Cut paper and Chinese brush painting Artist, Jui Pin Chang
In the lead up to Wellington’s Chinese New Year Festival on 17 February, three artists of Asian descent have banded together to create an exhibition that aims to visually map a contemporary journey of immigration to New Zealand. ‘Moving Continents’, which is currently being shown at Mahara Gallery in Waikanae, presents the work of Tiffany Singh, Jui Pin Chang and Deb Donnelly and invites Kapiti’s community to share their migration stories.
Singh and Donnelly, are both based in New Zealand, and connected with Chang when Donnelly, a textile designer and printmaker, shared a studio with the Taiwan-based artist during a residency at China’s Dali Art Factory. Chang, a highly-skilled traditional Chinese and contemporary illustrative painter who has been prominent in the revival and evolution of cut paper and traditional Chinese brush painting is a popular artist in Taiwan, China and Europe, and was given the opportunity to be involved with the ‘Moving Continents’ exhibition after the trio secured funding from Creative New Zealand and the Asia New Zealand Foundation.
The exhibition combines traditional art-making methods with more contemporary practices including a video instillation. ‘A Journey of A Million Miles’ was created by Singh, an Auckland-based interdisciplinary artist, and captures the stories of New Zealand immigrants. It was first presented at Waiheke Island as a sculptural instillation and more recently developed into a sound booth installation at Auckland Maritime Museum.
A short series of workshops and floor talks accompanying the ‘Moving Contintents’ exhibition will introduce a blend of Chinese and New Zealand environmental arts appropriate beginner and intermediate level-artists. The show and community works will conclude with a free public show at Mahara Place on 10 February.
The three artists hope that their exhibition and workshops will explore ideas of what future communities in New Zealand will look like. Exploring stories from the 1950s today, the works will ask audiences to consider the social upheavals and impact of migration across three generations. Bringing communities together to share stories is at the heart of the show which aims to foster a sense of place, to help to build a collective understanding of where the local community comes from and to create a renewed sense of belonging.
You can visit the ‘Moving Continents’ exhibition at Mahara Gallery in Waikanae until 18 Febuary, 2018. For more information about the exhibition, workshops and Chinese New Year events head to the Chinese New Year website.
Singh and Donnelly, are both based in New Zealand, and connected with Chang when Donnelly, a textile designer and printmaker, shared a studio with the Taiwan-based artist during a residency at China’s Dali Art Factory. Chang, a highly-skilled traditional Chinese and contemporary illustrative painter who has been prominent in the revival and evolution of cut paper and traditional Chinese brush painting is a popular artist in Taiwan, China and Europe, and was given the opportunity to be involved with the ‘Moving Continents’ exhibition after the trio secured funding from Creative New Zealand and the Asia New Zealand Foundation.
The exhibition combines traditional art-making methods with more contemporary practices including a video instillation. ‘A Journey of A Million Miles’ was created by Singh, an Auckland-based interdisciplinary artist, and captures the stories of New Zealand immigrants. It was first presented at Waiheke Island as a sculptural instillation and more recently developed into a sound booth installation at Auckland Maritime Museum.
A short series of workshops and floor talks accompanying the ‘Moving Contintents’ exhibition will introduce a blend of Chinese and New Zealand environmental arts appropriate beginner and intermediate level-artists. The show and community works will conclude with a free public show at Mahara Place on 10 February.
The three artists hope that their exhibition and workshops will explore ideas of what future communities in New Zealand will look like. Exploring stories from the 1950s today, the works will ask audiences to consider the social upheavals and impact of migration across three generations. Bringing communities together to share stories is at the heart of the show which aims to foster a sense of place, to help to build a collective understanding of where the local community comes from and to create a renewed sense of belonging.
You can visit the ‘Moving Continents’ exhibition at Mahara Gallery in Waikanae until 18 Febuary, 2018. For more information about the exhibition, workshops and Chinese New Year events head to the Chinese New Year website.
Interdisciplinary and site-specific artist, Tiffany Singh
Textile designer and printmaker, Deb Donnelly
Written by
George Arthur-Amohau
Images courtesy of
Deb Donnelly
George Arthur-Amohau
Images courtesy of
Deb Donnelly
