcuration.art Try before you buy

We help you visualize the artwork in your own space, making the decision making easy. See how our technology assists you. Hover over the QR code, follow the prompts. Max Gimblett ‘Quatrefoil’

Images courtesy of the Artists