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Toi Poneke Residents' Exhibition 2012

Thursday 25 October 2012, 4:48PM

By Wellington City Council

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WELLINGTON CITY

Toi Poneke Arts Centre is celebrating seven years of being the hub of Wellington creativity by holding a residents' exhibition from Friday 2 November to Saturday 17 November.

Eighteen artists will come together to reveal an eclectic array of artwork that gives a snapshot of what happens behind the walls of Wellington's only arts centre.

The exhibition will include photography, painting, installation, illustration, graphic design, jewellery and ceramics. Most of the work will be for sale.

There will be new work from David Brown, who is normally known for painting geometric grids. David has been exploring a new aesthetic by using curling ribbon in site-specific spaces

The pencil drawings of Pam Brabants have a documentary element and humorous twist to them. She says they have been described as cartoon observations.

"I take the perspective of narrator and throw the viewer into the trivial details, secret lives and phobias of various subcultures, social misfits and regular folk," says Brabants.

Ceramic artist Mia Hamilton - a finalist at this year's Fieldays No. 8 Wire National Art Awards - describes her work as simple and bold.

"I love creating tension with my work, smooth inside, with rough edges; shiny white glaze against matt bisque. These are not necessarily functional bowls; they are an exploration of structure and texture, demanding to be touched," say Hamilton.

Best Album Cover winner from last year's Vodafone NZ Music Awards, Nick Keller has had a studio at Toi Poneke since January 2011. Nick's day job is as a conceptual artist for Richard Taylor's Weta Workshop - working on Hollywood films like The Chronicles of Narnia, Avatar and The Hobbit.

"My current work continues in conjuring this bizarre, alternate universe that is developing through my paintings. A strange language of organic patterns emerge with each successive piece," says Keller.

Wellington City Council established Toi Poneke in 2005 to house and support emerging Wellington artists.

The centre provides studio and office space plus casual rooms for hire - including a dance studio and three music studios. More than 46 local artists have studios and a number of arts organisations have offices there.

The exhibition officially opens at 5.30pm on Thursday 1 and runs until 17 November.