Mailbox 12: Allison Beck
Appeared in The Southland Times on Tuesday 22 October
Taka te kapa / I Get it now Dedicated to my parents, Betty and Alister
Drawing
Taka te kapa / I Get it now, part of the Te Hauka Te Haki exhibition at Olga Gallery, represents Allison Becks’s ongoing exploration of reconnection and her search for a unifying visual language. These works engage with the emotions surrounding adoption and how she navigates her place within society. Allison utilises found and gifted materials, transforming discarded objects into something valued, driven by the joy of repurposing and reimagining. Born and raised in Southland, Allison (Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Waitaha, Pākehā) is self-taught, and now based in Dunedin, though she frequently returns to Invercargill to spend time with her mother. Her artistic journey reached a pivotal moment in 2023 when she won the Excellence in Printmaking Award at the Cleveland National Contemporary Art Awards. This recognition led to the recent exhibition at Olga Gallery, where her works were shown alongside Caitlin Rose Donnelly’s, and marked Allison’s invitation to join the Paemanu Ngāi Tahu Contemporary Visual Arts Collective. Allison is currently working on two upcoming shows, continuing to explore themes of connection, transformation, and the overlooked, while finding joy in the creation of art that resonates with personal and collective narratives. Find Allison on:
[Instagram] @allison_beck_art
