The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery showcases the latest developments in contemporary New Zealand art in Break: Construct, one of its trio of summer shows.

Curated by new Gallery Director Rhana Devenport, Break: Construct is the latest instalment in Break – an acclaimed series of Govett-Brewster biannual exhibitions.  It explores construction, the assembly of our surroundings as things comprehensible, experiential or fantastic.

Devenport says, “The show offers alternating perspectives and experimentations that encircle and perhaps unsettle ideas around construction and accumulation.”

The artists included in Break: Construct work with scale and perception, changing the character of objects, substances and spaces through composition, association and visual play. 

This eclectic exhibition presents the work of new generation New Zealand artists Ben Cauchi, Simon Denny, Simon Lawrence, Peter Madden, Sam Morrison, Seung Yul Oh, Marnie Slater, Yvonne Todd and art-rock band Cortina.

Sculpture, installation, sound, photography, video and performance all feature in this playful and thought-provoking exhibition.

The two photographers in the show look at other worlds. Ben Cauchi’s photographs evoke a world of the past. Using arcane techniques he employs a visual language that recalls the nineteenth century when illusion, containment and suggestion were paramount.  2002 Walters Prize winner Yvonne Todd’s works draw on the traditions of portrait and product photography to create images that are compelling and unnerving.

Simon Lawrence’s work Payer machine 4 also has somewhat other-worldly and mystic qualities with its imaginary trajectories drawn in space using light-bulbs.

Construction and re-purposing of everyday materials is another recurring aspect of the exhibition. Simon Denny creates casual sculptures from objects found, bought, gathered and made. Sam Morrison inhabits the Gallery with sound-emitting works compiled from previously discarded materials. Peter Madden plunders the pages of National Geographic to create his sculptural and collaged offerings.
 
Marnie Slater looks at changing architecture, introducing another level to the Gallery. Her one person viewing platform provokes consideration of exhibition making and modes of viewing, allowing visitors to see other artists’ work from a new perspective.  Seung Yul Oh’s work also responds to the Gallery’s unique architecture as well as the social surrounds. His scenarios for Break:Construct are created with the various elements in animated conversation with one another.

Devenport says all the artists have worked in innovative and unexpected ways with construction.

“Break: Construct engages with the ideas and sensibilities of a strong and fresh gathering of younger New Zealand artists who are exploring new takes on perception, materiality, sound and spatial environments,” she says.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue produced by the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery and available through the Gallery’s Art and Design Shop from January.

Break: Construct 16 December - 18 February 2007.

For more information contact hannahl@govettbrewster.com.