Exhibition
Here is the invitation for an exhibition of 6 of my photos
being shown at Hamish McKay Gallery.
It opens on Tuesday.
To make the image above larger and more readable
remember to click on it.
Cockroaches
In my New Plymouth base I have a balcony
that hovers over a gully.
On a table on the balcony I have a dish with
two cups of sugar to one litre of water in it.
With that liquid I feed tui mainly.
But often I have Silvereyes as well.
And sometimes at night, cockroaches, in this case they may be native,
drown themselves in the syrup.
Out of Africa
In recent months I’ve been collecting
ebony elephants, so many that
they seem to be wandering around my studio.
(which is also where I live.)
In the background here, is a photo of a house
that my mother lived in when she was a little girl,
the oldest child of a large family.
Several of that family, not only my mother, but her mother
as well are just to the left of the elephant, out of frame, but I guess that’s no
help to you just now.
My grandfather worked for the railways. I think that this photo was taken
near Taihape, below Taupo, in the centre of the North Island.
Whanganui View Point
On the north side of Whanganui, there is a high
point, with parking, built for in order to provide a view
of the city.
I was there last weekend and was attracted not by the view so much, but by a large structure
with the names of cities and landmarks from all over the world, and the distances
from that precise point to them, in miles.
Tokyo was the only Asian city shown.
I think that I particularly noticed New Plymouth’s name
because that is where I have a home.
Portraits
Here are some portraits from a portrait show
that I have on at present at McNamara Gallery
in Whanganui.
Many of the 29 photographs have not been exhibited before.
Whanganui River Mouth
On the weekend I was in Whanganui,
and as usual, I left some time to visit
the mouth of the river, where it
flows into the Tasman.
Here is what it looked like on Saturday afternoon.
I was in Whanganui because I have an exhibition of
portraits at McNamara Gallery.
It opened on Friday night and is on for a month.
John Reynolds at Highlands Intermediate.
On Sunday I was at Highlands Intermediate, here in New Plymouth.
I was there because an orchid show was on in their hall.
As I walked down a corridor I came across this work,
obviously inspired by visit to the Govett-Brewster, where
John Reynolds had some similar work.
Some of my favourites
are:
Locked Door
Insanity Required.
Hello my name is…
Toothpick Eiffel Tower.
&
I See You
There are others too.
Death is Ugly
is pretty good.
Three Horns
While at Ivan Anthony’s gallery in Karangahape Rd,
Auckland I noticed, in an office, these coat hooks, if that is
what one should call them. I don’t know what animals
were the source of these horns.
I have a small collection of cow horns here
in my studio. I particularly like the ones that are
white but have black tips.
Visually, I find it a pity that modern dairy cows don’t have horns, either by breeding, or
by removal at some early stage of their lives.
Spending the first few years of my life on a dairy farm made a big
impression on me. Seeing my father remove adult cows’ horns
with a saw, I think it was, was a seminal experience of my life.
Red blood spurted out of the stump, and cows bellowed with pain.
There was no anaesthetic.
It’s been on my mind for quite a while to get in touch with a vet, who may be able to
find me some more horns. Taranaki is one of the most intense dairy
areas of New Zealand so I’m a bit hopeful.
Eyeball
Today I was walking along Karangahape Road in
Auckland and noticed this eyeball in an optician’s
window.
Closer
I’ve been on a bit of a railway theme lately
so I’ve just revisited the photos that I took when I was
at Mainland Steam in Parnell on Sunday.
It’s the post before last.
Actually photos plural is an exaggeration.
There was only one other photo and this is it.
Now though, it is the one that interests me most.
There is an old adage that it brings to mind, if you want to make your
photo stronger, take a step forward.
There is definitely something going on for me in
amongst these pipes and wheels
and it is holding my attention.
That’s a good sign.
One most unusual feature with this engine is that the wheel
rims are painted white. They remind me of white wall tyres.