VIKY GARDEN

I have been an exhibiting artist since 1988. My paintings reflect an innate sense of self within a post-feminist 21st century New Zealand. Mostly figurative in content, my primary themes are gender and social politics set within semi-autobiographical and allegorical narratives.

Using motifs such as simple domestic props enables me to express personal views in universal contexts. For example, the chair in the nude exhibition of 1994's True Life Studies surfaces again as a symbol of domesticity in Auckland, a work of fiction 2001, as a political tool in Polemos 2003, and as a defenceless hostage in Untitled 2006.

Fabric and pattern are key compositional and thematic devices for me, visual links that connect past and present, and combine gender, memory and historical references (Any Given Day 2002 and Arabesques 2006).

Pattern in women's art is often considered merely decorative (the implication being 'light-weight'), but for me it's a potent device, a language or code by which I can readdress and challenge this assumption.

I never paint to art dictates, fashions or current vanguard styles. This rather high-risk approach is most evident in my 2005 exhibition Femme - Bridal Suite, a subtle and poignantly introspective series of monoprints. In these works, line juxtaposed with random watercolour splashes and grazed marks of printing ink combine to weave a delicate narrative thread.

The use of historical fabrics (in this instance, doilies and lace hankies long preserved in hope chests and glory boxes), serve to heighten the notion of lost romantic idealism. These elements were directly referenced in Girls and Dolls 2006, and various other paintings from this period.

My painting surfaces have varied from rough hessian (backed on a solid board so that my line is firm), to flat smooth hardboard (Dressergirls 2005, where line and form dominate and the paint itself has been etched), to the stretched canvas paintings of Hinterland 2007. The roughness of hessian grain is exchanged for the fine skin-like surface of canvas, emphasising detail and luminosity.

Over the last twenty years, positive public response to my work has provided me with a loyal private following, so it's important for me to accept the validity of my own experiences and express them. While this can be a vulnerable thing to do, it is essential for my work.

Viky Garden
2007