Continuum

Ben Foster’s latest work includes large-format kinetic sculptures and new figurative geometric works, demonstrating the artist’s two key approaches to his current practice.  While abstract kinetic works represent Foster’s ongoing interest in Minimalist aesthetics and organic structures, figurative sculptures indicate a playful departure for the artist, as he explores the manipulation of familiar forms. 

Foster’s descriptions of animal forms are instantly recognisable, engaging geometric shapes to capture the iconic pose of each creature.  Angular surfaces show a concern with the questions of shape, size and the properties of space, while the polygon structure creates unfamiliar surfaces, assuring the work retains its sculptural focus.  These works reference increasing use of geometry in art and design within popular culture; their multiple white planes extend the play of shadow and light activating the form. 

These are also very personal works, expressing the artist’s fascination with the local wildlife and the domestic animals of his home life.  Kekeno takes inspiration from both the New Zealand Fur Seal and from the countless concrete seal sculptures which can be found strewn across the lawns of many coastal settlements.  The contemporary implications of geometric structures deliver the possibilities of the seal-as-object with a fresh eye, enriching our experience of the form.  Golden Boyis a direct representation of Foster’s own beloved golden Labrador, Harrie. The pose essentialises the bond between man and animal, expertly capturing the essence of the domesticated dogs’ readiness to please and adoration of its human. 

The parallels of the geometric sculptures with the landscape are unavoidable; the rugged triangular peaks of the Seaward Kaikoura mountains echo in the clean lines of the geometric forms and the snow-filled basins are represented in the pristine whiteness of the form.  

Elsewhere in the exhibition, Foster presents abstract sculptures which are either directly kinetic or highly suggestive of movement.  Continuum is a major work which revisits the artist’s ongoing exploration of the minimal aesthetic.  As in his figurative pieces, the impact of the landscape is immediately apparent; sculptures suggest waves and currents, geological features and botanical forms.  Installed in a natural setting, these works embody the forms of nature, reinterpreting them as the source of many quintessential elements of human art and design.  Foster distils natural and man-made forms to an essential core, realigning manufactured structures with their natural origins while evoking the functional elegance of these utilitarian objects.

Throughout his practice, Foster’s work subtly responds to the concerns of Environmental art, becoming part of the natural context it inhabits by altering and interacting with surroundings.  Dynamic light-dependent forms and kinetic properties change in response to the environment, augmenting and altering the viewer’s experience of the physical surroundings.  Continuum describes Foster’s work spanning the last two years, presenting an exploration of minimal aesthetic, kinetic elements, flowing curves and mankind’s relationship with nature.

BIOGRAPHY

Lives: Kaikoura
Education: Bachelor of Visual Arts, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology
Awards/Distinctions: Barbara Wood Memorial Foundation Trust Scholarship (2006); The Wallace Art Awards – Finalist (2005); Toss Woollaston Art Scholarship (2005); Christchurch Polytechnic - Academic Achievement Award (2004)
Public Exhibitions: Sculpture in the Garden: Riccarton House, Christchurch (2012);NZ Sculpture OnShore: North Shore, Auckland (2012);Art in a Garden: Flaxemere Gardens, Canterbury (2012);Shapeshifter: Lower Hutt, Wellington (2012);Sculpture on the Peninsula: Loudon Homestead, Banks Peninsula (2011);Sculpture in Central Otago, Wanaka (2011); NZ Sculpture OnShore, Auckland (2010); Heartland Sculpture Challenge, Timaru (2010); E-Scape: Sculpture in the Landscape, Waitakaruru Sculpture Park, Hamilton (2010, 2009); Ellerslie International Flower Show, Hagley Park, Christchurch (2010); Preview(Touring Exhibition), Centre of Contemporary Art, Christchurch, Temple Gallery, Dunedin, Webb’s Gallery, Auckland (2009); Mac’s Sculpture Symposium, Nelson (2006); Artist in Focus, The Suter Te Aratoi o Whakatu, Nelson (2009); The Wallace Art Awards Travelling Exhibition, Wallace Trust Gallery, Auckland; Pataka Museum of Arts and Cultures, Wellington; Centre of Contemporary Art, Christchurch (2006)
Publications: Latitude Magazine– October/November 2011; Santry, A, Sanderson, K and Darragh, T, The Artists: 21 Practitioners in New Zealand Contemporary Art c. 2011 – 2013, Auckland: Beatnik Publishing, 2011; ‘Celebrating a Simple Existence’ by Emma Bailey, The Timaru Herald, Mar, 2010; Warren Feeney & David Kahn, ‘Preview 09’ Exhibition Catalogue, November 2009;‘Fresh Blood’ by Virginia Were, Art News New Zealand, Spring 2006, pg 82; ‘Sculptor Artist in Focus’, The Nelson Mail, May, 2006