Category: Nik Hanton

When I saw the Eva Rothschild exhibition at Wellington City Gallery I was as drawn to the shadows cast by the works as much as I was drawn to the works themselves. Both were remarkable. I’m wanting to play with shadow in my work for the Te Uru show. The title of my work is… Continue reading Shadow

There are so many times in making when talking through your work helps to clarify/solidify your thought processes- provided you’re talking with the right person. I had my kōrerorero with Sian van Dyke from the Dowse Art Museum and it offered just that. In explaining my approach it helped me to further confirm my direction.… Continue reading Kōrerorero

The showing of Eva Rothschild’s, Kosmos, at the Wellington City Gallery couldn’t have happened at a better time for me. I’ve already been looking at her work intently over the last few months so the opportunity to see it in person is excellent. While the above work, ‘Tooth and Claw’ (2018), is part of the… Continue reading Art you can dismantle

Wherever I look things seem to appear in threes… even when I’m not aware of it… i am i . you are you . .  

The works I’ve been given to respond to are made by a trinity of artists I’ve long admired. It’s a daunting prospect, but an invigorating one. It’d be daunting enough to respond to each artists’ work in isolation, but to respond to them in concert with each other is another level again. The questions I’ve been asking myself… Continue reading The trinity of artists – CODA

I’ve been working on the idea of creating a series of modern “totems”. This raises the question of cultural appropriation for me. While I won’t be using motifs from any culture apart from my own, even the term “totem” sits uncomfortably with me. The issue is that I can’t think of a better word to… Continue reading Totem – Te Uru

When a collection of works is in response to a gallery space the volume and shape of the space can (potentially) over-ride/rule the works, if we let it. What if we “strangled the space” and bent it to our will rather than being beholden to it? The space becomes no less important with the strangling.… Continue reading Strangling space

My personality is one that thrives on order. While not a precise person by nature I do like things to be “tidy”. There’s something about a zig-zag that fits perfectly with my desire for order and my inability to subscribe to strict precision. Terhi Tolvanen has entitled the piece of hers, that I am to… Continue reading “Zig-Zag”

I love words and I love discovering words that describe concepts concisely and precisely. When I saw the word “Unicum” on the sheet next to the Jantje Fleischhut work I’ll be responding to from the CODA Museum collection I was excited. UNICUM: “A unique example or specimen”. What a perfect word. The word has the same… Continue reading Unicum

I’ve been carefully reviewing the works that I have been given to respond to; making notes, playing with materials and researching the artists work. I’ve received three artists’ works: one from Evert Nijland, Tehri Tolvanen, and Jantje Fleishut. These artists all use materials and techniques in unexpected ways- fitting perfectly with the ‘innovation’ theme. They mix precious… Continue reading Springboard