FERN PETRIE
2004
Tales From The Drawing Room
7th – 28th August, Studio Gallery, Auckland.
Bamboo Intaglio Print.
Watercolour & Indian Ink on Arches Watercolour Paper.
Oil on Photograph.
Watercolour & Indian Ink on Arches Watercolour Paper.
Antique Book Cover, Coloured Pencil & Indian Ink.
Antique Book Cover, Coloured Pencil & Indian Ink.
Oil on Photograph.
Acrylic, Indian Ink & Conte on Arches Watercolour Paper.
The works in this exhibition were inspired by Victorian anatomical studies, the pageantry of the Venetian carnival and perceptions of wealth and beauty informed by fashion. Each image mirrors the Victorian fascination with the peculiar and otherworldly while the sitter is silent, contemplative, undemanding. Each image tells its own tale; whether it is one of appropriation, curiosity or imagination it is for the viewer to decide.