SOCA gallery is proud to present a much-anticipated solo exhibition by Zarahn Southon, the 2005 recipient of the Martin Hughes Contemporary Pacific Art scholarship and finalist of the Adam Portraiture Art Awards in 2006 and 2008.
Since 2006, Southon has been attending rigorous Atelier training in Italy and France. In 2007 he received the Waterway Scholarship from the prestigious Studio Escalier in Argenton (France) where he developed a deeper understanding of the human form and gained a greater artistic confidence.
Studio Escalier was founded by Timothy Stotz, Michelle Tully and Anthony Ryder, former students of the Internationally recognized master Ted Seth Jacobs who in turn was taught by the American Dumond, the teacher to Georgia O’Keeffe and Norman Rockwell. Studio Escalier’s primary focus of learning from one’s predecessors, secured the school’s lineage back to Carracci and Caravaggio.
The experience gained at Escalier has lead to the series of paintings ‘Studio Works’. As the title suggests, Zarahn Southon’s concentrated efforts in the studio are the focus. Refining, interpreting and exploring the knowledge from his recent training.
‘Studio Works’ is Southon’s first New Zealand exhibition in over two years and the first to feature his new works following this intensive training. Moving away from the allegorical paintings which earned him considerable critical acclaim - in ‘Studio Works’, Southon presents works that are smaller in scale and stripped of any political commentary and grand historical narratives.
‘A comparison of works from either side of these experiences shows the impact that exposure to proponents of realism has had on the work of the painter who had previously been lauded as New Zealand’s Lucian Freud.’ (Sandra Gilliam, Following the Masters, Art New Zealand issue 128, Spring 2008, p.34)
Taking the traditional art historical genres of still life, self-portraiture and the nude, Southon showcases his exquisite draftsmanship, fine detailing and technical brilliance – affirming his position within the context of Classical Realism and the European tradition of a master’s studio.
‘My new work deals with representing space and depth and is a demonstration of the two years I have spent in Ateliers overseas. It was there that I was able to tap into a more contemporary approach to the classical tradition, where there was no sense of nostalgia for the past, only forward movement through the approach to figure drawing and painting.’ (Zarahn Southon, 2008)
Zarahn Southon has mounted seven successful solo exhibitions between 2000 and 2005 and currently teaches life drawing at the Auckland University of Technology and Ponsonby’s Artstation.
Of the process which is central to his artistic practice, Southon says: ‘My study of form starts with a series of drawings or block-in sketches and may move onto resolved work if I want to seek further clarity. I want to analyse and describe the fall of light or see how planes in nature repeat with subtle variations or how objects are related to one another through gestural curves. My environment is conducive to this and I set my studio in relation to a controlled light source where countless hours are spent on drawing, sketches and colour studies.’
Zarahn Southon is of Maori descent with affiliations to the central North Island tribe of Ngati Tuwharetoa.
Welcome to ‘Studio Works’. |
Solo Exhibitions
2008 “Studio Works” SOCA gallery, Auckland, NZ
2005 “Istoria” Milford Galleries Auckland, NZ
2004 “Untitled” Mcpherson Gallery, Auckland, NZ
2003 “Cimmerii” Milford Galleries Dunedin, South Island
2002 “Cameo Project” Te Tuhi – the Mark, Auckland, NZ
“Corpus” Mcpherson Gallery, Auckland, NZ
2001 “Humanals” Mcpherson Gallery, Auckland, NZ
2000 “Pintura” Pakuranga Public Gallery, Auckland, NZ
Selected Group Exhibitions
2006 The Angel Academy, Florence, Italy
Ngati Tuwharetoa Cultural Festival, Taupo, NZ
2005 Milford Galleries Stock Show, Auckland, NZ
B.M.W Awards, Auckland NZ
National Portrait Competition, Wellington, NZ
2004 “Portrait of Dorian Grey”, Studio of Contemporary Art, Auckland, NZ
Wallace Trust Art Awards, Auckland, NZ
National Portrait Competition, Wellington, NZ
2003 “Portraiture – the art of social commentary”, Te Tuhi – the mark, Auckland, NZ
“Overview Figurative Work”, Milford Galleries Dunedin, South Island, NZ
2002 Wallace Trust Art Awards, Auckland, NZ
1997 “From Here to There”, Hawaii, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu
1996 “Six Pack – Polynesian artists touring show”, Taupo District Museum of Art and History, Whakatane Museum and Art Gallery, Devonport Depot Art Space, NZ
Residencies
2006 Studio Escalier, Argenton, France
2004 Howick College Art Department, Auckland, NZ
1999 Pakuranga Community and Cultural Centre, Auckland, NZ
Publications
Art New Zealand, Spring Edition, 2008, Auckland, NZ
New York Art Magazine website, Tips & Pic’s directory, 2006, USA
Art News, Spring edition 2006, Auckland, NZ
Pacifica Magazine, Autumn edition 2006, Auckland, NZ
Tu Mai Magazine, October 5th 2005, Wellington, NZ
B-guided Magazine, Spring Edition 2005, Auckland, NZ
State of the Arts, May Edition 2004, Australia
“A History of the Life Model in New Zealand Art”, by Sandra Chesterman,
Canterbury Press Publications 2002 |
