Culture

Temple Gallery

Climbing a wiry staircase, through a seemingly enchanted garden, one walks into the Temple Gallery. A former synagogue, Temple Gallery has a feeling of spirituality. This sensation is furthered by Michaela Cox’s romantic and mythical works in her current exhibition, Nightgarden. Christchurch-based photographer Michaela Cox was a finalist for the prestigious James Wallace award in 2006 and is currently completely a Master of Fine Arts.
 
Nightgarden is series of pigment prints which highlight the majestic and sometimes unnerving beauty of birds. Each contains delicately crafted mise-èn-scenes starring native birds such as tui and kokako either emerging from or encircled by blooming hydrangeas and other such plants. The birds in Nightgarden loom and confront the viewer, as though their beady eyes have been fixed upon you from the moment you entered.
 
The most striking of Cox’s work is Untitled, in which the background consists of overgrown hydrangeas rising into an ominous forest. Carefully cut-out fragments of gold wallpaper, somewhat reminiscent of the Russian coat of arms, are arranged and moulded into an elegant shape on top. The layers are tactile, and use bold, regal contrasting colours. What is particularly striking about Cox’s work is the depth which these images portray. It’s as though one becomes totally immersed inside a forest, gentle shards of light trickling through a dense canopy to reveal the life featured within each. These beams of sharp light enrich each of these scenes, instilling them with a sense of energy.