Neil Frazer captures the rugged energy and beauty of South Island mountains. In Snowline and Paramount, Frazer’s expressive style transcends the picture plane conveying the sharp wintry chills and the threat perceived from the imposing stony peaks.

Peter James Smith’s The Measure Of Aoraki delivers a view of the emblematic Aoraki/Mt Cook and the valley floor beyond in a way that elicits a renewed response to the landscape and the histories imbued within.

Bruce Hunt observes the fleeting moments of light and shadow as the ‘evening fire’ retreats across the landscape revealing yet shadowing the tussock-clad hills in Inlet – Loganburn. (1)

Elizabeth Rees’ mastery of mood, momentum, light and apprehension plays with the viewers mind and constructs of time as in Descending Road where there is a sense of a literal journey beyond.

Kate Wells explores the vulnerability of Rakiura/Stewart Island’s natural resources through the allegorical power of tapestries in On A Limb 1 and On A Limb 2.

Wayne Barrar’s primeval vista in Beneath Bowen Falls, Mitre Peak is devoid of humans yet human presence and man’s attempt to control nature is undeniably evident.

Scott McFarlane layers topography, amplifying the landscape, collapsing time and evoking a sense of history. Nigel Brown celebrates the southern landscape through a language of signs and symbols. Stanley Palmer draws upon memories, history and mythology to explore and capture a range of associations with the land. Bob Kerr’s charged landscapes explore the tension between the natural world and its inhabitants. Simon Edwards demonstrates that land, sky and the distant sea are intrinsically interconnected. Michael Hight’s metaphorical use of the beehive has altered the way the New Zealand landscape is read. Callum Arnold’s layered viewpoints challenge the traditional representation of the landscape as static.

1. Artist statement, 2005.