Emme Orbach
AN EPOCH IN STONE
31 May – 24 June 2023
“Artistic form emerges out of a chaos which seeks its own shape. The role of the artist or poet is not to impose a pre-existing form upon senseless matter but to allow the material to find its own sense. What is primary is what is given, a chaos of meanings which demands assistance in order to come-into-form. The poet is thus the mediator or facilitator who lends a hand to the process of formation, not the demiurge who creates ex nihilo.”
Levine. S. 2004. Principles and Practice of Expressive Arts Therapy: Toward a Therapeutic Aesthetics. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
An epoch in stone explores the history of local minerals and stones, from geological creation through to industrialisation. Emme Orbach investigates elements and resources native to Aotearoa from research collected in 2022-23 from site visits across the North Island.
The exhibition explores themes of impermanence and the passage of time. The artist is curious about the awe inspiring yet existential predicament of comprehending nature that surpasses the human lifetime – of minerals that span thousands of years in creation.
An epoch in stone examines the agency of organic and inorganic forms. Orbach’s sculpture is constituted of pine wood, pumice stones and copper sulphate crystals, a topographical installation that evolves throughout the duration of exhibition. The artist plays the role of facilitator in poiesis, a balancing act of coaxing material into being, yet rescinding control to see what occurs.
Images by Ardit Hoxha