Northland artist Scott McFarlane on show at Milbank

Bill Milbank with Scott McFarlane's <i>Whangaroa Song </i>on show at the gallery this week. Photo/Bevan Conley

Alice Tyler, curatorial assistant at Auckland's Gus Fisher Gallery, has described Scott McFarlane as a "visual and aural magpie".

She went on to write that he "litters his work with references to history, art history, politics and poetry. Headlines in the newspaper, conversations with friends, and radio interviews also make their way into McFarlane's artwork."

Recent Works is an exhibition of McFarlane's mainly oil on board paintings currently showing at Whanganui's WHMilbank Gallery.

Bill Milbank says McFarlane, born in Wellington in 1966, completed a Diploma of Fine Arts with honours at Otago School of Art in 1993.

"He has exhibitied regularly in New Zealand in private and public galleries and has works in numerous private and public collections."

The artist now lives in Kerikeri and some of the paintings in Recent Works feature Northland landscapes.

The Emperor's New Clothes is a large oil on board painting showing a diversity of misty figures emerging from a coastal landscape.

Scott McFarlane's Recent Works is on show at WHMilbank Gallery, 1B Bell St until August 2. Gallery hours 11am-5pm Tuesday to Sunday.