James Kerr: State Highway 85

This series of paintings has been a chance to give myself an opportunity to pause, pursue and explore the sense of place I feel when immersed on State Highway 85, also known as the Pig Root.

When prompted to think about my own pepeha (introduction), I acknowledged the Pig Root’s importance in my life, when I chose it as my place of belonging alongside the Maniototo.

I pondered on my connection to this place. As a child I spent holidays immersed in adventures in Naseby. I wondered if it went deeper. As a pakeha, that rugged, raw, empty but expansive landscape may evoke a sense of my New Zealand farming whakapapa, living in the rural. But perhaps it traces back to my distant Scottish ancestral memories.

I’ve always driven this road to whānau in Central Otago. Queenstown, Naseby, Clyde, Arrowtown, and Five Rivers. It’s the end of the road past highway 85.

Often human made landmarks make their way into my work. They are a companion, hitch hiking and piggybacking off the landscapes adventure, or a mark of our domestic relationships with it. I’ve acknowledged to myself, I have a curiosity for road signage. Although these are intended as safety features to guide us, they also act as images of symmetry or quirk, accompanying us to mark the journey, location and destination but also as a time stamp. They are a composition in themselves and become a part of the wider landscape from the perspective of the road.

I hope you enjoy the exhibition. Whether you simply understand how important a journey can be, connect with the paint strokes/colours and energy from the artwork, or retain your own experience with the Pig Root or the destinations it leads to.