Through his distinctly recognisable visual language, Chris Heaphy navigates the complexity of representation, connection, identity, time and place. Repetition of motifs and symbols creates a narrative rhythm spurring conversations of interconnection and multiplicity.

Heaphy’s symbolic imagery appears to float on the surface, yet at times it recedes, as if carved into the paint. Like pou in a wharenui, each painting presents a vertical panel with a central point of focus. Similar to the stylised human forms in whakairo, Heaphy’s motifs become holders of whakapapa, an embodiment and preservation of knowledge, lineage, and identity.

A solitary silhouette of a Māori head features predominantly in Falling Through All This Time. In contrast to the vibrant colours behind and in front of the profile, it features as a shadow memory device and reminds the viewer of the passing of time. The face looks toward the sunrise and is layered with a gold-coloured silhouette of an antique Chinese vase nesting a forward-facing Kōtuku, addressing a collective future.

In The Air That Hangs Between Us, two birds, a Kakaruwai (South Island robin) and Ngirungiru (tomtit), perch on lidded vessels as if caught in conversation. Often darting and fleeting, here the birds are still, inviting reflection. Are they guardians of the taonga below, or are they harbingers of a warning? While native New Zealand birds feature prominently, suggesting a New Zealand dialogue, Heaphy’s paintings reflect on the lessons of our shared histories and speak to universal concerns. What is worth preserving? What do we truly value?

Birds inhabit the space between earth and sky and they are often seen as intermediaries between heaven and earth. In much the same way, Heaphy’s work occupies this in-between, inhabiting the space between materiality and the intangible. Sumptuously painterly surfaces juxtapose hard-edged motifs, creating a space of rich experience, multiple meanings, and shifting perspectives. In The Light Shines on You Now, light seems to emanate from within - a sunset? an aurora? Ambiguous and beautiful, it is easy to forget these abstracted worlds are simply paint on canvas.

The suggestion of space and depth is ever-present. While previous bodies of work navigated a foreground and background, Birdland introduces a new depth perspective entirely. Heaphy confidently experiments with historical painting conventions, constructing the illusion of space. The dark vertical brush strokes in All Our Stories and The Sound of Your Voice suggesting (perhaps) water or the sea’s horizon, while mountain-like forms appear flanked by a luminous sky in The Sound of Your Voice. These paintings are not literal representations. They are metaphorical windows to look through and beyond with each work uniquely experienced by the viewer.