Cat creation comes to life

Mark and Paul Rayner's December show is always a highlight of Rachael Garland's year.

It's for three-dimensional work and she normally works on paper and in two dimensions. Launching out into three is pure fun and it's the third year she's had a chance to do it.

"It's one opportunity I have not to edit too much. In my normal work, I edit a lot for the commercial market," she said.

She had months to think about what she would make for the show, which is on the theme of cats. She bought an old papier mache doll from Trade Me and paired it with the legs of a mannequin, some doilies, harakeke and lace paper.

The result has a cute face, cats' ears and tiny arms but bulges out with a larger humanoid belly and legs.

Its title, Mrs Perkins, is the name of Garland's own ginger cat - but it's also a play on purr and perky, and her cat creation is perky.

Garland herself has a love-hate relationship with cats. Her mother had far too many but she herself has had some especially nice ones. "They're a fine subject to work with, because they do have personality," she said.

Mrs Perkins is just one of 40 interpretations of the cat theme in the gallery's From Scratch: Forty felines in mixed media show.

It's on until January 23.

The media are certainly mixed. Johanna Pegler decided to paint on a tin, Mark Rayner covered a ceramic bust of a man with fur, Karen Ellett, Katie Brown, Keith Grinter and Carment Simmonds worked in glass, while Gem Chapman mingled glass with faux fur.

Except for Lauren Lysaght, Anthony Behrens, Glenn Burrell and a small spiky cat sketch from Philip Trusttum, all the work is from Wanganui artists.

Garland is one of those. She graduated from Whanganui UCOL with a BFA in 2003, having majored in printmaking, and she now paints as well.

Since graduation she's been selling her work in galleries all over New Zealand and making a kind of living. She's slowed down a bit since having two children, but still has work for sale online and in Wellington, New Plymouth, Shannon and Christchurch.