Into Ocean & Ice - Artists explore a changing Antarctica
Image Tegan Allpress- “St Andrew’s Bay 1. Accelerating.” October 2023
29 November 2024 - 31 August 2025. Edmiston Gallery, New Zealand Maritime Museum,
Corner Quay and Hobson streets, Viaduct Harbour, Auckland, NZ
Five artists interpret the remote cool South, taking in Ernest Shackleton’s failed yet epic Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-1917) to the Weddell and Ross seas, and modern-day South Georgia in the South Atlantic Ocean, where the climate crisis has glaciers on the run and biodiversity experts worried.
Into Ocean & Ice showcases the work of four emerging Aotearoa artists—Tegan Allpress (Rongowhakaata), Peregrin Hyde (Ngāti Maniapoto), Rose Lasham, and Charlie Thomas—who journeyed to South Georgia in 2023 with the Antarctic Heritage Trust's Inspiring Explorers Expedition™, to honour the centenary year of Shackleton’s final polar expedition on which he died. Through photography, paintings, illustrations, ceramics and interactive elements, their artwork explores the immensity of this wildlife-rich gateway to Antarctica.
Meanwhile in another hemisphere, Italian painter Paola Folicaldi Suh found inspiration in photos by Frank Hurley, the photographer who documented Shackleton's Endurance voyage. In 1914, trapped in pack ice, the ship sank, yet Shackleton's heroic 36-hour trek over South Georgia’s glaciers ensured his crew’s survival. Folicaldi Suh’s large-scale paintings immerse viewers into Shackleton’s journey, offering a glimpse into this epic tale of survival.
The Artists
Tegan Allpress
Of Ngāti Whakaue, Rongowhakaata, Tegan is a film photographer focused on the concept of Tūrangawaewae, or "a place to stand." She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (First-Class Honours) from Elam, University of Auckland. Tegan’s current project is researching the relationship between sustainability and tourism.
Charlie Thomas
Charlie is a conservationist, seabird lover, and artist who has worked on remote islands, including Kure Atoll in Hawaii, where he eradicated invasive species. His watercolour art reflects his passion for wildlife and environmental restoration, especially in remote refuges like the sub-Antarctic islands.
Rose Lasham
Rose, a Fine Arts graduate, uses painting and ceramic sculpture to explore climate change and humanity's impact on nature. Her work aims to inspire environmental stewardship, with a focus on the lasting effects of human-created materials like plastic.
Peregrin Hyde (Perry)
Peregrin Hyde (Ngāti Maniapoto) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa, with roots in Ōtautahi and whakapapa linking him through Ngāti Maniapoto to Te Rohe Pōtae and Kāwhia, as well as Scottish and English ancestry. With a background in environmental education, his visual arts encompases, microscope photography, video, music, sound design, 3D modeling, education, and jewelry-making.
Paola Folicaldi Suh
An Italian painter based between Fermo, Italy, and Sigtuna, Sweden, Paola combines her background in restoration with an interest for in the world around her. Her work reflects a unique blend of historical techniques and contemporary interpretation, shaped by her studies at the Institute of Book Pathology in Rome and the Book School in Urbino.
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Image credit: Tegan Allpress, St Andrews Bay 1 (Intensifying), October 2023