the MANIA
On show in wellington at the TIMEOUT centre, manners MALL is: -BeatMANIA- keep up with the BEATs as well as a few little spins on the disk and you are COOL. I'm a little out of date to be COOL, from me old yifans days conquering street fighter two with heather straka, but watch the SPEED kids go for it -- trying to keep in time with the overthetop midi sequences. Graphics are HOT too -- simple vector-based animations funking away to the super TACKY TRAX. Highly recommended.

lots of STUFF
One after another -- solid sequence of solid shows at Hamish McKay's PAD; from the beautiful and austere photo works of Gavin hipkins to the modulating aural tonal works (with hanging speakers, painted card and funky yellow CD player) of L budd. hamish is on a ROLL, with other shows from michael harrison and Eugene Hansen and anton parsons...

get a GRIP
New works studio (hosted by wellington's hot architect, tim nees) exhibits jan van der ploeg's GRIP series. nice show of curved edged rectangle line paintings (a technoIST maybe, that techno KIDs (including me) will LUV). how does he get those curved edges so PERFECT -- the mystery prevails.

TOP CHAIR SPEAKER
The GREAT peter mcleavey has had chris heaphy doing night club paintings in his space -- blue(black)lights funking up those BRUSH strokes. unsure about this (in-between stage maybe) but a nice MOVE on. the back room had some cute smaller non-nightclub works which where easier to relate to and easier on the eyes. (not saying this is a good thing.)

new PAD
One of the new PADS to open, is the michael hirschfeld gallery, situated in the city gallery complex (moving towards village multi-complex maybe??). dedicated to michael hirschfeld, the gallery is for the local artists of wellington -- BIG FAB -- although it is something that has been a long time in waiting. The first show is a group exhibition with such artists as gavin hipkins, melissa mcleod, richard reddaway, simon morris, kinstry smythe, terry urbahn and rob cherry who has the first show of the flashing big NEON 360 degrees solo series.

rubber PADS
The new adam gallery has opened -- whopping big opening for this totally FAB space -- here's to VIC, the adams family and the atfields. The gallery opens with a whole bunch of invited curators doing what they do best: putting together small pictures to make the bigger PICTURE. From mr burke's window setting to damien skinner's chronological journey through walters and tangata whenua events, it's all THERE -- even the STORM WARNING.

rubber NEE PADs
On show at the adAm-national library and the city gallery is GUESS who??? mccahon O mccahon - there are still so many mccahon shows on, WHAT is happening! i feel like I need to franchise mccahon rubber knee PADS. So we the artists, we the curators and we the on looker won't get sore from kneeling on the ground worshiping such works. Don't get me wrong -- I like mccahon's work -- but we should move on

oil POOL for kids:
Stephen bambury's first retrospective is on DISPLAY at the city gallery -- kids luv diving into the oil pool set up; great IDEA! BAMBURY has an eye for surface -- what a surface one would say -- and you have to give it to him, he is dedicated to the CROSS. man O man what dedication. it is a BIG collection of work -- so hands UP for STEPHEN.

little lacquered JEMS
Downstairs city gallery with no BANNER, is deny watkins -- a quirky show that has some little JEMS especially the PINK ones. working closely with local Vietnamese artists, they created lacquer-based paintings of forms and text. denys has moved on, which is good to see.

artist RUIN
Sadly the artist run space we are trying to put together failed to get funding this time. this hasn't deterred us, it will just take a little longer to get it running.

in the FUTURE
lots happening in wellington, from TATTOOS to kosuth, to an influx of more young artists, the new NEUT in Newtown - great space! and the other is a new dealer. and as an arts centre for NZ (that is up for debate) that almost voted in ACT -- it is all GOO in wellington.

"This job a Te Papa's a breeze!"