Michael Crawford holds a Bachelor of Design degree (Sculpture major) from the UNITEC School of Design in Auckland. His subsequent training has been gained working as a studio assistant to glass artist Ann Robinson over several years.

Crawford's work focuses on the sculptural investigation of artefacts and the multi-cultural history of New Zealand. He has a continuing interest in examining his own Maori/European ancestry and history through three-dimensional form. Michael Crawford holds a Bachelor of Design degree (Sculpture major) from the UNITEC School of Design in Auckland. His subsequent training has been gained working as a studio assistant to glass artist Ann Robinson over several years.

Crawford's work focuses on the sculptural investigation of artefacts and the multi-cultural history of New Zealand. He has a continuing interest in examining his own Maori/European ancestry and history through three-dimensional form.Much of his work explores the different ways in which cultures view objects and artefacts - while one culture may view an object as unimportant; to another it may hold particular spiritual significance or usefulness. In line with this, previous series have made use of the bone, teeth and gourds as a central motif, emphasising and stylising their shapes to highlight their natural beauty.

This exhibition of new work sees another fresh direction for Crawford. Here, gourds have been translated into chalices, drawing inspiration from the still life paintings of Dutch Masters. With the accompaniment of cast glass fruit, the artist combines the influence of historic European painting with that of gourd carving, a traditional Maori craft. Cast in black (pango) glass to further accentuate their form, these works have been created with the assistance of a Creative New Zealand grant.

This will be Crawford's third solo exhibition.

18 September - 8 October 2008
Preview Wednesday 17 September from 5.30pm

16/09/08