Celebrated artist Owen Dippie (OD) and his wife Erin will move from Tauranga to Auckland soon and people get the opportunity to farewell them at a special evening organised by Night Owl Cinema at the Tauranga Art Gallery tomorrow.
The free event, which starts at 6pm with a presentation ofOD's artwork and a print sale, will be the first of the Night Owl Cinema winter series. A showing of The Radiant Child, a documentary on renowned New York City artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, will follow at 7.30pm.
"We are really excited to be collaborating with the Tauranga Art Gallery to celebrate OD and his work and life in Tauranga, and we'd like to thank Priority One and Mount Brew Co for their support in getting this evening off the ground," says Night Owl Cinema organiser Kimberly Cleland.
"Night Owl Cinema is all about celebrating our community, people and places, and we see OD as a local creative community hero. We feel privileged to be able to celebrate him and Erin before their new adventures," she says.
OD is best known in Tauranga forthe Larger Than Life project, which aims to create up to 15 huge artworks forthe enjoyment of all residents of and visitors to Tauranga. Each large-scale mural is an ode to the arts, to culture and to the determination of the human spirit.
A well-known example is the Goldie mural on the side of Broncos Sports in Willow St, and his most recent work in the series is the 27m-tall recreation of the Birth of Venus on Harrington House.
Owen Dippie's mural on Harrington
House.
Before moving to Auckland, Owen and Erin will spend three months in America. It's Owen's fifth trip to the States and he has several jobs lined up, mainly in Los Angeles and New York.
Owen says Auckland will be a better fit for him and Erin because it's bigger, and that will bring them better opportunities.
The Tauranga Art Gallery is expecting a full house event and Gallery marketing and media coordinator Martine Rolls explains everyone is welcome but seating is limited.
"We can fit in around 300 people in total, with no more than 100 seated. We'd hate to turn people away but full is full, so please come early."
