Havelock North Metal Girls Katie Baptiste and Amy Lynch creating unique art

Sisters Katie Baptiste and Amy Lynch have opened a workshop, studio and gallery for their business METcALfe Art at the former Te Mata Mushrooms site in Havelock North. Photo / Warren Buckland

If there were ever two sisters doing it for themselves it has to be Katie Baptiste and Amy Lynch, otherwise known as the Metal Girls.

The artists have recently opened a workshop, studio and gallery METcALfe Art at the former Te Mata Mushrooms site in Havelock North.

They say they never intended to have a business, they just wanted a place to be creative. “We have always loved art. You could say it’s in our blood. We sat around the dining table as kids creating things,” Katie said.

Metcalfe is their maiden name and the caps just so happen to spell Metal which is what their art is all about.

Their dad always said “follow your nose” and that’s how the sisters from the UK landed in Hawke’s Bay making art from 44-gallon drums.

“We followed our noses, made do with what we had and when things felt right we hit the accelerator,” Amy said.

Amy came to New Zealand in 2004 as “the souvenir of my husband’s OE”.

“He is originally from Auckland. We moved to Hawke’s Bay in 2005 and I was lucky enough to work for David Trubridge for 10 years. They were great days and I loved them. By the time I left in 2015, I was chief designer but I wanted to be a mum.”

Katie landed on Aotearoa’s shores in 2015.

“We love spending time with each other making the business work. We laugh every day. We do however have a magic wand for harder times. No comment on who it gets used on the most,” Katie said with a laugh.

“METcALfe is for us and about us but at the same time it’s not about us. It’s about loads of other people. We currently have four exhibitions across the country and are preparing for one at the end of the year.”

They recently opened a solo show in Hamilton supported by Zebrano which used their exhibition as a backdrop for a photoshoot.

“It went all over the world.”

How it started

Pre Covid lockdown Amy was driving past Arataki Honey in Havelock North and noticed some bright blue 44-gallon drums outside. She went in and asked about them and they gave her three.

“They were still sticky so I cleaned them up and made a metal prawn. I made another out of red honey drums, took them to Birdwoods Gallery in Havelock North and they sold in a weekend,” Amy said.

Amy Lynch and Katie Baptiste are hard at work making art from 44-gallon drums. Photo / Warren Buckland

She posted a picture of them on social media and tagged in Smoking Joe’s Honey in Taupo. They contacted her asking if she could do a bee for them.

The sisters went on a tiki tour taking the bee to Taupo and that was the beginning. People wanted to get rid of their drums and Katie and Amy had the perfect solution.

“We have never been short of opportunities or ideas. We have also been lucky enough to meet the right people who have encouraged us.”

Katie says the business has its own personality. “It’s like having another female in the mix. We get asked a lot if we get snippy with each other. We have never fallen out. There are certain projects you are passionate about so you take the lead, and the other helps.

Timeline

The sisters started experimenting in 2020, making sunflowers. They made 130 and took them along to the Wildflower Sculpture Exhibition. They had six left at the end of the exhibition.

The same thing happened at the Walk of Wonder show, by March the next year they were working fulltime.

At the end of 2021, Amy went abroad for a year so Katie was flat out preparing for Art in the Park in Auckland. Their friend Tam Macken came and helped out.

“She would arrive with a smile, food and helping hands. It was a very busy year. Last year we had more growth and decided to move onto this site. It’s great, we have a clean dry space to showcase our work and we love having people visit the gallery. We have school groups in and during the Hawke’s Bay Art Trail, we had more than 200 people visit us. It was really buzzing.”

The sisters say not one of the four years has been rinse and repeat and although at the moment it’s slower on sales it’s bigger in opportunities.

“There’s lots going on and as commercial designers, we are always on the lookout.”

Some of the metal artwork made by sisters Amy Lynch and Katie Baptiste. Photo / Warren Buckland

While METcALfe has bigger art pieces they also have many small pieces. Amy says she loves that about their business. “You can buy a “piece of us” and then add it to your art collection later.”

Katie loves the fact that she can do something she loves.

“We want everyone to be able to enjoy our art. Most people can’t believe our work is made from drums.”

In 2017 their mum moved to New Zealand. “It’s great having her here.”

While they say the work can be physically demanding they love it.

“We are two people working together. We have a vision, and energy and people connect with that energy. It brings us joy.”

* Linda Hall is a Hastings-based assistant editor for Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 30 years of experience in newsrooms. She writes regularly on arts and entertainment, lifestyle and hospitality, and pens a column.