Pure Colour Rosa Allison
KAUKAU is pleased to present Pure Colour, an exhibition of 6 pieces from Te Whanganui-a-Tara based artist, Rosa Allison.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. This series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison is an artist whose work is deeply informed by a playful and improvisational approach to abstraction, blending elements of performance, gesture, and spontaneity. Now based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, she studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021.
Her canvases act as dynamic stages where the fluidity of her process mirrors a kind of dance or unplanned choreography. With oils and acrylics applied in bold, gestural strokes, Allison’s paintings capture the precariousness of both the material world and the human body. Her forms often oscillate between abstraction and figuration, reminiscent of surrealist landscapes where the laws of physics are bent and suspended.
Central to her practice is the concept of vulnerability, conveyed through the tension between contrasting colours, textures, and spatial relationships within the composition. This vulnerability extends beyond the imagery itself, reflecting the human condition—fragile, imperfect, and ever-evolving.
With an eye for experimentation and discovery, her paintings often incorporate recurring motifs, such as the oval shape, which acts as a container for contrasting surfaces that respond to one another, creating an ongoing dialogue of motion and tension across the canvas.
Exhibition beginning Saturday 16th November - catalogues available on request.
Artists
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
Rosa Allison
Rosa Allison is an artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, who also works as a gardener. She studied at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch and later at the Royal College of Art in London, before returning to Aotearoa in 2021. Recent exhibitions include The Secret Life of Plants at Melanie Roger Gallery, Bunch at Page Gallery, Howling at Drive-Thru, and The Witches Herbarium at Chambers Gallery.
Rosa draws inspiration from her observations of plants and nature, as well as from dream recollection. The series of oil paintings, titled Pure Colour, features small works with loose brushstrokes that capture fleeting thoughts.
