Kiran McKinnon
Resides Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland
Experience; memory; and sensation of the natural world form the inspiration and creative force behind Kiran McKinnon’s largescale abstract painting, Sea of Stars, in the Southward exhibition. Working on raw canvas with acrylic paint and copious amounts of water, Kiran’s works often mirror the ephemerality of the natural world, and our often fleeting experiences within it.
'Water and weather are often at the centre of the places and experiences in the world that capture my attention, and thus find their way into my work. Rivers, lakes, the sea, rain, clouds, mist, all find reference in my work, and their echo in the methods I use to paint; misting, spraying and washing of water and paint across the canvas.'
Kiran is also ‘fascinated by the interplay between the language and ideas of composition in classical music and painting,’ and is regularly struck by the similarities in how some musicians approach the creation of music as she approaches her art; ‘(b)oth ways of interpreting and translating sensations, images, or ideas from one form to another, or perhaps more particularly from sensation or perception, into form.’
Kiran studied in London, UK, and Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, gaining a Master of Fine Arts (First Class Honours) from Elam School of Fines Arts, University of Auckland, in 2001. Her works are held in both private and public collections throughout New Zealand.