Current Residency
Carolyn Lye and Elsa Lye
14 May to 10 June 2023
Carolyn and Elsa (daughter and mother) are valuing this opportunity to spent time devoted just to their art practice and especially happy to have art time together for the first time . Goodness knows what new and exciting work will emerge!
(Note: Carolyn is resident in the church and Elsa accommodated at the Rawene Motor camp)
(Note: Carolyn is resident in the church and Elsa accommodated at the Rawene Motor camp)
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Elsa Lye
“ my creative process or what makes me tick, is still a puzzle, a magic mystery that enthrals me. I am pulled and pushed to express life as it unfolds. What I feel and what I see, the place of spirit in nature life and art. Then trust the intuitive process to tell its story.” Just being here in Rawene to mooch around dodging the weather, to calm my mind and be open to feel the spirit of this place is beyond words. My fresh notes are to find significant form in the landscape, to lift it - place it - let it settle on the flat canvas - allow space for it to breath and take life. It is to be in the moment to stop the endless struggle and just be. It is the spirit that connects everything in wholeness and asks us to participate as artists and be humble before it. Gerhard Richter writes in 'The daily Practice of Painting' It was a long time before I realised that what I do - the desperate experimentation, all the difficulties - is exactly what artists do: that's the normal nature of the job. That's painting. I draw and paint directly along the Wild West coast, the challenge to catch these beautiful spaces draws me back time after time. My studio paintings are abstract internalised expressions of life. My clay sculptures often relate to human environments and concerns. |
Carolyn Lye
"I use the natural world as inspiration and for resources. Conscious and thankful gathering, walking, breathing.
Conscious and concerned for the environment and our / human impact. Beauty is all around to see and realise.
My making is a celebration of our beautiful country and our connection to the Pacific and wider world. It is my heart response. The rhythm of making is a meditation. It satisfies and pleases me".
Based near Karetu, Northland, Carolyn is a fibre artist who weaves and works in natural materials. She is surrounded by the rural landscape and flora and is involved with the community of artists in the area. She enjoys collecting what she has found randomly and has an intuitive, primal response to her materials, be they kelp, fishing rope, roots, nuts, shells, harakeke, pumice, cabbage tree and flowers.
Carolyn works to blend an unexpected variety of materials to create items of beauty. Her devotion to joining, blending and weaving items together gives integrity to work that is greater than the materials; it expresses her philosophy ‘we only think we are separate’ (Witi Ihimaera – Rope of Man)
"I use the natural world as inspiration and for resources. Conscious and thankful gathering, walking, breathing.
Conscious and concerned for the environment and our / human impact. Beauty is all around to see and realise.
My making is a celebration of our beautiful country and our connection to the Pacific and wider world. It is my heart response. The rhythm of making is a meditation. It satisfies and pleases me".
Based near Karetu, Northland, Carolyn is a fibre artist who weaves and works in natural materials. She is surrounded by the rural landscape and flora and is involved with the community of artists in the area. She enjoys collecting what she has found randomly and has an intuitive, primal response to her materials, be they kelp, fishing rope, roots, nuts, shells, harakeke, pumice, cabbage tree and flowers.
Carolyn works to blend an unexpected variety of materials to create items of beauty. Her devotion to joining, blending and weaving items together gives integrity to work that is greater than the materials; it expresses her philosophy ‘we only think we are separate’ (Witi Ihimaera – Rope of Man)
Previous Residencies
Bert Van Dijk
9 April to 10 May 2023
After working for more than 30 years as a performing artist, I have the last few years turned to visual art, working with acrylic, oil, ink, charcoal, pastels and collage on canvas and wood panels.
For my work, I find inspiration in the archetypal dimensions of nature (the gods), the moods of land- and seascapes, and the beauty of the male body frozen in motion or emotion.
This Hokianga residency has given me an opportunity to explore in colours, composition and expression, the contours, atmosphere and spirit of this extraordinary area. I have also found inspiration at some of the pre-European narratives, particularly those that explain the original names of the Hokianga: Hokianga whakapau karakia (Hokianga that exhausts karakia) and Te Puna i te Ao Mārama (the spring of the world of light).
It was interesting and unexpected to see whales and whale related themes emerging in my work during my residency.
Exhibition title: Breaching the Surface
Breaching the Surface refers to what I believe is a mission of the artist, to present not just the outer form of something but also express the mood, feeling or dramatic essence of a place or subject.
The act of breaching refers to a process of getting through, breaking out, cracking up and penetrating into, as a metaphor for expanding our horizons, an act that requires an almost violent energy to overcome certain limitations.
During my residency, whales – champions of breaching – have entered my work, both in the shapes of the Hokianga landscape and as protagonists in some of the pre-European Māori stories of the area.
Breaching the Surface refers to what I believe is a mission of the artist, to present not just the outer form of something but also express the mood, feeling or dramatic essence of a place or subject.
The act of breaching refers to a process of getting through, breaking out, cracking up and penetrating into, as a metaphor for expanding our horizons, an act that requires an almost violent energy to overcome certain limitations.
During my residency, whales – champions of breaching – have entered my work, both in the shapes of the Hokianga landscape and as protagonists in some of the pre-European Māori stories of the area.
Brenda Moir
4 March - 3 April 2023
I have always been involved with colour and was trained as a “colour matcher “ in my early employment. It was inevitable then that I turned to “Art” as my favourite activity when I finally granted myself the time to enjoy life, when moving to the Bay of Islands. My first dabble with paints was oils and although I enjoyed this medium, I found constraints in portability, and time requirements. When I moved onto watercolours, I was amazed at the difference in the action of the paint but felt inhibited by the restrictions this style of painting placed upon me. Now I have made my way to acrylics I revel in the science involved in learning about the mediums, techniques and application. I am inspired by an image that “touches” me and so I hope to create a painting, which in turn evokes the same emotion in the viewer. My images are usually taken from the natural landscape, flora and fauna and bird life, being an artist who has to “feel” the subject before and during the process of painting it.
