Eight Hawke's Bay Artists contribute to exhibition

Kathy Boyle, Terrie Reddish, and Cate Godwin are three of eight Hawke's Bay artists, and others from around the country, who have created the Thinking Unfolding exhibition. Photo / Paul Taylor

Eight Hawke's Bay artists have collaborated with print artists from around New Zealand for a touring exhibition that explores the idea of the artist book.

Kathy Boyle, Julie Henderson, Cate Godwin, Pam Hastings, Terrie Reddish, Gracen Salisbury, Bev Trillo and Lisa Feyen from Hawke's Bay have contributed work to the Print Council of Aotearoa New Zealand (PCANZ) touring exhibition Thinking Unfolding.

Currently showing at Hastings City Gallery, the artists "expand on and explore the idea of the artist book by taking the concept of a book further, creating art objects inspired by the form and/or function of a book".

Works use a range of techniques and materials that extend beyond traditional printmaking.

Julie has a background in textile art then bookbinding in 1990 led to a natural progression to printmaking in 2002.

Land of the Mist is inspired by Lake Waikaremoana, where she spends time with family.

"The natural beauty of Lake Waikaremoana and Te Urewera National Park is my inspiration for my book, printed images, eco-dyed plant material, letterpress."

Another piece, Emergence created with fellow exhibiting artist Pam, is inspired by the Keirunga Gardens, the fire that burnt down the creative hub there and the rebuild.

Cate's work in this exhibition is titled You wouldn't judge ME by my cover, would you? and is a collaborative piece created with her daughter Emily Revell who lives in Wellington.

It is an old piece of cardboard which is repurposed into a 'book' and is a large collaged wall piece which incorporates Cate's prints in various media and the face of a teenage girl created by Emily in high school.

"Trust in each other's decision making was essential to its success."

Terrie's piece Just My Type is essentially a type sampler – a way for her to provide prospective clients with examples of typefaces available at her print studio . Her book is a traditional piece using the new oriental binding technique which allows her to incorporate pages with pockets that hold sample cards.

"I love to use old equipment and traditional skills to create contemporary artworks.

"Much of my work incorporates a play on words and is designed to encourage the observer to think about how the piece was created."

Bev's journey to printmaking started when she was studying at EIT's IdeaSchool and she is inspired by the small details, colours and patterns in the natural environment.

Her piece Hands in Nature was created through eco-dyeing – a process using natural plant material. The book was then overlaid with a linocut print of her hands, along with subtle embossing.

Kathy and Lisa's collaborative piece After the Storm was created over several days working together, screenprinting and stitching to produce the large, deconstructed book.

Lisa and her family collected plastic debris from a beach which Kathy used to create the background of the pages by dyeing, printing and fusing the plastic onto canvas fabric.

"I tend to push the boundaries of printmaking enjoying the problem-solving challenges this presents. My immediate rural surroundings and concerns for the environment are often reflected in my work," Kathy says.

Thinking Unfolding also features other works from print artists around New Zealand and runs until August 22.