15 November – 10 December 2022
Memories, and the experiences that trigger them, provide the backdrop for Martin Ball’s new paintings. As a youth growing up in West Auckland in the 1960s he was familiar with the tracks and trails of the west coast and often returned to the waterfalls and streams in the Waitakere Ranges. In those formative years his interest in painting such scenes was motivated by visits to the Auckland Art Gallery and the Petrus van der Velden paintings he saw there. Studying his grandfather’s art books, in particular a volume on the works of Diego Velazquez, also made a significant impression on the young artist. Over fifty years later he has revisited the images.
Martin has always worked in a Realist style. Exhibiting since the 1970s he is well known for his beautifully crafted and highly observed drawings and paintings. From his early Pop-influenced works to his large-scale portrait paintings, his illusory drawings of pieces of paper and, more recently, the atmospheric Pink and White Terrace paintings, all express his own distinct brand of realism. Now he pays true homage to the work of van der Velden and Velazquez.
Martin is represented in public and private collections throughout New Zealand including Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, Dunedin Public Gallery, The Dowse Art Museum, MTG Hawkes Bay, Wallace Arts Trust, the University of Auckland, and the University of Canterbury. He has been an exhibiting finalist on four occasions in the Archibald Portrait Prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, winning the Packing Room Prize in 2008 for his portrait of Neil Finn. His work has been shown in exhibitions at a number of public galleries including ‘That Seventies Show’ at Auckland City Art Gallery (2001) and ‘Architecture of the Heart’ at MTG, Hawkes Bay (2013).
Martin’s work has featured in publications on New Zealand Art, including New Zealand Painting: A Concise History by Michael Dunn (2003), and New Zealand Portraits by Richard Wolfe (2008).
Born in 1952, Martin studied at the Elam School of Fine Arts graduating with a Diploma in Fine Arts in 1973. In 2001 he completed a Masters in Fine Arts, also at the University of Auckland.
A catalogue illustrating the complete collection is available from the Gallery upon request, or click below to view or download this catalogue.