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The RESIDENCY IN RAWENE March 2023
My time spent in the Rawene Church as a resident artist in March 2023 was absolutely wonderful!
I was able to concentrate on creating a cohesive body of painting works without restrictions on time, space or outside commitments.
There was plenty of room to spread out and work on several pieces at the same time and not having to “wait for paint tot dry” enabled greater productivity. The ability to to watch paintings become completed-from a distance, through different light phases and neighbouring other works was a real treat that I have never had before.
The whole experience was extremely gratifying, extremely productive and I was very pleased with the creative outcome.
The living area was so very comfortable and compact making life easy, relaxed and separated from the painting area ( the church).
My experience of meting, joining in with and living amongst the village of Rawene was mostly rewarding, educational and all encompassing, they made me feel very special. I give my sincere gratitude to Linda and Lynn for allowing me to partake in this Residency and adding a fabulous, happy and fulfilling experience to my life!
My time spent in the Rawene Church as a resident artist in March 2023 was absolutely wonderful!
I was able to concentrate on creating a cohesive body of painting works without restrictions on time, space or outside commitments.
There was plenty of room to spread out and work on several pieces at the same time and not having to “wait for paint tot dry” enabled greater productivity. The ability to to watch paintings become completed-from a distance, through different light phases and neighbouring other works was a real treat that I have never had before.
The whole experience was extremely gratifying, extremely productive and I was very pleased with the creative outcome.
The living area was so very comfortable and compact making life easy, relaxed and separated from the painting area ( the church).
My experience of meting, joining in with and living amongst the village of Rawene was mostly rewarding, educational and all encompassing, they made me feel very special. I give my sincere gratitude to Linda and Lynn for allowing me to partake in this Residency and adding a fabulous, happy and fulfilling experience to my life!
Geoff Clendon
7 Oct - 5 Nov 2022
I have worked in the performing arts for over 40 years as an actor, director, writer, and teacher. I’m a graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Art, Sydney, and have an MA in creative writing from Victoria University. My writing credits include for the stage: It’s just a Fly, Waiheke Dark n’ Stormy and Rangitoto; and short films Rise Up Stilt and Poroporoaki. The play Rangitoto is set in the island’s bach community during the Great Depression and is to be produced in Auckland in early 2023. I have recently completed 13 years as Head of Drama at Massey High School and am now going back to my first love, that of writing and producing theatre.
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Geoff Clendon arrived on 7 October 2022 for a month to undertake research for a play he will be writing, based on one of Rawene’s memorable historic events, 'The Dog Tax War’. 'Coincidence brought me to the Rawene Residency. A play about The Dog Tax War was something I had been contemplating for some time and bumping into Linda Blincko, who told me of the Residency situated where The Dog Tax War occurred, was fortuitous. The Hokianga is the papa kainga of my tupuna, Māori and Pakeha who were intimately involved in the affray. An Aotearoa story that happened in the Hokianga, whose universality speaks to our moment in history as well as its own. My time in the Church has been a challenging journey where the writing has not gone down the track I had foreseen, but the result will be something stronger. Part of the reason for its shift in direction is the people I have met along the way. I have had visitors from the community who have shared their stories and research on The Dog Tax War. Rawene is friendly place and I now feel like I belong, he tangata, he tangata, he tangata. The vestry domicile is stylishly and comprehensively equipped. I have used the church as a workspace. It is spacious, peaceful, a suitable area for contemplation and writing, and has great acoustics. Having a month to focus solely on my mahi has been hugely beneficial to my project, I’ll miss it.' Geoffrey Clendon |
The name ‘The Dog Tax War’ describes an armed uprising of Te Mahurehure of Waima against the government in 1898. Although there were comical aspects of the uprising, it was in reality a very near tragedy – the outcome of smouldering resentment against bad laws, broken promises, and the steady undermining of Māori mana. It remains a potent symbol of the ongoing struggle of relationship amongst Māori and the Crown, and Māori and Pākehā. Sparks from this incident burn into the present and remain in the memories of affected communities.
The Dog Tax War is intimately connected to Geoff's family’s history. His tūpuna were protagonists on both sides. His whakapapa includes: the Clendons of Rawene and Muriwai of Utakura.
The Dog Tax War was an extraordinary affair that deserves to be re-visited in an inventive theatrical production. His long-term plan is to open the first production of the play in Rawene, bringing the story home to the community from which it sprang.
The Dog Tax War is intimately connected to Geoff's family’s history. His tūpuna were protagonists on both sides. His whakapapa includes: the Clendons of Rawene and Muriwai of Utakura.
The Dog Tax War was an extraordinary affair that deserves to be re-visited in an inventive theatrical production. His long-term plan is to open the first production of the play in Rawene, bringing the story home to the community from which it sprang.
Gabrielle BelzJune 2015Printmaker and artist Gabrielle Belz presented a collection of works derived from her observations, thoughts and experiences over the 10 week residency in Rawene.
'‘The Hokianga landscape, with thrusting hills and deep valley clefts, constant cloud changes, rainbows, mist, rain and light, were immediate impressions. Smiling friendliness of the community coupled with the ‘well, who is she?’ Hearing local histories began to colour the way I saw the present landscape and gave an insight into the possible forming of today’s community. ‘ Gabrielle of Ngapuhi and Te Atiawa descent, undertook her practice in the Waka Gallery at No 1 Parnell where she also ran some very popular workshops. 
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