Galleries open in CBD
Two new art galleries in central Hamilton are promising to expand the city’s visual offerings.
Contemporary art gallery, Weasel, opened on Victoria St at February’s end, joining a gallery focused on emerging artists, Tacit, which opened the month prior.
Weasel owner Laree Payne, 27, said Hamilton was ripe for an expanded art scene, with developments such as Victoria on the River gaining momentum
‘‘It’s quite high risk for us, but potentially really high reward and a great opportunity at the moment with lots of people wanting to support that.’’
Originally from Tauranga, Payne studied social work at Wintec and graduated with a masters in art management from Auckland’s Whitecliffe College in December.
Two days later, she had the keys to Weasel in her hands.
What is now a hollow, whitewalled cavern, was once a massage parlour with violet walls and red carpet.
In renovating the space, Payne removed beds, underwear, cellphones and televisions left by the former occupants. She scraped cooking grease from the walls, and tore out a shower.
Open Thursday to Saturday, Weasel will have a new exhibition hanging every three weeks.
Its first exhibition, Nau Mai, features the work of local artists and closes on March 10.
‘‘But beyond that I’m really hoping to show work from around New Zealand and expose Hamilton to that stuff.’’
On Payne’s assessment, Hamilton lacks a strong contemporary art space and she hopes to fill a niche.
‘‘We do need to grow an audience for contemporary art and for people buying art as well.’’
Weasel has attracted significant support from the building’s owner, Matt Stark, along with branding help from Area Design, and a desk from McKay Design.
‘‘We have a really strong arts community and people are really supportive. On the opening night I had maybe 300 people come through, it was absolutely packed.’’
Further down Victoria St, Nicole Fairey, 24, and Elli Lee Duncan, 25, opened Tacit gallery in January. Sharing an upstairs space with The Creators Collective, a co-working business, Fairey said the aim was to promote artists who aren’t given space in traditional institutions.
‘‘We’re trying to bridge the gap between artist run spaces and dealer galleries that promote high art.’’
The pair studied in Wellington and were blown away by the art scene, something lacking in the hometown Fairey once hated.
‘‘Hamilton’s grown so fast in the last few years. Our culture is trying to catch up with it. It’s at the cusp of having a really good reputation for itself.’’
Tacit is open Tuesday through Saturday, 12-6pm, with a new exhibition opening on March 10.