Brunelle Dias is a Tāmaki-based painter whose practice is interested in the transiency of everyday life and moments. Exploring the past and present, friends and family, Dias offers a site of reflection in capturing these intimate settings – bringing the viewer into her figurative paintings and the often complex interpersonal relationships between herself and her subjects.
Currently showing as part of A Moment to Hold at the Arts House Trust at Pah Homestead, her work sits with six other women artists engaged in painting and drawing practices – Hannah Ireland, Christina Pataialii, Johanna Pegler, Kate Small, Barbara Tuck, and Ruby Wilkinson. In this space, through a range of subjects, the artists each explore the intricacies of memory, both in their lucidity and haziness alike – using painting and drawing to give form to these ideas through the act of making.
Sof had a kōrero with Brunelle Dias about the show and her overall practice.
Ruby Wilkinson is an emerging artist whose paintings explore aspects of the environment, specifically those close to her and her memories. Leaning into her surroundings as well as her painterly intuition to produce these beautiful works that dance with bold swooping gestures, and vibrant earthy colours that sing out to those saturated within nature.
Her work Parade is currently showing as part of A Moment to Hold at The Arts House Trust at Pah Homestead. An exhibition bringing together seven female artists engaged in painting and drawing, featuring works by brunelle diaz, Hannah Ireland, Christina Pataialii, Johanna Pegler, Kate Small, Barbara Tuck, and Ruby Wilkinson.
Wilkinson's work Parade showcases a stunning large scale sculptural curtain, made up of 8 calico panels that have each been treated as a painting in itself. Coming together to form a breathtaking display of movement and colour, that pulls viewers into its world of warm sun sets and memories—allowing a moment of hold within the fleeting memories of time.
Waitangi Day tomorrow will see political parties and their leaders from across parliament gathering to celebrate the anniversary of Aotearoa’s founding document. As this year is an election year, party leaders are keen to announce policies and set themselves apart from their political opponents.
In the leadup to Waitangi Day, the government has been met with accusations of participating in secret mineral trading talks with the United States. The talks follow the US announcing a proposed mineral trading bloc to reduce reliance on China. The government has been criticised for engaging in such talks without public knowledge, and for considering increasing mining despite the significant environmental impact.
For our weekly catchup with the Labour Party’s Shanan Halbert, News and Editorial director Castor asked about Waitangi Day, Labour’s policies for Māori this election, and the party’s take on secret mining discussions.
With the long-delayed opening of the city rail link due to later this year, and the government re-launching their roads of national significance, eyes have turned to a perennial problem. Why do we spend more on building than any other OECD nation yet receive far less bang for buck?
To solve these problems, the government asked the Infrastructure Commission to write a plan that could be the basis for a bipartisan infrastructure pipeline, the National Infrastructure Plan, to give us steady development and perspective on our infrastructure needs and issues.
And this week, the Employment Relations Amendment bill under ACT MP Brooke Van Veldon has reached its final reading before being put into law. It is set to overhaul our employment system, supporters say it will make it easier for contractors to get the arrangements that they want and increase work, critics say it will push workers into more precarious positions with less protections from exploitation.
For this weeks catch up with the Green Party I spoke to MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the National Infrastructure Plan and Employment Relations Amendment Bill.
GRWM is a new group exhibition showing at RM gallery. The show brings together the practices of Aria McInnes, Keani Rewha, and Rita Takeuchi, into an exploration of the performed self. The title of the show GRWM references the viral online video genre ‘Get Ready With Me’ a trend in which the personal everyday rituals of individuals are performed and shared to a public platform/audience. Each of the artists reflects on these notions through their respective practices, analysing the contemporary online behaviour that surrounds them and its effects on everyday rituals, and the navigation of everyday life.
Aria McInnes is a Tāmaki-based artist and retailer who examines how sincerity is staged across personal and private life within consumer culture through a practice of sculptural installation. Within GRWM, McInnes displays an installation of an at-home gym. Producing a mixture of found and fabricated campy gym equipment, that shifts the gallery space into a set-like stage of self improvement.
Rita Takeuchi is a Tāmaki-based artist, who produces beautiful oil paintings that seek to delve into the exploration of the diaristic everyday. Reframing the typically overlooked mundane and pulling it into a place of meditative reflection to be remembered.
Maya caught up with both Aria and Rita about the show.
"Every style, every genre has a different outlook" according to audio engineer Nick Maddren. On the cusp of the Auckland Arts Festival closing show, Maddren discusses the BIG HORNS brass project that reimagines funk, soul, disco & hip hop.
With inspiration striking in the unlikely setting of working a Robbie Williams gig, Maddren talks to Sofía about the creation of the ensemble and producing partnership with Dixon Nacey.
With a career spanning over 30 years, Maddren's role can loosely be described as the guardian of a good time. With all the technicalities of audio engineering, at the heart of his work is crowd observation and curating atmosphere. "That's how we built the show and the segues... think about how can it just keep flowing, making it interesting and showcase the players most of all. Because if they're having an amazing time, that only transcends into the audience itself and then we all have a good time."
Advice and anecdotes of shaping a musical career are shared: from how to get started to 'back in the day' record recs from the late Mu of Fat Freddy's Drop.
These past two weeks have seen traffic in the city peaking, with the start of March Madness heralded in by students returning to university and people returning to work. While Auckland Council is working to bolster public transport services, some parts of the city still run into major congestion issues.
This past week has also seen discussions around Planning Change 120, more commonly referred to as PC120. While the plan initially proposed a housing cap of 2 million for Auckland, the government has pushed for it to be reduced to 1.6 million.
The council has responded with a set of compensatory changes that would focus on reducing sprawl and boosting CBD intensification. Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown spoke particularly strongly on the changes, indicating that if the government did not accept the change, they would stick to the original 2 million target.
For City Counselling this week, News Director Castor spoke to councillor Shane Henderson about each of these issues, beginning with March Madness.
95bFM