COCA Gallery is pleased to announce a personal and insightful view into the world of the professional artist through a visit to their studio. Away from the exhibition spaces of an art gallery, the artist’s perspective in their workspace will bring you closer to their everyday life and the processes, challenges and rewards they confront in considering and making their work.

Visits will take place from 12 August to 30 October and places are limited.

The cost of each tour is $45 and places can be booked by emailing reception@coca.org.nz, calling us on (03) 366 7261 or visiting the gallery.

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Thursday 12th August 2010, 2.30pm
Darryn George – Painter

Darryn George's work contrasts flat surfaces and three–dimensional textures in a way that fuses traditional Maori art with contemporary, Western–style abstract painting. Through his employment of intricate patterns, chanting rhythms and an eye–popping palette of red, black and white, Darryn will draw you into a world of light, language and patterning. Visitors to his studio will be treated to a slide show and a rich selection of new works about to be exhibited in the North Island.

Thursday 9th September 2010, 2.00pm
Dilana Rugs – Hand-crafted pure wool rugs
City Art – Conservation framing workshop
Doc Ross – Photographer

Dilana Rugs is a workshop run by expert craftspeople who work in collaboration with career artists, turning out numbered, limited edition works using a distinctive hand–tufting process. In converting paintings, prints or other works into carpets, Dilana's designs rework their sources to take advantage of the possibilities afforded by textured items primarily intended for horizontal surfaces. During this visit, we view current projects destined for a major New Zealand commission in coming months.

City Art is a workshop and gallery offering a range of specialised services including conservation framing, art storage, installations and the manufacture of artist's stretchers, archival Solander boxes and custom-made art crates. With a strong focus on archival art care City Art has 21 years' experience providing these services to museums, galleries, artists and art collectors throughout the country. Hosted by the founding manager, frame-maker David Trerise, we have the opportunity to go behind the scenes of the workshop for a rare insight into the centuries-old tradition of frame craftsmanship and some of the most modern technologies now applied to such services.

Photographer Doc Ross observes and captures formal beauty in his natural and urban landscapes. Minimalist and visually striking, Doc's photographs present the viewer with a unique moment captured in time. We explore Doc's studio and dark room to investigate the traditional processes he employs in his interpretation of the photographic medium.

Sunday 19th September 2010, 4:00pm
Volcano Café & Lava Bar

The Volcano Café and Lava Bar in the historic port town of Lyttelton is a happy miscellany of contemporary art and sculpture, collected over 20 years of business. We will learn about the history of the café and of artists like Bill Hammond, Gavin Chilcott, and Dean Buchanan whose work adorns the walls of this iconic restaurant.

Saturday 9th October, 3:00pm
Mark Whyte – Sculptor

Mark Whyte is a Lyttelton-based sculptor whose most visible public works include Canterbury Heroes, a set of bronze busts located in the Arts Centre and a more controversial work -Coal Pile, a sculpture at the site of the old gas works. During our visit to Whyte's studio, we view plaster maquettes of his work and trace his creative process of reduction and mold making.

Saturday 16th October, 3:00pm
Philip Trusttum – Painter

Philip Trusttum is one of New Zealand’s best known contemporary painters and well recognized for the International Kraser- Pollock Award. A pupil of the late Rudolf Gopas, Trusttum, along with Philip Clairmont and Philippa Blair, is a key exponent of the so-called Canterbury Expressionist school. We visit Philip's studio, located in a large tin shed behind an elegant wooden two storied house in central Christchurch, and view some work in progress.

Saturday 23rd October, 3:00pm
Llew Summers – Sculptor

Llew Summers' figurative sculptures, generous both in proportion and spirit, are fixtures in Canterbury, if not nationally. He believes it is the role of the artist to challenge: 'if it's not challenging, then, in some way, it's not new.' Following a revelatory journey overseas, Llew's recent work exudes a new–found spirituality – expressed in his preoccupation with winged forms and angel–like beings. We view Llew's studio and private collection.

Saturday 30th October, 3:00pm
Graham Bennett – Sculptor

Graham Bennett is a sculptor of national pre–eminence whose work reflects the forms and rhythms of the Pacific environment, and a fascination with cultural and changing frames of reference. Bennett sees his art as a 'convoluted journey of tangents and overlays [that trigger] questions for myself and others about who, where and when we are.' On this visit we gain insight into Graham’s art practice by viewing his home studio and the development of ideas via his drawings and marquettes.

[15th October, 2010]