Catherine Macdonald, Kyla Cresswell, Prue MacDougall and Nan Mulder exhibit ‘small holes in the silence’ featuring new and recent artworks.

Anchored by the exhibition title from the Hone Tuwhare poem Rain, the artists are connected in their individual exploration of environment, atmosphere and language. The impact of rain is felt throughout the works—in depictions of wetlands, roaring waterfalls, looming icebergs, dry landscapes and mythological figures like nymphs and dryads that celebrate nature. Words from the poem flow across the wall as embossed artworks and artist books invite closer inspection. The audience is invited to evaluate their own connection to the poem and their environment.

 

“We have been given the use of kōwhao iti ana i te marino/ small holes in the silence, a line from Hone Tuwhare’s poem Ua/Rain. It is a poem that resonates with us all; in the poem Tuwhare speaks to rain as an equal, a friend, a lover and acknowledges that if he was gone the rain would continue. A commonality with our work is our strong connection to place, be it Murihiku,Tāmaki Makaurau, Piopiotahi or Whanganui. With these works we are telling the natural world that it is seen - that it has been heard.”
- Catherine Macdonald

    
All four artists are widely versed in intaglio printmaking and ‘small holes in the silence’ consists primarily of works on paper. The exhibition features a range of intaglio printmaking processes including etching, drypoint, mezzotint, photopolymer etching as well as wall hangings on silk, artist books, drawing and silverpoint.

This group of artists have exhibited widely together in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia and in international group shows.

The artists gratefully acknowledge Rob Tuwhare and the Hone Tuwhare Estate for permission to use text from the poem Rain by Hone Tuwhare.