Spring Catalogue Exhibition 2009
Shane Cotton
Stelliferous Biblia 28, 2001
oil on linen, 355 x 355 mm
signed upper right: SC01
signed and dated and inscribed verso: Stelliferous Biblia 28 / S W Cotton 2001
Provenance: Hamish McKay Gellery, Wellington. Private Collection, Auckland
By 2001 Shane Cotton's practice had moved on from ideas around the assimilation of Pakeha signs and imagery in Mâori Folk art to a more ambiguous lexicon of symbols.
Stelliferous Biblia 28 (2001) is a largely monochromatic work with outlines in burnt umber and green. A camouflage design occupies the central composition and appears as though it could be derived from a kowhaiwhai design or carving. A cell-like form encloses an illustrated bird and both elements give the painting a scientific feel, as if it could be a diagram from a biology textbook.
The title of the Stelliferous Biblia series suggests ideas of evolution and genesis. The Stelliferous era" according to cosmology is the one of five phases of the universe and the era in which we currently live. Cosmology is essentially a study of the universe in its totality and by extension, considers humanity's place and role within it. 'Biblia' on the other hand could refer to the Christian theory of creation. Both concepts look at the evolution of humanity, where we have been and where we are going, and relate to the idea of whakapapa or Maoori genealogy, an idea often discussed in Cotton's work. AJ
