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Milford Galleries, Queenstown - Mike Petre: New Field Studies 2019.
Location: Milford Galleries
Region: Queenstown
Dates: Sat, 22 June 2019 - Tue, 30 July 2019 @ 10am - 6pm daily, or by arrangement.
Imagine you are on a country road, somewhere in the back-blocks of New Zealand. It has been raining, and a heavy mist lies over the paddocks. From that mist, forms loom, ethereal yet solid and massive, blocks of beef on the hoof commanding their surroundings, dripping and steaming with the mist and rain, watching you as you watch them.
These are the steers of Mike Petre's imagination: hard, muscular beasts yet somehow implied rather than depicted. The herd drifts in and out of the mist, the muscular legs dripping into rivulets, the eyes watching you intensely, far more intensely than any mere image should. Petre's cattle surround the viewer, their bulk dominating and unnerving.
In the current exhibition, Petre focuses on ink-heavy monochrome mixed media works. The iconic cattle are the epitome of rural New Zealand, and our symbiotic relationship with them is symbolic of the pastoral attitude towards nature in general.
Petre's cattle are noble yet are not romanticised. The steers are removed from their natural surroundings in these works, much as the viewer is removed from his or her natural environment. We meet as equals in the artificial arena of the gallery.
These are real beasts, almost human in their gaze, seemingly comprehending the fate which awaits them in the abattoir, and which lies at the heart of farm life. Their challenging stares are backed by an intelligence, and we stare back uneasily, unwilling to meet the eyes of those we condemn.
Location
Milford Galleries
April 2024
Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
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1 | 2 | 3 | Arts Central - Meet the Author: Ruth ShawThu, 4 April 2024 @ Doors open at 7pm for a 7.30pm start | 5 | Central Otago Regional Orchestra - "Autumn Romance" Alexandra and QueenstownSat, 6 April 2024 - Sun, 7 April 2024 @ April 6th at 7.30pm, April 7th at 2pm. | |
7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery - "Bannockburn - A Place to Stand" by Jan and Tim Hawkins.Fri, 1 March 2024 - Thu, 11 April 2024 @ 10am - 4pm Daily | Entries Open Now - West Otago Art AwardWed, 28 February 2024 - Fri, 12 April 2024 @ Entries Open Now | 13 |
14 | Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery - School Holiday ProgramMon, 15 April 2024 - Sun, 28 April 2024 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Teviot Arts - "A Night in New Orleans" The River City Jazzmen.Fri, 19 April 2024 @ 6.30pm for 7.30pm start | Hullabaloo Art Space - "Memories from the Mantelpiece" by Tracey Morrow and Rebecca McKaySun, 31 March 2024 - Sat, 20 April 2024 @ 10am - 4pm Daily Central Otago Art Society - "An Acrylic Painting Adventure" with Jenny Chisholm - Contemporary LandscapesSat, 20 April 2024 - Sun, 21 April 2024 @ 9.30am - 3.30pm daily |
Central Otago Art Society - "An Acrylic Painting Adventure" with Jenny Chisholm - Contemporary LandscapesSat, 20 April 2024 - Sun, 21 April 2024 @ 9.30am - 3.30pm daily Central Cinema - "Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story"Sun, 21 April 2024 - Wed, 24 April 2024 @ 21st April @ 5pm. 24th April @ 2pm. Queenstown Arts Society - Life Drawing with Kasia HebdaSun, 21 April 2024 - Wed, 19 June 2024 | Applications are Now Open - Michael King Writers Centre Australian ResidencyWed, 27 March 2024 - Mon, 22 April 2024 @ Applications Open Now | 23 | Central Cinema - "Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story"Sun, 21 April 2024 - Wed, 24 April 2024 @ 21st April @ 5pm. 24th April @ 2pm. | 25 | 26 | 27 |
28 | 29 | 30 |