Upstairs Gallery

Born 1984 Auckland. I trained as a motorcycle mechanic mostly working on restoring classic motorbikes. Often this entailed fabricating or sometimes casting parts. I think I have always had an affinity for working with metal, which lead me to build a forge for blacksmithing when I was 16. I decided I also wanted to learn the technique of metal casting so I taught myself the lost wax casting process and now can cast jewellery in bronze or silver and sculptures in bronze and aluminum. I also like working with copper as I find it is a good material to fabricate and forge into sculptures. Living in the Waitakere ranges surrounded by the bush gives me all the inspiration I need.

Painter

Tony Brown offers us all a vision of perseverance and triumph over turmoil. An enthusiasm to forge a better life is what fuels Tony's passion to create works that inspire powerful and emotive responses: "I want to reach out to people who are stuck". Tony's paintings, which are deeply inlaid with a locality and familiarity and in some cases, are intimately provocative, grapple with issues such as depression, adoption, loneliness and sobriety.

Tony's dark and raw works show an artist who interprets issues with an innate sense of compassion and individuality. Through a process of rehabilitation, Tony rediscovered art as a form of expression from childhood and values the emotions he is able to stir within viewers of his work.

Click here to visit Tony's website

Liz is a book artist with a passion for creating handmade books and journals. She creates deliciously different creations from her studio in Titirangi, West Auckland.

Liz creates books and journals for all occasions such as:

•    Weddings •    Graduations •    Proposal books
•    Recipe books •    New babies •    Funerals (to sign in)
•    Memory books •    Retirement •    Travel albums

Liz sells her work mostly from her studio which you are welcome to visit (by appointment) and sometimes online. Commissioned books are her specialty. If you have an idea in mind for a book she would love to chat with you about it.

Teaching bookmaking and bookbinding are also Liz’s passions. Any student who has attended her classes will tell you they are known as creative adventures! Liz currently teaches in Auckland, Warkworth and Wellington.

www.bookartstudios.co.nz

Textiles

Maxine Jepson has spent her life exploring and discovering the potential of textiles to produce innovative and distinctive art forms. Maxine's career began as a freelance visual merchandiser, her creative and ground-breaking approach fuelled her passion and persistent attraction to textiles, fibres and form.

Ceramic Sculptress

Karen lives in the HendersonValley with her husband and chooks. She has been happily creating ceramic sculpture for 25 years, is largely self taught and has won numerous awards.She is a member of Waitakere Central Community Arts Council, Titirangi Community Arts Council and Titirangi Potters.

She mostly sells her work through New Zealand Galleries.Small Collectables: Dogs, cats, mice, folk figurines, whistles, roosters, clowns, tiles, all in fine white clay, meticulously hand painted, clear glazed and mid fired.Mid Range: Hollow dogs, cats, woodpigeons and other birds, traditionally glazed and mid fired.Large Paper Clay: Dogs, cats, boars, people, slip coloured and glazed, sometimes bronzed work. Weatherproof. mid fired.Public Sculpture: Seat and table in Onehunga Mainstreet, Dragon Seat in Ngataringa Reserve, Devonport. All ferro cement and hand made tiles.

Visit Karen's website on www.karenkennedy.co.nz

Ellen is a mixed media artist.

She has participated in several exhibitions and charity art auctions both as artist and organizer.

Her background is in photography, graphic design and video.

“I enjoy using shapes and textures that sometimes incorporate ideas or effects I have experimented with on the computer.  I am also a video editor/multi media producer, so it is very satisfying, working with the physical and not the virtual aspects of a work to create some dimension and interest.”

Photographer

At the age of 11 Arne Loot already had a darkroom in a wardrobe of his parent’s home in Holland. Ever since photography has remained a lifelong interest for this man with multiple occupations - Sailor, Designer, Builder, Painter, Cook, Farmhand, Musician, Writer and Herpetologist ... you name it.

He arrived in New Zealand in 1952. His first job for 8 years was with the largest Portrait and Bridal Studios, becoming the Manager. Then 3 years with one of Auckland’s leading agencies where he invented his iconic bleach out technique with black and white prints before establishing himself as a freelance photographer for the rest of his life specialising in photographing works of art and antiques for galleries and contemporary artists.

Photographing Art, Antiques etc was a great passion...

A self taught artist who loves to experiment and play with colours, Chirstina McTaggart-Tie has been interested in art all her life.

