Darryn George
Born in 1970, Darryn George (Ngapuhi) completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Painting) at Canterbury in 1993 and a Master of Fine Art (Painting) at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in 1998. Since 1999, George has been Head of Department, Art at Christ’s College in Christchurch. George has exhibited his work initially in Melbourne and extensively throughout New Zealand.
Darryn George brings together traditions of Maori art forms with Western abstraction, in a thoroughly engaging innovative way. 'The artist employs generic kowhaiwhai and moko motifs to enrich the layers beneath broad bands of colour. These customary curvilinear designs functioned as an expression of one’s whakapapa. In George’s paintings they become the foundation upon which he composes his own geometric interpretations motivated by the rhythms and cadences evident in traditional designs. (Shelley Jahnke-Bishop)'
While his paintings express a formalistic aesthetic, close up they reveal surprisingly rich texture. Alternate bands of vibrant colour have been applied with a controlled application of impasto leaving a three dimensional impression that emulates the chisel ridges formed in Maori wood carving.
The word waru is Maori for the number 8. Within Biblical texts, the number eight has to do with new life, new order, a new era -Noahs ark is a good example, in that after the great flood there were eight passengers that were preserved to start the new era. Waru (eight) also has to do with resurrection.
We are delighted to have Darryn on board with us.
For more information on Darryn's work visit www.darryngeorge.com