Kāpiti Art Studio artist invited to exhibit in Southland

John Jensen in front of paintings by himself and other Kāpiti Art Studio artists. Photo / Rosalie Willis

When it comes to art there's no right or wrong.

Each Thursday morning artists of different abilities gather together at Kāpiti Art Studio to create, paint, and produce artwork of all kinds.

One of them, John Jensen, has been attending ever since the art studio started.

"I've always said we started in 2010, but I recently found a photo from 2006 so it must have been back then," Kāpiti Art Studio co-ordinator Rebecca Bond said.

Funding from Te Tahua Whakahaumaru Creative Arts Recovery and Employment (CARE) Fund earlier this year has enabled the studio to be open more often and provided more resources to assist the artists in regularly showing their work.

The most recent exhibition is the Riversdale Mixed Media Art Exhibition in Southland, which John's work has been selected for.

John Jensen with 'Penguin Love' which will be on display at the Riversdale Mixed Media Art Exhibition in Southland.

The annual show runs over a 10-day period from July 1.

The group aims to facilitate, promote, educate and foster support for the arts in all their various forms.

Each year, a visual feast of outstanding artwork is stylishly displayed to its best advantage, producing a sophisticated, classy exhibition to rival any in the larger centres.

John's piece, called 'Penguin Love', is being exhibited. It's an acrylic painting on top of encaustic wax.

Using an unusual technique, John chiselled out some of the wax from the base so he could paint on top of it.

"Painting straight onto wax, it would just run, so I experimented and chiselled some of it out first," John said.

"I was quite pleased with the result.

"The painting is of penguins walking through the water toward the beach, it was a beautiful picture, almost like the penguins were holding hands."

John has painted a lot of nature scenes including birds, animals and New Zealand landscapes, but is also working on a Spiderman painting.

"Art is enjoyable, you get into a world of your own when you're painting," John said.

"It transports you into another universe."

Mostly painting on Thursdays at Kāpiti Art Studio, ever since it opened, John occasionally paints at home, but enjoys going to the studio each week.

"In the group, you've got people of all different abilities but everyone gets on really well," John said.

"I was always told by my art teacher when it comes to art, there's no right and wrong.

"There's no competition, no judging, but everyone appreciates each other's art here."

John also has works being displayed at Vintage Village Cafe in Raumati and the Labour MP's office in Paraparaumu through Creative Manaaki.

Kāpiti Art Studio's latest collective work is a mural in Mahara Place along a ramp outside Olive Grove Café.

"This is great, as we're all about accessibility," Rebecca said.

"The studio is a creative space where people who face barriers to participating in the arts can express themselves creatively and connect with their community, so this is perfect."