Circumvent - Angus de Lange
'as work whose components of form, colour, rhythm and design refer to but do not describe natural phenomena.My purpose is to develop a body of work to the extent that certain paintings may have symbolic resonances of a kind that are far removed from the conscious concern of the painter. The intention is to bring forth works which are serious and beautiful, imbued with delight and sensual engagement.' - November 2024
Born in New Zealand, de Lange trained as an industrial designer at the Wellington Polytechnic School of Design during the late 1960s when James Coe, an early champion of ergonomic design, was its Director. Whilst at the school, he was taught by Tanya Ashken and John Drawbridge. He was also influenced by visiting lecturers, American architect and futurist Buckminster Fuller and Austrian-American designer Victor Papanek, a strong advocate of socially and ecologically responsible design.
In 1974, de Lange moved to Finland where he worked in furniture design and interior architecture. After returning to NZ, he taught design at Auckland Technical Institute (AUT) and Carrington Polytechnic (Unitec) from 1975-87.
From 1988 de Lange devoted himself to painting full-time. He participated in the 1991 International Art Workshop at Teschemakers near Oamaru, where he met resident lecturers James Gahagan (American abstract expressionist painter and colourist) and Patrick Heron (British designer and noteworthy abstract painter). During his travels, he later visited these artists in their homes.
Mainly self-taught, de Lange continued to develop his art in the USA and Europe where he travelled regularly, painting for extended periods in France and Spain. With his first solo exhibition at the Forrester Gallery in 1991, de Lange’s work has also been exhibited in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. His work is held in private collections throughout New Zealand and overseas.
Reveal - Linda Gair
I'm enchanted by stories as much as anyone. I'm sure I'm almost entirely a visual learner...My primary 'practice interest' is painting on wood - both old and sometimes rough wood, often recycled wooden objects, or newly milled wood.... but I'm always asking the form for their 'stories', by which I mean that my painterly application helps to assist a wooden object to 'tell' its raison d'être.I have for years collected old and often ordinary and oddly collectable wooden objects, and mostly well in advance of their 'soon to be upcycled' life, but nearly always well before their 'elevated' new 'object trajectories'.I'm always asking myself how a 'form can hold a story', well worthy of its shape, form and function as an object.
For this exhibition I hold form totally responsible.