Pixel Ink

Lyrical Dreamscapes

1 – 19 July 2009

Opening preview: Wednesday 1 July 5.30 – 7.30pm

Exhibition Statement:

“Lyrical Dreamscapes” is born from a shared desire as friends to step out of the creatively restrictive perimeters of our conceptual-based study and workplaces, enabling us to exercise our illustrative abilities and bring it into a Gallery context. The works featured are inspired by music and lyrics as they play into our lives and influence our creativity. Our three unique styles are brought together to take you on a Dreamlike journey through a Lyrical Realm.

Supported by

Artist Statement – Jo Cringle:

Jo Cringle is currently in her third year of a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Massey University. Brought up in Gisborne / Whakatane, she now calls Wellington home.
This is her second collaborative exhibition, her first entitled “Beginnings” was alongside fellow artist Alysha Macaulay at Farsite Gallery just before heading off on her O.E in 2005. While enjoying being challenged to a more conceptual approach to art in her studies, she will always consider Illustration and Painting her primary outlet.
In “Lyrical Dreamscapes” her paintings take the viewer into dark yet warm imaginary spaces. Inspired by her own nostalgic or heartfelt tunes, her works depict elements of emotion and spirituality through imagery symbolic and derivative of personal experience. She is open to commissions.

Artist Statement – Lauren McGrath:

Lauren McGrath is a contemporary Abstract Expressionist with a passion for visual texture, form and colour. She was born in Northern Ireland and raised in the cultural and artistic city of Wellington.
Her fascination with art from a young age culminated in her studying Fine Arts at Massey University for six years. Primarily interested in exploring the elements of painting, Massey challenged her to explore and adopt new techniques which resulted in a series of time-based (film and video) installation art.
Her current series of paintings are fantastical landscapes of surreal beauty; vibrant and evocative inluenced by artists such as Wassily Kandinsky and Jackson Pollock.

Artist Statement – Melissa Jenkins:

Melissa Jenkins is an illustration based artist with a background in graphic design and illustration, currently living in Auckland. Born in Christchurch New Zealand in ’84, but having lived in 11 different towns and cities since, the influences in her work are diverse – music being the most prominent and consistently inspiring influence. “I can’t walk 2 minutes to the dairy without my iPod”. Other than art, music is definitely her main passion. She has taken a literal approach to the brief for “Lyrical Dreamscapes” – creating works inspired by music – by using elements and symbols of particular songs by artists she admires and creating little mini “scenes” from the songs. When you sit back and actually listen to a lot of music that you may have previously just taken in on the surface there is often so much poetry and interest in the lyrics themselves – and so many wonderful abstract scenes and happenings that the artist is describing in their music – it was interesting to try to interpret that into a painting. “For the exhibition I chose female artists she admires because (a) I relate to the lyrics more and (b) female artists are generally softer and prettier to paint! and I like the girly stuff”. Things that Melissa finds inspiring include nature, old frames, children’s picture books, fashion, white space, Resene Colourshop, music, and a good cup of tea.