is a light-hearted play on hard materials and the dynamic generated in the interaction between an artist's goals and the medium employed to give form to that intent. Hard materials are true to themselves and their inherent characteristics help shape the work the artist produces.
ROBYN IRWIN is a glass artist producing distinctive painterly effects unusual in the medium. Inspired by New Zealand's volcanic landscapes, she eschews the conventional translucency of her medium and employs opaque glass to suggest the patterns solidified in rock as viscous molten lava cools. In less than a decade of practice as a glass artist, Irwin has established an impressive track record with work in public and private collections in New Zealand, Australia and the United States including Te Papa, the Ebeltoft Glass Museum in Denmark and Elton John.
SOPELEMALAMA FILIPE TOHI is a leading Polynesian sculptor who works with a range of materials including wood, stone and steel to create three-dimensional sculptures that represent a contemporary rendering of the traditional pan-Polynesian lashing (lalava) used on houses, canoes and tools. In abstracting this ancient technology, he weaves past and present, Polynesian and western art, to create distinctive new forms that speak to as much to geometric abstraction as to his own heritage. Tongan-raised, Tohi has lived in New Zealand for 30 years. He has worked full-time as an artist since 1990 and has exhibited widely throughout the world. He has major public sculptures in New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Japan and China.
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