Otago Daily Times, Gallery De Novo review
The Painter and the Glassmaker
Jennie De Groot and Di Tocker
De Novo's current exhibition pairs the strong impressionistic landscapes of Jennie De Groot and the eye-catching meditative glasswork of Di Tocker.De Groot's paintings are strongly rooted in the rhythms of the Otago landscape. Landforms are often hinted at rather than directly stated in works where the palette captures and conveys the essence of the country. The paintings, created with a brush and knife, are dynamic, and painted with vigour and confidence. The radiating strokes of Guided Home and Burnt Around The Edges produce visceral traces of the equally strong landscapes represented. Quieter pieces, such as the sombre Untethered, capture the spirit of the land equally effectively.
Against these strong backdrops, Di Tocker's small attractive glass forms gain a Zen-like meditative quality. Figures stand and sit enclosed in circles of colour, or adrift on spirit-boats on some unknown sea. Others are captured like bugs in amber within solid blocks of translucency. The crystalline forms glow in soft tones, the pellucid colours shift and blend as the light moves around them. There is an intense thoughtfulness about the figures which enables the viewer to feel a personal connection with them. They have a rough familiarity; clearly hewn, they seem to represent the lost soul hopefully travelling to and unknown destination.
James Dignan
Otago Daily Times, Thursday October 12, 2017
The Painter and the Glassmaker VISIT
6-19 October, 2017
Gallery De Novo
101 Stuart St
Dunedin
Ph 03 474 9200
www.gallerydenovo.co.nz