All that glitters is not superficial. Last week with Laza, post ramen feast, I checked out Dear Beauty, Dear Beast; Reuben Paterson’s recent exhibition at Auckland’s Gow Langsford gallery.
The series began for Paterson as a reaction to New Zealand’s provocation debate. In the way that previous bodies of work have honoured his whakapapa and found basis in the emotional responses to his genealogy, Paterson views these works, in part, as a personal homage to the victims of murder cases which have successfully used the provocation or “gay panic” defence. The work suggests that in the same way that we have an underlying culture of racism, there is also an underlying culture of homophobia.
The result is a series of strong images representing a weak outcome for victims and their families. In person the works are dazzling – and had a depth that in no way can be replicated through a photograph. Paterson commissioned custom glitter colours for each individual piece of work in the exhibition. In an interview with Radio New Zealand he said: “Although the imagery may be familiar, you’ll probably never see it again because these colours will never be manufactured again.”
Reuben Paterson
b.1973, Auckland (Ngati Rangitihi and Ngai Tuhoe)
Lives and works in Auckland
