Darryn George (born 1970) is a
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
artist of
Ngāpuhi
Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei.
According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165 ...
descent who is based in
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
.
Education
George trained as an artist at the
Ilam School of Fine Arts in Canterbury and graduated with a BFA in painting in 1993. He subsequently completed a Diploma in Teaching, and then, studied towards a MFA (painting) at the
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
RMIT University, officially the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology,, section 4(b) is a public research university in Melbourne, Australia.
Founded in 1887 by Francis Ormond, RMIT began as a night school offering classes in art, scie ...
. George is the Head of the Art Department at Christ’s College in Christchurch.
Career
George connects minimalist abstraction and the politics of photographic reproduction which has long influenced New Zealand art. George explores the contrast between the sheen and glossy photographic images accessible in books and the textural quality of paintings when encountered in real life. Whereas George uses abstract patterns that recall the pristine and hard-edged aspect of photographic representations in books, his paintings also include subtleties on the surface such as ridges and wobbly lines differentiating it from photographic reproductions.
George has an interesting work process. While he principally works with oil on canvas, George primarily envisions his works on computer screens playing around with size, colours, motifs, orientation and texture, adding and amending elements which have been present in his work since 2003. Such experiments result in a group of images which become paintings and other which George archives on his computer. George’s paintings contain both abstract and figurative designs including numbers, symbols and words. The palette for George’s works remains strongly connected to its place and Maori heritage as does the range of symbols which can be found in his paintings such as the kowhaiwhai,
tā moko
' is the permanent marking or " tattoo" as traditionally practised by Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. It is one of the five main Polynesian tattoo styles (the other four are Marquesan, Samoan, Tahitian and Hawaiian).
(tatto ...
and
koru
The ''koru'' () is a spiral shape based on the appearance of a new unfurling silver fern frond. It is an integral symbol in Māori art, carving and tattooing, where it symbolises new life, growth, strength and peace.
Its shape "conveys the ...
patterns.
George has exhibited widely around New Zealand and Australia and is represented by several galleries including
Gow Langsford Gallery
Gow Langsford Gallery is a commercial art gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. The gallery was established in 1987 by John Gow and Gary Langsford. Gow Langsford represents and has represented many significant New Zealand and international artists, ...
in Auckland, Brooke/Gifford Gallery in Christchurch,
Peter McLeavey Gallery in Wellington and The Gallery at Woollaston in Nelson.
Awards
George has received several awards over the years:
* 1994 Te Waka Toi Grant
* 1998 Arts Council of New Zealand Grant for Melbourne Project at SPAN Galleries
* 2000 Finalist in Wallace Art Award
* 2000 Creative New Zealand funding for
Melbourne Art Fair
* 2004 Te Waka Toi Grant
* 2007 Deutsche Bank Head Office NZ commission
Selected bibliography
Amery, Mark. ''‘Tauiwi’, Techno Maori: Maori Art in the Digital Age'', (Exhibition CDRom Catalogue), City Gallery, Wellington, 2001, 1-16
Baker, Jonathan. ‘Matapihi; Darryn George’, (Review), ''CS ARTS'', Issue 26, March 2006, 11
Boyce, Roger. ‘Lines of Descent’, ''Art News'', Spring, 2005
Brown, Deidre. ''Navigating Te Kore – Maori Artistic Identity in the Digital Age'', Techno Maori: Maori Art in the Digital Age (Exhibition CDRom Catalogue) City Gallery, Wellington, 2001, 1-9
Brown, Deidre. ''The Whare on Exhibition'', in
Lydia Wevers and Anna Smith, On Display: New Essays in Cultural Studies, Victoria University Press, Wellington, 2004, 65-79
Brown, Deirdre and Lara Strongman. ''Darryn George.'' Auckland:
Gow Langsford Gallery
Gow Langsford Gallery is a commercial art gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. The gallery was established in 1987 by John Gow and Gary Langsford. Gow Langsford represents and has represented many significant New Zealand and international artists, ...
, 2010
George, Darryn. ''Evisible: A Millennium Art Project,'' Christ’s College, Christchurch, 2000
Highfield, Smith. ''Pushing the Boundaries-Eleven Contemporary Artists in Aotearoa New Zealand,'' Gilt Edge Publishing, 2004, 18-23
Johnstone, Jocelyn. ''Art teachers aiming to make big impression,'' Sunday Star Times, 5 July 2000
Kedgeley, Helen. ''The Koru Club,'' Pataka Art Gallery catalogue, 2005
Mane-Wheoki, Jonathan. ''Tipuna,'' Catalogue for Span Galleries Show, 2004
McCormick, Deborah. ''Scape,'' Art and Industry Urban Arts Biennial 02, Catalogue, 1-5, 10, 2000
Milburn, Felicity. ''Hiko! New Energies in Maori Art.'' Robert McDougall Art Gallery
Moore, Christopher. 'Arena of Abstract Art,' ''The Press,'' 28 June 2000
O’Brien, Gregory. ''Bro Town Boogie Woogie,'' FHE Galleries catalogue, 2005
Paton, Justin. ‘Devotional Signs on a Cross-Cultural History,’ ''The Press,'' 25 May 1994
Pauli, Dorethee. ‘Demanding Hip Hop’, ''The Press,'' 22 August 2001
Rewi, Adrienne. ‘Art Teachers studying modern in traditional setting’, ''Sunday Star Times,'' 18 June 2000
Tipa, Moana. Unfolding Language, ''Chrysalis Seed publication,'' 2006
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:George, Darryn
Living people
1970 births
New Zealand Māori artists