Ron Left b. 1948

After many years of involvement in Art and Design at AUT, and completing a PhD in 2016, Ron Left has returned to full-time painting.

Following a succession of exhibitions at Petar James Gallery, Gallery Data and Artis Gallery in the 1970s and 80s, he focussed on collaborative and group shows in NZ and Australia. These recent works explore new ways of re-inventing abstraction, including the use of photographic images. Ron has recently built a large studio and workshop overlooking the Manukau Harbour.

“Photographic and painting processes are not merely juxtaposed but develop a dynamic between the two (and between image and surface) so that they start to define and re-define each other.The photographic image begins to look like drawing or painting, and the abstract surfaces and surface marks and visual noise are intimately connected to an actual presence. The photographic image becomes gestural and abstract and there is a flow between these disciplines” –Ron Left