Reuben Paterson: Black Matter

Capturing the moment a firework explodes in the night sky, Auckland based artist Reuben Paterson (Ngāti Rangitihi, Ngāi Tūhoe, Tūhourangi) uses his signature glitter canvases to evoke ideas of wonder, attraction and an interrogation of other.

The inky black backgrounds of this series of works reference the notion of dark matter and Te Kore, a Māori concept used to describe a time and space before light entered the world. Out of this darkness fireworks in skin-toned shades—including the pink of a fresh bruise, erupt energetically from the canvases tracing fiery paths across each work.

Although originally made in support of the 2017 Black Lives Matter protests in the USA and around the world; by dropping the ‘s’ that once formed part of the title of this series, Paterson references the changes in thinking that is happening around the globe. These works take on a new significance four years later as people become more engaged in conversations about how we negotiate shared space, individualism and ideas of togetherness.