Art v elements produces a winner

BY STACEY WOOD

At Lower Hutt's NewDowse gallery, gardens have been transformed into an outdoor exhibition of sculpture.

The Wellington weather tried its best, but nothing could put a damper on Shapeshifter.

More than 50 sculptures, big and small, have been selected by NewDowse director Cam McCracken and installed for the duration of the International Arts Festival.

Shapeshifter has become popular with visitors - and it's even open to picnickers.

Island Bay sculptor Rebecca Rose is exhibiting her work Tidal Drift, a boat-shaped aluminium piece that hovers above the water in a creek, "with a sense that it's carrying on its way".

Rose knew any sculpture that was going to be on display outdoors in Wellington had to be strong enough to cope with the elements.

And sure enough, the night after its installation, heavy rains made the creek rise over the top of her work.

"It got completely submerged on its first night of installation, and I was a bit concerned after the rain that it would try to find its way to the ocean."

With its foundations driven about a metre into the stream bed, Tidal Drift endured the rainfall, even when it was completely under water. "It actually looked quite good," Rose said.

McCracken said that apart from the odd rainstorm, both the weather and feedback had been excellent.

"There was one that was fished out just before it was irrevocably lost, but overall it's a very robust exhibition, everything's well- anchored and built to last."

Rose is used to the environment taking its toll on her work; in fact it's something she uses to her advantage.

She often works with Corten, or weathering steel, creating pieces that are designed to rust . . . to a certain extent.

Such pieces "don't last long" if left to the elements in Wellington, but can hold their own a lot longer somewhere like the Canterbury Plains.

When the wind and rain have created the desired level of rust and weathering, Rose intervenes with a coat of anti-rust spray to preserve the piece.

Originally a landscape designer, Rose said working on big, outdoor artworks appealed to her because of the unique challenges.

"I see these spaces and I want to fill them, I love the challenge of working on such a large scale."

Rose works mostly at home, sculpting and welding in her backyard studio in between running around after her young children.

She said she was hoping to find a suitable warehouse to use in the future, one with "hoists and cranes and things" to help her lift her heavier concrete and steel pieces.

This is not Rose's first time exhibiting at Shapeshifter - a couple of years ago she presented a large, red orb at the Lower Hutt exhibition.

She said McCracken had brought a different flavour to the event.

"There is good continuity, everything fits together well."

McCracken said it had been an exciting exhibition to work on.

He has been with the NewDowse and Petone Settlers' Museum for just over a year, after managing galleries in Auckland and Waikato.

It had been difficult to choose artists from a "very high-quality" group of entrants, he said.

"I did agonise for a good few weeks about what to select, and where I put them. But I'm really pleased, it's a really diverse show - I wanted to reflect the range of media and styles that people are working in."

You can see Shapeshifter until Sunday, from 10am till 5pm. Entry is $5 for adults, accompanied children free. Proceeds go to Te Omanga Hospice, the Dowse Foundation and Hutt Valley youth programmes.

- © Fairfax NZ News