“Presented with the opportunity to visit a place I had never before visited, I was immediately inspired to explore my sense of belonging to the landscape, and in particular, to this land, Aotearoa. Through richly layered mark making, I considered the way that marks are left on the landscape through the history of a place. As my work evolved I was repeatedly reminded of the way that the landscape, in fact, leaves its mark on me, especially in a visceral, deeply instinctive way. I sensed that this opportunity, of both a solo exhibition and residency, had the potential to be a WAYMARKER in my arts practice, perhaps a MARKER of a new chapter in my development as an artist. Having the time and space to work on my art, away from my everyday life, could make way for new ideas and ways of working to emerge.
Through the course of creating and collating this collection of works, I came to think of WAYMAKERS as being not just specific, tactile objects but also as ephemeral experiences, senses or memories that we collect and hold on to. It also got me thinking about what WAYMARKERS could be and about the many ways that specific things in our lives—people, places, events or experiences—could be marked or remembered, by found or created objects or mementoes. How often do we pick up a pebble, a scrap of driftwood … a curiosity that catches our eye? We pocket it, take it home and add it to our “collection of treasures.” And, so often, these objects will reignite the memories of that time, that place, those people you were with, and perhaps more vividly than a photograph.
Individual pieces within the exhibition mark new discoveries and directions in my work as I explore and am inspired by materials, structures and forms, objects, places and ideas, often diverting off into many new and unexpected dimensions. I relish the adventure of never really knowing quite where an idea might take me and what I might discover on the way—into the unknown.”
— Toni Hartill
