This is a solo exhibition of new work by Timaru based artists Rachel Ratten. Ratten recently completed a Masters of Fine Arts with distinction from the University of Canterbury and has spent the past three years focussing in her professional development as a painter.  Her work takes cues from the aesthetic of kitsch, she portrays items that have been absorbed into the public psyche such as flying ducks and figurines and marries the with contemporary culture.

Ratten says about this exhibition:

When World’s Collide! aim to open conversation as to how our identity is created through our film preference and our object ownership, by utilising narratives between treasured kitsch objects and classic movie stills. This allows the image to provoke other meanings beyond the tenets of cinema history and the sociological study of collecting kitsch.

Ratten will present an artist talk on Sunday 12 June at 2:00pm to further expand on her influences and approach to this new body of work.

Header image: Rachel Ratten, Queen of Outer Space, Oil on board, 2015. All rights reserved.

Header image: Rachel Ratten, True Crime, Oil on board, 2015. All rights reserved.