‘In Memoriam’

John Armstrong

enquiries: ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

My father and I connected quite deeply through my art. Our relationship was often not easy, but over the last five years or so he developed an ability to respond to my work in ways that I think surprised us both.

Most of the paintings in this exhibition have been completed over the period of a year or so, during which time my father, John Wayne Armstrong, became ill and died, in February 2025. I was very fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time with my dad during the final weeks of his life. Seeing him go through his illness was at times very confronting, but there were also many moments of intimacy and care.

While my dad could be emotional, he was rarely comfortable talking about his emotions. But he felt comfortable talking about my paintings. He carried a dog-eared copy of my first exhibition catalogue with him wherever he went, and would show it to anyone who expressed the slightest interest. He gave me insights into my work that I hadn’t noticed, and his enthusiasm was both touching and encouraging. He was also perfectly comfortable telling when he thought they didn’t work. His honesty made me trust him.

In various ways, my father is in all of these paintings. Moments we shared have become symbols of his life, and his illness, and his death.

The goldfish in these paintings come from the little aquarium in the waiting room in Waikato Hospital’s radiotherapy suite. The falling leaves and flowing water might symbolise the natural cycles of life. The hills, clouds, and trees mainly reflect my love for nature, and the strong sense of gratitude I feel for simply being alive on this planet.

But there’s also a lot in here that I don’t understand, because it’s emotional or subconscious and not really prone to understanding. And that’s okay. For me, it’s the feeling that matters.

Robert Pereira Hind – ‘Out of Eden’

Robert Pereira Hind’s mixed media series ‘Out of Eden’ aims to raise the status of the humble plants and trees that surround us. Referencing religious iconography, whether it be the gilded Buddhas of Tibet and Laos or Catholic icons of the Italian baroque, by placing his botanical photography and acrylic paint images against a gold leaf background he is reminding his audience of the value, spiritual and otherwise, of Mother Nature.

Robert’s work layers organic photographic ink pigment and acrylic paint, shellac and art glazes over gilded wooden boards. An important element of his work is that each piece, over the years, will slowly oxidise and mature in appearance, the golden background will eventually take on a light tarnish and over a period of 15-30 years become increasingly atmospheric and characterful. Each artwork brings colour and warmth to the environment as ambient light reflects from it.

As well as religious iconography, the ‘Out of Eden’ series alludes to both botanical drawings and European Romantic landscape paintings. Robert Pereira Hind currently lives in Edinburgh, Scotland and is always looking for inspiration in the trees, forests and wildflowers of Scotland and beyond.

‘I am both responding to the beauty of nature and questioning the nature of beauty. As someone who does not adhere to any kind of religious practice but regularly feels a sense of awe within the natural landscape, it seems fitting to transform nature’s trees and flowers into secular icons.’

enquiries: ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

Deck the Walls… Little Spaces, Big Stories
A celebration of small-scale art with big impact!

enquiries: ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

Featuring works by:
Da Mclaren • Kate Beatty • John Armstrong • Siavash Momeny • Kevin Dunkley • Patterson Parkin • Alistair McDonald• Lynda Eteveneaux • Anneke Bester • Mark Cowden • The Art of Dr Seuss • …and many more!

We are pleased to invite you to view Simon Kerr’s  2025 exhibition

enquiries: ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

As the former leader of the notorious Hole in The Wall Gang and infamous for escaping custody six times, Simon Kerr is an unlikely candidate for an artist and yet his life experiences have influenced the narrative found in his paintings. “My art is two things – a narrative of my personal journey and the other part of it is my observation of the world along that journey.”

Simon didn’t start painting until his last prison sentence, served at Northland Region Corrections Facility from 2011 to 2015 and although his work is reminiscent of artists like Basquiat, his lack of formal training, or even knowledge of such painters, has meant that Simon has developed his own style.

Simon’s journey from a career criminal to an exhibiting artist is an interesting narrative, but as with all our artists, the resume only takes you so far. The work itself is what matters and Simons invigorating work sits well with the gallery collection.

We are pleased to invite you to view Job Klijns exhibition;

‘Still a whisper on my lips’

enquiries: ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

Job’s penchant for brooding turbulence and turmoil as a subject, is in the end, tempered by a residual warmth and richness achieved by the process of the art making. Attentive labour and restoration, building complex layers and beauty.

Sometimes, depending on the works ‘idea’, Job will add a figure.

“I sketch endlessly from collected images that show poses I like to achieve, often mathematically re calculating the proportions of limbs and bodies to marry them together in one final sketch”.

Connection Songs

Gareth Barlow

enquiries:ron@exhibitionsgallery.co.nz

Connection Songs
Gareth Barlow
My work has always been about connections. Connections to people, to land, and to culture. I attempt to traverse the relational space between Pākehā and Māori worlds while also reaching back through my Celtic and Nordic whakapapa. Expressed through a spiritual affinity with Tangata Whenua and their philosophies, this sense of connection is deepened by six generations of my family who now rest in this land.
The themes I explore are not mine alone. They are familiar to many Kiwis, and to Antipodeans more broadly. We all carry aspects of whakapapa, Māori and Pākehā alike, shaped by the places and cultures that have nurtured us. I like to think my work captures that shared energy, telling stories others may recognise and claim as their own.

Birds have always been part of my practice, and in this series, Connection Songs, they stand as symbols of identity, guardianship, and memory. Across traditions, birds are seen as messengers, kaitiaki in Māori legends, guardians and omens in Celtic lore. They are always close by, wherever we go, in the places that matter most to us, a feathered companion is never far away.

Here, I paint and draw these birds on a large scale, bringing forward their subtle details and complexities. Their natural forms reflect Māori art, the symbols and traditions I fell in love with as a child. By exploring them closely, I seek an approach to art that feels uniquely of Aotearoa, bridging cultures and celebrating shared identity.
Long before humans arrived, birds were the guardians of these islands. Some species have been lost, but many remain—adapting, enduring, and sharing their world with us. They remind us of what we can hold in common: respect for the past, reverence for the present, and hope for the future.

In this series, my use of the dot veil shifts. Where it usually blankets the entire work, with birds it thins and radiates outward, as if carrying their song, their spirit, their energy. This suggests their ease in moving between the seen and unseen, between our world and the spiritual realm.

Proud to be a Wellingtonian born in the Hutt Valley, I ground my work in reverence for Aotearoa’s natural world and cultural identity. My practice honours both Māori traditions and my own heritage, weaving together memories, philosophies, and the shared stories that shape who we are as a people, together.

I would like to acknowledge the following people for their inspiration in naming these works: Neville Hall, Dave Dobbyn, Bic Runga, Neil Finn, James Reid, JonToogood, Te Rauparaha, Andrew Fagan, Gareth Curtis, Don McGlashan, Nick Sampson, Malcolm Black.

Eric Desiles