Being Here’ is an exhibition in paint and clay by artists Hayley Hamilton and Debra Powell that will be open 31st March – 11th April 2023 at 58 Wallis Street, above Raglan Joinery, (Old Yoga Studio) open daily from 10am – 4pm. The Local Rag spoke to the artists to hear about the upcoming show.
Can you please introduce yourselves as artists and describe your work?
Debra has been mucking about with clay in some form or another for nearly thirty years. She lives on 27 acres of isolated hill-paddock in the rural Waikato with an ever increasing collection of elderly re-homed greyhounds. It’s there that she sculpts, paints and draws, plants trees and plays music, and marvels (on a daily basis) at the tiny wonders of the natural world immediately surrounding her little orchard studio.
Hayley’s studio is in Raglan. She is a painter and illustrator that sometimes uses clay. Her inspiration can come from the most unexpected places, never really seeking it out as such, but always having a sketchbook and pencil close by to scribble down ideas, words, doodles, poems – even overheard conversations have been known to make it into her little book. She defines her muse as curiosity, being inquisitive and absolutely loving a well told story.
How did the two of you meet and connect?
Through art. As fresh young things, not long out of our separate Art and Design Schools, we were both working in art retail in the Hamilton CBD. We clearly remember the day we first laid eyes on each other (Texan Art Gallery, Garden Place, circa 1996) and simultaneously thought ‘there’s my friend’.
What is appealing about working together on this exhibition?
At last we get to spend time together without the guilty feeling of stealing each other’s precious work time. We can hang out as friends and call it work at the same time. We genuinely love each other’s creative practice, and over the years it has always dovetailed nicely, yet it’s rare for us to get these pieces nestled together in the same room.
What was the inspiration for ‘Being Here’?
This was Hayley’s brainchild – an idea that began last year and was starting to keep her awake at night. The word ‘being’ suggested itself as a title and when Debra added the word ‘here’ it seemed to flesh itself out nicely as a theme that encompasses both the simple and profound. Within that theme we’ve been able to explore some of the big challenges of the last few years, which have included unexpected change and deep personal loss, as well as celebrate the truly lovely stuff in between. We’re blimmin stoked to be right here, right now.
What creative path has led you to your current practice?
In addition to the early years at art school, Debra spent a decade in academia which included a doctorate in history and criminology. A focus there was on the narratives that surrounded and constructed how nineteenth-century crimes and their perpetrators were understood. The fascination with stories has been the continuing thread that winds its way throughout Debra’s intellectual and creative pursuits. Her sculptural works carry the stories (big and small) that make up our wonderful, complex lives.
Hayley Hamilton attended Central St Martin’s School Of Art in London. She immigrated to New Zealand in 1993 and has been a full time artist since 2001. Her career to date has involved running an open studio workshop, using clay, painting and a little commercial illustration. She is now painting full time.
Tell us about the opening
The opening will be at 58 Wallis St (above Raglan Joinery and beside Monster Gallery)
Friday 31 March, 5pm – 7.30pm …and simultaneously online through social media as well as Hayley and Debra’s websites.
‘Being Here’ An exhibition in paint and clay by Hayley Hamilton and Debra Powell
31st March – 11th April 2023
58 Wallis Street, above Raglan Joinery,
Old Yoga Studio, open daily 10 – 4
