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Jenny Tomlin - The Well Kept Wilderness revisited - Photospace Gallery, 37 Courtenay Place Wellington NZ, 6th December 2024 to 1st February 2025

3/12/2024

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© Jenny Tomlin. Pararaha. Whatipu to Karekare, Photospace Gallery contemporary New Zealand photography gellry 37 Courtenay Place Wellington Aotearoa NZ
© Jenny Tomlin. Pararaha. Whatipu to Karekare

Jenny Tomlin's photography hasn't had much visibility in Wellington, which is something we plan to remedy in the not-too-distant future. The Well Kept Wilderness revisited opens in gallery room 4 (the office/bar) on Thursday 5th December, 5pm, and runs from 6th December 2024 to 1st February 2025.
© Jenny Tomlin. Tangle fern. Kauaeranga Valley. Coromandel, Photospace Gallery contemporary New Zealand photography gellry 37 Courtenay Place Wellington Aotearoa NZ
© Jenny Tomlin. Tangle fern. Kauaeranga Valley. Coromandel

The Well Kept Wilderness revisited
 
These images from 1984 and 1985 are a selection from 2 series; The Other Land shown at Real Pictures and The Well Kept Wilderness, made in response to the former but not exhibited until 2017. It was a very creative period for me just after graduating from Elam and working as a Cibachrome printer at Real Pictures, an artist-run print lab and gallery. Alongside honing printing skills, it was a nurturing space to develop my practice amongst like minded photographers.

With both series I was searching for ‘gardens’ – exploring pockets of urban or industrial wasteland and recording the visual vitality in the plant communities changing over time. Later, returning to wilder spaces in the Waitakeres or Coromandel, I wanted to see if the natural landscape evoked similar ideas of order within chaos.

A trackless area along the Waitakere coast was particularly rich. The tide and wind constantly moving the landscape and there is a sense of isolation and freedom. The bulk and weight of the 4x5 camera counter balance this and dictate a slower more thoughtful approach with limited sheets of film. Viewing the subject through the camera’s ground glass under a black cloth transforms it, showing an ephemeral quality. I enjoy the opposing balance of control while being open to the moment. With longer exposures, the sun can change and transform the scene.

This appreciation of time and serendipity still thread through my current pinhole and cameraless work.
- Jenny Tomlin 2024.
© Jenny Tomlin. Mangrove afternoon, Westfield. 1984, Photospace Gallery contemporary New Zealand photography gellry 37 Courtenay Place Wellington Aotearoa NZ
© Jenny Tomlin. Mangrove afternoon, Westfield. 1984

Jenny Tomlin Artist Bio
Jenny Tomlin is an experimental photo artist and darkroom printer based in Titirangi, Tāmaki Makaurau. She completed a BFA at Elam in 1984 and hasn’t been out of a darkroom since.  Initially working as a printer at Real Pictures she continued travelling and printing overseas before returning to NZ in 1990. She’s continued to run a darkroom for film photographers since 2002 alongside her personal practice, occasionally exhibiting and running workshops in pinhole and darkroom printing.
Gallery hours: 10am-3pm Mon-Fri, 11am-2pm Saturdays, closed Sundays and public holidays.
Holiday hours: The gallery will be closed from 24th Dec. to 5th Jan. inclusive, and running reduced hours in the week 6th to 11th January, 2025. Contact [email protected]
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