laurence aberhart

'momento' 29 march - 29 april 2008

'"momento" a sort of play on past moments and the 'hold' that one has to go into to take a photograph - that pause. And also, that old 'mento mori' aspect that can be somewhat prevalent in my work - but which is always a background to all photographs.' (Aberhart 2008)

laurence aberhart (born in nelson, nz in 1949) describes himself as 'an eclectic collector of cultural debris, as it washes up, and before it disappears'. Therefore he consciously documents –in thematic series– sites of historical and/or cultural interest which are on the verge of disappearing and which he encounters on his trips. The bi-cultural character of new zealand’s history provides a rich source for his images.

aberhart can be seen both within the tradition of landscape and documentary photography as well as an artist creating his own special personal vision.

he records simple things, which may be ordinary but which, through his concentrated image, become special. Aberhart's photographs consist of well-chosen locations with specific details or emptiness, and carefully-chosen times of the day and light conditions.

this exhibition includes some 'classic' images which were 'hot contenders' for , but for reasons to do largely with the sheer volume of Aberhart’s oeuvre, were not included in the Aberhart survey exhibition currently travelling New Zealand; some Nelson images; and some new photographs, first time prints, from older negatives.

the above extract includes edited text from 'last lights, monuments, northland, cemeteries, domestic architecture' by marja bloem - curator, stedelijk museum, 2004