Glasgow St artist-in-residence Sarah Zeissen has been productive in her temporary studio and will leave behind her contribution for the Heads Road exhibition. Photo/Stuart Munro
There is a lot going on in the guest studio at Glasgow St Arts Centre in Whanganui this month.
Rotorua artist Sarah Zeissen has been in residence for four weeks and has a number of works in progress.
"It is such a good residency because I have complete freedom to choose my own projects," she says.
"I planned to work on a series of Rotorua landscapes but when I got here I thought 'Why would I paint Rotorua while I'm in Whanganui'?"
An acrylic painting inspired by the grass growing along the verge outside the arts centre reveals a surprising variety of shades and textures.
"I was quite fascinated by it because the grass here is quite different from what I see in Rotorua."
Three paintings on round board are made with pastels, oil paints and wax - a fairly new medium for the artist.
"I'm enjoying experimenting with the wax but it requires careful handling as it cracks easily."
The works depict symbols which Zeissen says she created with future generations in mind.
"I was thinking about the massive atomic waste dump in the US and what sort of symbols you would use to warn people of the future not to dig there.
"When you think of Egyptian hieroglyphs and what they intended to tell us, you realise that we need to think hard about the symbolism we are using now."
Primarily a painter, Zeissen also creates mixed media pieces and she has completed a work for the Rayner Brothers' Heads Road end-of-year-exhibition.
Forty artists have been supplied with a polystyrene head to use as a blank canvas for cranial-themed works.
This artist has covered hers with paper mache, added a set of headphones and geometric face decorations.
In August, Zeissen was the winner of the 2018 National Contemporary Art Award for You and Me, The Weight of History - two wearable looking jackets constructed from paint skins.
Exploring the way people communicate their personal and cultural identities through patterns is a recurring theme for Zeissen.
"It can range from innocuous symbolism to crazy.
"I'm interested in what's hidden under the carpet - it can be ugly and I aim to make it beautiful which can be challenging."
Heads Rd opens at the Rayner Brothers Gallery on November 23 alongside Rachael Garland's You Swing, I Sway at Gallery 85.
'I can't stress enough that once your dog has signs, you're too late.'