Memory Within Landscape: Pauline
Rhodes
Spanning over forty years of rigorous practice, the intuitive and highly personal work of Pauline Rhodes has encompassed many concerns that are now at the forefront of contemporary art: sustainability, conservation, the integration of natural systems and human impact on the environment. In several recent exhibitions, the now octogenarian artist continued her intense rumination on what constitutes an ethical relationship with the natural world.
Image credit: Installation view Pauline Rhodes, Pile, 2021, dyed merino wool, dimensions variable in Bluets, 2021 Michael Lett, Auckland. Courtesy the artist and Michael Lett, Auckland
An unintended consequence of her deep affinity with the environs of her native Christchurch, it is regrettable that the sculpture and installation work of Pauline Rhodes is not more widely recognised outside New Zealand. Hers is a personal meditation and dialogue with the land, seascapes and unique forms of Banks Peninsula, extending from her home base across Port Hills, the Canterbury Plains and out towards the Southern Alps.
Rhodes’ abiding philosophy is that her work should complement what she sees, and not intrude upon or attempt to dominate the terrain. In doing so, she embraces the unpredictable, both in circumstance and prevailing environmental factors. This is reinforced by the selection of portable and inclusive materials she employs: paper, volcanic rock, stone, cloth, timber, driftwood, plant matter, wire and metal off-cuts, glass, rods and salvaged items from industrial and demolition sites. There is also an internal continuity to Rhodes’ work, as the wide range of components she has accumulated are often repurposed. She is more concerned with the integrity of the artistic process – the dynamic experience of exploration, development and proximity – than presenting a definitive or permanent statement.
The cumulative effects of exposure and decomposition upon the materials she uses are not disguised, echoing natural processes. “The weathering is intended to imply the passage of time, the marks of wear and tear, to show that some of the working materials had been used elsewhere previously,” Rhodes notes. “They were often recycled in the first instance, and secondly had been used in previous projects, either indoors or outdoors. The iron oxide staining has ...Subscribe to read this article in full