12 April–10 May
Remembrance II, 2024, oil on canvas, 750 x 1000mm
The copying of paintings is a centuries old tradition and an important tool in western art education and, in museums around the world, students gain a first-hand experience of composition, colour and tone from sitting in front of works. In this postmodern age of appropriation and sampling, Martin Ball has added another dimension to the reworking of historical imagery. He chooses to work from his studio, drawing from secondary and tertiary sources, reinterpreting and reinventing along the way.
For what may be the last in his series of homages to paintings from history and the recent past, Ball alighted on another painting from his pantheon of favourite artists, Gerhard Richter, whose works has long admired and saw recently in Berlin. Among other subjects, Richter is noted for his photorealistic rendering of lighted candles (c.1982), images Ball chose for a memento mori following the death of his mother in 2023.
Hence the eternal candle flame is not only a homage to Richter, it is also a deeply personal memorial from the artist, and one that we, as viewers, can attach our own meaning to.
Text draws from and references:
Wolfe, Richard, ‘Memory and Influence: Martin Ball’s Homage to the Past’, Art New Zealand, No.193, Autumn 2025. https://art-newzealand.com/issues/issue-193
After Richter, 2000–25, oil on linen, 605 x 910mm
Candle, 2024, oil on canvas, 500 x 400mm
Small Candle II, 2024, oil on canvas, 250 x 200mm
Candle for Marie I oil on linen 400 x 300mm
Postcard from Berlin 2024 oil on linen 600 x 500mm
Studio view
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