TRANSFORMED review by James Dignan Printed in the ODT 19/1/12

The title of Benjamin King’s exhibition at A Gallery carries multiple layers of meaning. On the purely prosaic level, “Transformed” refers to the recycled material used by the artist for his art. The title also refers more spiritually to the biblical themes touched on in the exhibition, and the eternal conflict between the soul and the flesh. Transformation is also key to the artist’s inspiration – a specific biblical passage in which Jacob wrestles with a mysterious figure, after which his name was changed to Israel. On a more playful level, the title has further meaning – the science-fictional figures which the artist has created are strongly reminiscent of the “Transformer” toys which convert from one form to another. In King’s works, two giant figures stand opposed ready to lock together in battle. The wooden figures are luridly coloured steampunk robots whose forms were inspired by an old tabletop wrestling game, and they have been well crafted with humour and attention to detail. A third sculpture hangs on a wall nearby. Created from card coated in sand, it shows a meticulous aerial fly-by of Jerusalem, yet in the company of the two robots it appears almost as a science-fictional space battle-cruiser. Again, the attention to detail makes this a very attractive work.

NO EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP

a gallery presents NO EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP featuring latest season jewelry from UNDERGROUND SUNDAE (Annemieke Ytsma), Jess Kitto and Sharon Singer. Clothing and accessories by, T R FRANC (Tara Young and Molly Francesca Barrington), TRASH SKATES (Sam Robertson) and Vandal Apparel (Jay Hutchinson) Record Sleeves by Mr Sam Ovens and more to come…Exploit Christmas…it is the season….happy holidays from a gallery

Extended hours 12:00 to 6:00pm Friday and Saturday. OPENING Saturday 10th of December from 12:00 Drinks and Guest DJ’s from 5:00pm…

Closes on the 1st of January 1012

http://www.agallerypresents.wordpress.com

 

Gary McMillan SECTOR 8 Review by Franky Strachan Printed in the ODT 17/11/11

The four greyscale paintings that comprise “Sector 8” seize the walls of the A Gallery with distinctive temporal intensity. They are realist works, taken from films that the Auckland-based artist has made for the sole purpose of later painting from them. The paintings produced are thus “life-stills” rather than portraits or urban landscapes in the categorical sense. The idea (now successfully accomplished) was to capture natural movements amid visually intelligible, but inconclusive, narrative scenes.Often, in film, one is most captivated by that which is not revealed, and while the beholder is stunned by McMillan’s scrupulous detailing and resolute compositional awareness, they are also left speculating about the wider sequence from which these scenes have been plucked. This focus is emphasised by both the titles of the works (Scene 5, for example) and the title of the exhibition itself – “Sector 8” – which alludes to the post-apocalyptic, sci-fi film genre. Curator Jay Hutchinson was at liberty to orchestrate the works at will and, given the sequential nature of “Sector 8”, he should be given credit for arranging the exhibition in a way that has so smoothly endorsed the integrity and completeness of each piece, while upholding their function in creating a coherent and stimulating whole.