Current Exhibition

Chambers Art Gallery

Siene de Vries – Josh Bashford – Rebecca Smallridge – Tony O’Grady

Siene de Vries Josh Bashford Rebecca Smallridge Tony O'Grady

Showing 27th November 2024 - 21st December 2024

Exhibition Information

Siene de Vries – Josh Bashford – Rebecca Smallridge – Tony O’Grady - Siene de Vries Josh Bashford Rebecca Smallridge Tony O'Grady

 

Siene de Vries – Coast

For the past 36 years now, looking out of the kitchen window in the morning, I see a bit of that great expanse of water which is the Pacific Ocean. Large parts of Aotearoa/New Zealand are surrounded by it. While the world is in turmoil with wars, pollution and climate change, the beauty and variety of these coastlines are a refuge for me and never cease to enthral. They are the inspiration for these paintings.

 

Josh Bashford – Out Pouring

The vibrancy of these artworks invites a depth of contemplation, as if each mark is a gateway into something sacred. Layers of fragments—cars, sheep, cattle, birds, fish, flounders, stingrays, faces, suffering servant figures, diving forms, whale-like creatures, bicycles, fish, and forks—all find their place amidst a tapestry of rich color. Each piece feels alive, compelling the viewer to pause, to gaze, and to wonder, as though something hidden and profound is gradually being unveiled.
This invitation to wonder echoes the mystery of faith itself: “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15 NIV). In this way, each fragment in the art hints at a greater, unseen wholeness—Christ, the embodiment of all things in heaven and on earth, holding them together in perfect unity. The chaotic beauty of these elements, seemingly unconnected, reflects a divine reconciliation that is far from simple, yet profoundly real.
“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,” Paul writes, “and through him to reconcile to himself all things… by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:19-20 NIV). The scenes within these works suggest a similar reconciliation, a gathering of disparate images bound together by the colors, textures, and patterns that echo themes of suffering and redemption. The fish and flounders, the sheep and cattle, and even the mundane items—forks and bicycles—serve as pieces of a world redeemed, in their ordinary beauty, through an extraordinary sacrifice.
Though once “alienated from God” and lost in our own divisions, these images invite the viewer to a space of re-connection, presenting them “holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:21-22 NIV). In standing before these works, one might begin to sense the weight of being seen, known, and reconciled, woven into the fabric of creation and faith alike.

Artist statement – Rebecca Smallridge -‘Reverence’

‘… For me, the door to the woods is the door to the temple’ – Mary Oiver, 2016

I’m interested in drawing attention to the inherent beauty and ecological value of wild
places, whilst examining the connections within nature and humanity's vital role of land
stewardship. My new suite of paintings investigate ways of capturing the energy or
‘essence of place’ which we may experience in moments of awe and wonder for the
natural world. I’ve captured these personal moments, from reference, memory or
imagined, that blur the seen and unseen, to visually capture the mauri or life force
present in Aotearoa’s indigenous forests.

Tony O’Grady – Watchman

Full Exhibition Works

Siene de Vries – Josh Bashford – Rebecca Smallridge – Tony O’Grady - Siene de Vries Josh Bashford Rebecca Smallridge Tony O'Grady

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