Ben Reid 

Island of dreams

I created Island of dreams in response to news that the current government had
vetoed plans to create a gigantic 620,000sq kilometer ocean sanctuary surrounding
the Kermadec Islands. I was so disappointed.
We humans are slowly waking up to how important the oceans are to the earths
overall environmental health so to me; this decision made no sense at all.
I have a history in my work of incorporating tied or restrained subject matter.
This is a metaphor for the difficulties that native species experience in the face of the
onslaught of environmental changes, invasions and pressure.
I have always harbored a fascination with Islands and their history and the
Kermadec’s are no different.
They have been described as the ‘Island of dreams’, Stories abound of the
expectation and promise they offered. In resent history very little of these dreams
have ever materialized.

Absolute lunacy

In this multi plate woodcut absolute lunacy, I’m interested in the disparity between
conservation efforts on land and sea.
I am reflecting on how much attention, funding and effort is afforded to Kākāpō
protection and restoration for example, as opposed to that of our marine species.
The survival of both is as important as each other.
I asked myself how could I create a successful and engaging picture that goes some
way to exploring this question?
Smashing a shark and a bird together was my solution!
Bill Ballentine is a hero. He was a sandal wearing, parker clad stoic and dedicated
marine scientist who was instrumental in establishing the first marine reserve at Goat
Island in Northland in 1985. In doing so birthed modern marine conservation
thinking.

Sue Cooke

Ghost Oak
An exhibition of Monoprints
Deforestation has been my primary subject for 10 years now. Most of my past ideas have centred around the
indigenous forest species of Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia.
Early on in my reading and research for the subject of deforestation I was impressed with Simon Scharma’s book
Landscape and Memory. Addressing the long term history of the European and English primeval forest, he took a
deep dive into the demise of the Oak.
When exploring ideas for this exhibition I was in Christchurch helping move my mother from the family home of 52
years. It was a time of nostalgia and reflection. As if it was meant to be, I surprised myself, at how quickly I wove a
thread of connection between Oak trees, my life and the concepts of Protection, Shelter, Loss and Regeneration.
My English father, despite living in Australia and New Zealand since his early 20’s never gave up on his love of the
Oak tree. The small oak seedling he planted and nurtured at our bach in Katoomba in the Blue Mountains of
Australia never seemed to get any larger despite the love that was lavished on it. Later in New Zealand he, like
myself, biked daily through Hagley Park and enjoyed the shade during summer and absorbed the other seasonal
changes of the gentle giants. I understand from, Ruth McCracken, the Hagley Park Oaks, when planted, were
perfectly spaced in the late 1800’s so that their branch tips just touched 100 years later.
The 100 year old oak that graced and overhung the entrance to my home of 30 years in Whanganui is a beautiful
specimen. It is a tree that my husband, children and I all loved. Its branches overhung the driveway and garden
dipping low to the ground. Autumn was a time of work, raking and moving many barrow loads of leaves and acorns,
all the while loving the ambience and shelter. Our property was always warmer and less affected by wind as a result
of this significant historic tree. The local tribe of quail loved to eat the acorn grit created by the movement of car
tyres.
Two major storms in Whanganui in both 2004 and 2017 tore limbs from the oak trees leaving a trail of devastation akin
to having had a bomb tear through the area. Many oak trees in the Whanganui area were so badly damaged they
had to be felled. In the 2017 storm our family almost lost an 80 year old oak as the centre was twisted out of it. The
tree was saved thanks to an amazing tree whisperer, who along with his team of men, roped up and climbed bit by
bit across the substantial canopy, pruning it back to sound and visually re balancing the branches. The tree appeared
sick for 3 or 4 years and then magically regained its vigour and health.
The preparatory drawings, for this exhibition, were made in Hagley Park, Christchurch, near Helmores Lane and Deans
Avenue, and at Peat Park, Whanganui. I have chosen to use the collagraph technique in both intaglio and relief, as it
lends itself easily to a vast array of textures, layers and embossing. It is a good match for the stature of the Oak.