Sarjeant Gallery Te Awa Reo exhibition opens in Whanganui

An image from the Te Awa Reo exhibition at the Sarjeant Gallery. Photo / Gail Imhoff

A new Sarjeant Gallery exhibition is a collaboration of 14 artists examining and responding to scientific research of an 8.75-metre core sample of sediment taken from the Ātene Meander on the Whanganui River.

The project - named Te Awa Reo and a long time in gestation - is a "beautiful collision of science and art that is deeply connected to the awa".

Sarjeant Gallery public programmes manager and curator Greg Donson said the gallery is proud to host such an interesting piece of art.

"The Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua Whanganui is proud to be the hosting venue for this unique project that has been over three years in the making," Donson said.

"The 14 participating artists have responded to the project in unique and eloquent ways and it's heartening to see that so many of these works are in the often overlooked medium of print."

Exhibition co-ordinator Marilyn Ngahuia Vreede said the project is "the most worthwhile project I have had the honour to be involved in for a long time".

"Te Awa Reo has evolved into an artistic interpretation of scientific research that has not only energised the 14 artists involved but also engaged the scientific mind into exploring yet another perspective of a world natural to the discerning indigenous eye. It has been an honour to be a part of the resultant conversations."

The featured artists who have worked on the piece are Gabrielle Belz, Maude Cook Davies, Vanessa Wairata Edwards, Sam Farquhar, Jasmine Horton, Gail Imhoff, Faith McManus, Jude Macklin, Alexis Neal, David Sarich, Rena Star, Wi Taepa, Marty Vreede
and Raukura Waitai.

The exhibition is open at Sarjeant on the Quay, 38 Taupō Quay, until February 14, 2021.