Self portraits on show

FIONA GOODALL

PORTRAIT OF A MAN: Artist and Uxbridge Arts Centre tutor Brendan McGorry with one of his self portraits showing at a new exhibition, Through the Looking Glass.

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Self portraits are one of the most expressive forms of art.

Uxbridge Arts Centre in Howick is celebrating this with a new exhibition, Through the Looking Glass.

Eight artists will exhibit their self portraits with a mix of painting, photography and animation.

Curator Melissa Elliott says she has always had a fascination with self portraits.

"They are quite revealing and there's a lot of artists who use themselves in their work quite a bit," she says..

"It's really interesting to see why and how they do that."

Uxbridge tutor and this year's Estuary Artworks winner Brendan McGorry, is displaying five portraits exploring themes of genealogy, and historical and cultural figures.

"I think all art to some degree is a self portrait, because you are expressing part of yourself," he says.

He will be discussing his work, which he describes as a bit of a mash-up of different things including abstract and figurative, at the artist at lunch discussions on September 9 at noon.

Another artist showing his work is Liam Gerrad, who is famous for the chilling portrait he painted of murderer Clayton Weatherston earlier this year.

Some public programmes to complement the exhibition include self portrait workshops for adults and children, and badge making.

The exhibition runs until September 22 at Uxbridge Arts Centre, 35 Uxbridge Rd, Howick.

Call 535-6467 or visit www.uxbridge.org.nz for more information.

- © Fairfax NZ News