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Invitation to explore identity and lineage at Richard Penn’s art exhibition “Mirror” Lithuanian Days Aotearoa, an annual cultural festival organised by local Lithuanian expats, invites to reflect on identity and lineage with South African artist Richard Penn during his award-winning exhibition "Mirror" at Public Record in Auckland, 16-21 April.
Richard Penn has never been to Lithuania, a country where his Jewish grandparents came from to South Africa, but he kept the connection alive and captured it in his early artistic explorations. Through personal, domestic video portraits of his father, Richard contemplates the notion of origins. He examines certain gestures that take him back to his childhood images of his grandfather and echo back through generations to their roots in a village in Lithuania. The captured moments and gestures cause the time to slip, and his father is caught between two mirrors where the present is a point from which both the past and future emanate.
"Mirror" was originally exhibited at The Everard Read Gallery in Johannesburg, South Africa and holds special significance as the merit award winner of the Everard Read Art Award. This captivating exhibition invites viewers to contemplate the continuum of cultural heritage, as depicted through video portraits of Penn's father, ink drawings, pastel drawings and paintings. The exhibition in Auckland is open to the public 16 - 21 April, 10 - 4 PM at Public Record, 82 Ponsonby Rd.
On Saturday, 20 April, from 1 PM - 3 PM, Public Record will host a "Talk and Meet the Artist” event, where Richard will share how exploring his father’s gestures opened up the idea of how the very close and the very distant came together and how this idea has informed his distinctive artistic direction for which he has become known in South Africa, New Zealand and globally.
Born and raised in South Africa, Richard Penn currently resides in Auckland, New Zealand, where he continues to create thought-provoking works of art. As an independent artist, Penn has garnered international acclaim for his exhibitions at prestigious venues such as Gallery AOP, The Everard Read Gallery in Cape Town and Johannesburg, Blank Projects in Cape Town, and The Origins Centre Museum at the University of the Witwatersrand. His diverse portfolio spans various media, including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture and ceramics. Most recently, he was awarded the Premier Prize at the Portage Ceramics Award in 2022 and celebrated his first New Zealand solo exhibition of ceramics and drawings at Public Record in Auckland in 2023.
For further information, please visit Richard Penn's website http://richardpennart.com or contact him at [email protected]. You can also stay updated on Penn's artistic journey by following him on Instagram at @richard.penn.art
Lithuanian Days Aotearoa gratefully acknowledges the support of the Lithuanian Council for Culture, Public Record art gallery and the Lithuanian Society of New Zealand in making this exhibition possible.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Public Record, 74-76 Ponsonby Rd, Grey Lynn, Auckland 1011, New Zealand,Auckland, New Zealand