Exhibition

Darryn George

Kaitiaki

24 November 2012 - 3 March 2013 DARRYN GEORGE:

PATAKA is delighted to present Christchurch-based artist Darryn George's latest series of large-scale paintings, Kaitiaki 2012.

George is part of a generation of artists who have been reconsidering abstract art through the 21st century lens of technology. He plans and tests his ideas on a computer before painting the works by hand.

George takes minimalist abstraction in a new direction, layering it with subtle references of narrative and spiritual meaning. Through his work he seeks to meld his Maori heritage with his Christian belief system: his crisp, elegant paintings progress from an idea of structure, order and proportion to an idea of Maori spirituality and Christianity. In his latest series of paintings, he combines Maori text and iconography in his paintings. 'There was a period just after the Christchurch earthquake, in February 2011, when I started painting word paintings - neon sign type paintings - with words like Rata (Doctor),  Kaitiaki (Keeper) and Takuta – Doctor. As the series grew I started to use the work 'Atua'. Atua is the Maori translation of God. Repeated over and over, the word appears like a prayer for help. Darryn George, August 2012