The Creative Cup exhibition and auction will feature next month at the Quarry Arts Centre Yvonne Rust Gallery. Photo / Michael Cunningham
The Creative Cup exhibition and auction will feature next month at the Quarry Arts Centre Yvonne Rust Gallery. Photo / Michael Cunningham
The annual Quarry Arts Centre fundraiser is back, but this year plates will not take centre stage.
Those aware of Whangārei’s art scene will know it as the ‘Great Plate’ but this year’s exhibition has been dubbed the ‘Creative Cup’.
Gallery manager Hannah Mitchell had already had a giant version of the ‘Tallest Drink’ land on her desk, but she’s expecting more weird and wonderful cups to arrive as the exhibition date draws closer.
Around 100 vessels of all shapes, sizes and materials from about 85 artists are likely to feature at the event which will this year raise money for a range of important upgrades at the centre.
“This one’s a bit of a change. It took some people by surprise and it took some people by excitement. Cups are actually easier to make than plates so we’ve got a lot of people making their own cups.
“A lot of the public are familiar with the great plate and what comes out of that and we’ve seen phenomenal riffs on what a plate can be turned into. And so we’re definitely seeing that with the cups as well,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell is expecting materials to range from stitching, wood, clay, and ceramic.
There have also been 60 cups made by potters Marilyn Wheeler, Julie Cromwell and Anabelle McCusker which will be decorated by artists.
These cups will soon be decorated in all sorts of creative ways as part of an upcoming exhibition.
One of the first cups to arrive for the exhibition was Kevin Martins’ ‘Tallest Drink in Town’.
The former pastry chef 20 months ago hung up his kitchen apron to pursue a career in ceramics.
Using the pottery wheel and generator from the back of his van, he’s been able to ‘throw’ on the wheel in various locations from the bush to the beach.
Mitchell said it has been “lot of work” to get the Creative Cup event up and running - fielding emails, sharing the event on social media and making sure the event is online.
“The reward is getting these [works] turning out on my front desk,” she said.
This year the auction will operate two weeks after the gallery has been open so the public can enjoy the show and decide what to bid on.
The ‘Creative Cup’ exhibition is due to open on Friday, July 12 at 5pm. Drinks and nibbles will be available. The public will then be able to bid on items from Saturday, July 27 to Friday, August 2 which will include a closing party and nibbles.
