MARTIN DE RUYTER/STUFF
Emma Marie with paintings part of her exhibition Spaciousness at Atelier Studio | Gallery in Nelson.
For many years the artist Emma Marie walked in the morning, fascinated by the stars, clouds and the changing sky.
“It puts life in perspective and a reminder of how microscopic we are,” he said.
It’s one of many influences for his new exhibition, Spaciousness, which opens at the Nelson gallery Atelier on Friday.
“The space can be internal or external,” he said. “It can take away thoughts and feelings that let go of the old and give space to cultivate the more positive.”
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MARTIN DE RUYTER/STUFF
Emma Marie drew pictures of Nasa’s nebulae for these paintings.
His layered acrylic works include highly detailed representations of planets and nebulae set against abstract backgrounds. There is drama in the opposite – dark and light, order and chaos, obvious and hidden.
He used unusual tools such as a spatula, wire brush and spray bottle, and said his process began somewhere “what if …?”
Emma Marie said caring for her mother Suzan, who died from breast cancer last year, was another influence on her art; the act of creation is an outlet that he says keeps its foundation and firm during the ordeal.
She graduated with honors from the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology’s Bachelor of Visual Arts course in 2005, and has also studied psychology, fashion, textile and graphic design.
His previous exhibition, Nowness, in 2020 marked a change from the very realistic paintings he made – “the abstract is a rebellion”.
MARTIN DE RUYTER/STUFF
Emma Marie says her new works combine the figurative and the abstract.
In his latest works, he says he has found a way to combine the abstract and figurative.
The only thing he regrets is that his mother, who has been his number one supporter in his artistic path, was not at the exhibition opening.
“He went to all my shows and he would have liked to be here. But in a way he is here through these works. ”
The space will open at the Atelier Studio Gallery at 329 Trafalgar Square at 5:30 pm on Friday, July 15 and run until August 13.
