Sum of the histories of a hill

By T.J McNAMARA

There are exhibitions where individual paintings would be better seen alone because their impact is muted by being part of a number of similar works. There are other shows where the exhibition as a whole makes more impact than single works in it would in isolation. There are two such shows this week.

All the paintings in Maungawhau/Mt Eden by Robert Ellis, at the Milford Galleries until July 29, are similar in size and they are all dominated by the humped shape of Mt Eden.

The colours of the sky behind the hill capture the constantly changing moods of the mount. But there is far more to these paintings than a depiction of the landmark. These complex paintings are loaded with symbolic detail.

The hill itself is black and sombre and criss-crossed with smaller hillocks which suggest how it exists in the memory of many people. It is often also marked with the lines and levels of surveyors' marks which are a reminder that the trig station still stands on top of the hill as a monument to the first triangulation of the accurate mapping of New Zealand. Other forms suggest the underlying strata and caves that penetrate the hill.

There are many other echoes. Some of the paintings have 14 little flag-like triangles as a reminder that at various times 14 different regiments were camped near Mt Eden and that there was a rifle range in Mountain Rd.

The outstanding symbol is a blue flow of water in every painting. This points up the irony that there is no natural water on Mt Eden - rain goes straight through the scoria and comes out at Western Springs. But there is on Mt Eden a huge concrete reservoir which serves the large part of Auckland and recently a whole new distribution system has been laid, with a main running down past Government House.

These European details are, nevertheless, subordinate to the feeling of the importance of the hill to Maori and its place in history. The crater in all the paintings is lettered with the name of the Maori god of volcanoes.

Hovering above the mountains is the symbol lettered with "kite", the Maori word for seeking and searching. It is spelt backward, suggesting the search into the past. There is also the alpha and omega of the Ratana Church.

All these details underlie the visual fascination of these works. It is seven years since Ellis had a major exhibition like this and it is a reminder of the immense resources he brings to the painting task.

He evokes the presence of the hill, the delicate clouds that sometimes slide past its slopes tinted with blue and green and the high clouds above it.

There are vivid touches of colour in medal ribbons that link with crosses to evoke past conflict and death. And in almost every painting there are marvellously realised pieces of botanic painting that alone would make the name of any younger painter. The leaves of such plants as lacebark are painted with virtuoso skill.

Isolate any one of these paintings and it would be hugely impressive. Collectively, they seem repetitive but in sum they are a wonderful achievement.

Ellis is a veteran painter with an established place in New Zealand art. Sara Hughes is a young painter establishing her style and finding her place in the art world.

Her installation dot.land at Te Tuhi in Pakuranga caused quite a stir and her exhibition at the Vavasour Godkin Gallery until August 3 is a confident follow-up to that impressive display. It is called Places for Paintings and the paintings are found in many places in the gallery. Some are on the ceiling, some on the floor. Some bend around internal corners or lap around external corners. Some are on the wall and part of it. Others are done on perspex and stand out from the wall, casting a shadow on the surface behind.

All are done in dots of uniform size stamped out in paper. These dots are not like pointillist work where dots render the flicker of light but are designed to make patterns and extend our perceptions about repeated colour and effects of texture. This is not painting in symbols, this is painting of effects.

It all adds up. Each work is different but each piece adds to the total effect. It is intriguing to see how the pattern of dots casts a pattern that alters as the viewer shifts position. It is intriguing to pass under an arch lit by yellow dots. It is intriguing to look down and find a delightful little work near the floor and equally fascinating to look up and see one that extends from the wall to the ceiling.

Most inventive are the ones directly influenced by the places they occupy near a window. Not only do they use the light from the window but they complement the shape and nature of the window itself.

An extraordinary amount of our visual information comes to us in the form of dots - from the pictures in the newspapers to the pixels that form the images on television. This show sums them all up but has its limitations.

Some of the pieces are more like bathroom fittings than paintings but it is inventive and extends our experience of paintings and how we perceive them. It raises great expectation of how Hughes will continue to develop her ideas.