Current 

Passive Resistance
by Kiri Abraham
26 November - 20 December
Opening - Friday, 29 November 5-7pm​

​The calendula seed is one which governs through chance. It plants itself everywhere in my garden, its shoots arriving unbidden to populate any bare soil it finds itself in. It feels like a quiet win (especially when it blooms on the berm), a welcome to pollinator insects, a reminder of sunshine in the winter. It also heals – a balm to the skin for cuts and bruises, antioxidant, cleanser. The soil it grows in, and who’s structure it helps to support, is a type of skin – covering the earth and holding nutrients, living communities, mauri. Plant and whenua, each leaning into the other. Soil health is just as human skin health – affected by what is put into it by those who claim it. Biochar added to soil, enriches and enlivens, an ancient additive used to increase water retention and carbon content -offering solutions to such current ‘skin afflictions’ of our earth. Biochar is a charcoal product produced by burning wood within a low oxygen environment. 
 
Fire and Soil and Seed
 
My drawing has emerged from these ideas. It has been a slow process which has nourished me throughout 2024. It has kept my feet planted and hands in the soil, inviting curiosity about that space between human existence and other living systems. 
 
-Kiri Abraham

Upcoming Exhibitions

Members Exhibition - January 2025

Our Aotearoa 2025
Jan 24th to Feb 26th
​Opening 
Kumeū Arts Members Exhibition

Please note this is a themed exhibition: All artwork must fit in with the theme: 
‘A summer exhibition celebrating Aotearoa’s natural environment and beauty - Focusing on the things and places we love’.
This may include but is not limited to the following; New Zealand  scenes of summer, landscapes, flora and fauna, native animals & birds etc. 
  • Work can be made in any media. E.G; photos, paintings, ceramics, printmaking, drawing etc.
  • Work must not have been shown/displayed at Kumeū Arts previously.
  • A maximum of 3 artworks can be entered.
ENTRY FORM & WORK DELIVERED: Thursday 16th or Friday 17th January (9 am-5pm)

**As Kumeū Arts is closed between Dec 21st - Jan 14th. Affordable entries may be collected at the same time as ‘Our Aotearoa Exhibition’ deliveries.  

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW: 
our_aotearoa_entry_form_2025.docx
Unpacking
by Arwen Flowers
Pip Window Gallery (on rotation) 
24th Jan – 26th Feb 2025

These paintings are an expression of body-held and felt memory. They consider what it means to show care through movement and convey a sense of identity and agency in the world.
​
Last year, while studying for my Master of Visual Arts degree, I sorted through stored family belongings. The boxes I opened were designed to keep the contents safe, but the cardboard construction had deteriorated, endangering the items inside. The damaged packaging jeopardised the preservation of my family history and, with that, my sense of self. This collection of paintings was made using methods that explore my feelings
of concern in this context.

Image shown ​- Miscellania, © Arwen Flowers,  2024. Paint and mediums on board, 800 mm x 1220 mm. $1600
Kumeu Arts  - 300 Main Road - Kumeu
Tel: 09 412 9480
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