Mary Shirley

Auckland based artist Mary Shirley mostly works in oils and describes her work as fairly representational, but often introduces new elements to enhance the concept, sometimes by changing the background, or by introducing other characters.
"My work often represents family, or experiences that I think relate to our upbringing in terms of religion, values and how all this relates to the world we now live in. My artistic endeavours relate to how I relate to the world I’ve been raised in, and how I perceive the changes that have taken place. I read widely and am interested in what the changes taking place translate into in terms of improvements for the vast majority of people.

'Pūmanawa / Intuitio: Artistic Passport Aotearoa' Mary interpreted as being around the concept of an intuition based approach to an art work that opens up possibilities, or enables /permits an exploration of the rituals we as a society surround ourselves with when celebrating key events.

"I attended a wedding of a relative, and noticed how a young member of the family dealt with the responsibilities he had at the celebration. I noticed he’d managed to play down any stuffiness, by dressing comfortably. The only clue to his involvement was the flower attached to his waistcoat. I was intrigued by the way he was able to find a quiet place to chill out. I thought his body language confirmed all this."