She came to New Zealand in 1971 from Singapore and is now a  New Zealander. She has been involved in Arts and Crafts, taught Copper Art and makes her own greeting cards. In 2005 she resumed her love for Watercolours.

She is a member of the Titirangi Community Arts Council, Upstairs Gallery and has exhibited there in The Ethnicity Of The Waitakeres exhibition. She has also sold her work privately.

Rag Rug Weaver

“I have been a TCAC member since the  late 80's and am member of Handweavers and Spinners Guild. I am essentially a rag rug weaver, working from my studio at WoodBay on commissions and for exhibition. All my fabric is of the previously used, or the no longer wanted, variety. My addiction to fabric and colour is a passion, and my work is on walls and floors locally, nationally and internationally.”

Recent exhibitions include: Juxtaposition of Journeys and Junk Art at Upstairs Gallery, Fine Threads at Corban Estate Arts Centre and Smart Tarts and Social Butterflies at Signal Gallery.

Painter

Terry Prince is an artist living in Oratia. Growing up and living in West Auckland, he spent the best days of his childhood at Foster’s bay Huia, and as he became old enough to roam, the big surf beaches.

He finds the grand scale, shapes, and endless colour shifts of these places fascinating, and derives great joy from trying to capture them.

An ex student of Garth Tapper and Ralph Venables, he then worked for many years with his long time friend Ted Dutch.

His work is in private collections and galleries throughout New Caledonia, France, the United Kingdom, New York and New Zealand.

As long as I can remember I have always loved jewellery in all its shapes and forms and materials, whether it is a beautifully simple gold Minoan daisy pin or a technically complex Art Nouveau piece by Lalique.
When I was very young I used to love playing with my mother’s jewellery, she kept it in a black and red lacquer musical jewellery box with lots of little velvet lined drawers filled with beautiful antique jewellery, but I think the biggest impression on me at the age of 15 was an exhibition at The Victoria & Albert Museum in London of jewellery from through out the ages.
I moved to Sydney when I was 18 and studied jewellery design & fabrication at Randwick Technical College. After leaving Sydney I worked for manufacturing jewellers in Auckland for several years.
I have now been working from my home workshop in Karekare for the past 10years.

Bachelor Of Fine Arts

Tania Sunde has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design. Tania is the owner of Art Point Gallery and Art Tutoring Studio in Point Chevalier. Art Point Gallery show cases Tania's creative talent and also specialises in nurturing art after school, to young students aged between 8 and 12.
 
Tania exhibits in Auckland and Wellington and her artwork is held in private collections worldwide.

Click here to view Tania's website.

Click here to view Tania's art profile at  www.thebigidea.co.nz

Kia ora! My name is Felix Torres. I'm from Chile but I've been living in Aotearoa (New Zealand) for 6 years. This has been a long journey and on my way I have learned lots of skills that I love to use to create ART.

Aotearoa has given me the resources and inspiration that I need, also a beautiful family who support my work. My work has been developed over 8 months of experimentation and emotional processes to fusion two important topics that can define my technique and style: South American - Pacific art and environmental sustainable art. Both are concepts that you will be able to appreciate in every single piece.

Although I don’t have a degree in fine arts, I have been a worker all my New Zealand life, I’ve been a painter (decorator), hammer hand, water proofing installer, isolation installer, roof painter … so I know how the materials work, what impact they have on the environment and  how to get the most of them. So I can say that working has been my art school.

Functional Contemporary Glass Art

Since 1989 I have been creating this unusual form of glass art. Due to law changes concerning bathroom and accessible windows I started to engrave images onto toughened glass. It gives privacy yet is an art piece. The engraving is a unique approach which I have developed and what sets my work apart from any other glass work. Another unique factor is the combination of engraving and coloured glass. I use the finest glass from Germany and America which is not available in NZ and which I have to import.

My trademark as an artist is in combination of story-telling, beauty and functionality.

Click here to visit Karin's website.

Mixed Media Artist

I am a multimedia artist based in the suburb of Swanson in Waitakere City, Auckland, New Zealand.

Living amongst the native bush of the Waitakere Ranges is a constant source of inspiration. This regions colour, form, movement, pattern and texture influence all my works as does the areas bird life, the native Tui in particular.

Multi media materials range from bamboo, supplejack, harakeke, paper, paint, perspex, clay, fabric, crayon, inks, dyes and found objects.

Past work has included banners, paintings, sculptures and wall hangings.