Below is a sampling of work from graduates of The Learning Connexion. If you are a TLC graduate we would love to publish your successes, stories and images. Please feel free to email us.
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http://www.redbarnart.co.nz/
Graduated Stage Two, 2006
Matt Guild is a realist painter whose work draws inspiration from everyday objects and experiences. He is recognized for his Realist or Photo-Realist style of painting.
His work draws our attention to the ordinary everyday experience of New Zealand life... showing that there is beauty in the everyday objects that we have forgotten or passed over.
"My paintings are about light, shadows, reflections and about the way things look in their environment, especially about how things look painted.
I love capturing the detail, the way a certain object looks in a moment in time. Capturing New Zealand icons and pulling on the heart strings, helping us to remember where we have come from, is the over all passion of my work.
Realism painting for me is about capturing form, space and the colour of every day bits and pieces, the reality of living."
http://www.annacrawley.co.nz/
Graduated Stage Three, 2007
My artworks use the wall as surface, or canvas. It plays in the medium of painting and drawing, but as I use mainly objects, does it become a sculpture? No. I work in the 'space' between the institutions of Painting/Drawing and Sculpture - a slippage between the two.
I work horizontally. That is, the artwork is created on the floor. One is looking down to create this way, meaning that creation is not coming from our normal upright way of seeing things. Instead, we read or see with our bodies' other senses. Evident are 'indigenous' skills of weaving, binding, cutting, knotting, tying, threading etc. which have been transferred into material 'plastic'. This is the 'cultural space' I work in - a slippage between Art and Culture.
By working in this space of slippage between two identities - Art/Culture and Drawing/Object - I am in 'my unique space'...with time, my 'language' will come.
http://frommypalette.blogspot.com/
Graduated Stage One, 2004
There's always been a creative thread running through my life. Responsive to the natural world around me, this has flowed into my paintings. Inspired to paint organic objects, my work has a strong sense of light, coupled with movement or awareness that something has just happened. Summers are enjoyed in the cool of the studio; this is where I explore the richness of still life and conceptual work. During our winter, the southern hemisphere light draws me in to paint the landscape. With long views, and shadows, falling across the land. Working mostly in oils on canvas, I build up layers of light and colour.
http://www.jumpingtangents.co.nz/
Graduated Dip A & C (Hons), March 2007
www.jumpingtangents.co.nz is the business which Cathie created from ground zero and chose as her design component for her stage two honours with TLC.
It involved designing the business plan and final model. This included initial sketches, manufacture, liason and decisions on all branding. In addition there was a lot of creative writing designed for all the initial marketing, product descriptions, articles, and business philosophy components.
The site also promotes her paintings and drawings - Cathie specialises in contemplative works, typically oils or strong, graphite portraits.
"Jumping Tangents is now a successful online store which I hope will result in the employment of many people who enjoy working in a creative, empowering environment that celebrates uniqueness. We may be online and convenient, yet our pledge is that no parcel is identical to another and we truly celebrate the individual qualities of every recipient."
http://www.stokes.net.nz/
Graduated Stage Three, 2008
My work falls roughly into two main categories which I call my 'text' paintings and my 'drag' paintings.
In both cases, the process involves laying paint onto surfaces then selectively removing it by dragging it off, either in lines (the drag works) or letters (the text works). The process could be described as 'un-painting' because works are developed from the residues left on the edges of the various dragging tools I use to take paint off.
I am much more interested in the material qualities and behaviour of paint than in visual imagery, and my approach to painting has been significantly influenced by an academic background in science. Gravity, friction, time, light, temperature, viscosity, transparency, opacity and rheology are all variables which I aim to control and manipulate as they relate to my surfaces and my paint.
I am also a keen photographer and enjoy the pattern generating possibilities of digital manipulation.
Graduated Stage Two, 2005
I only began painting two years ago but have doodled and drawn all my life. Early influences were tv, film and newspaper cartoons, especially Disney movies such as Snow White and Fantasia with a bit of Monty Python thrown in for good measure. An interest in science and technology also plays an important part in many of my designs.
Mid 2003 I decided to attend art school (The Learning Connexion) to further develop my talent and completed Honours mid 2005. I also won the school exhibition flier design competition twice.
Exhibiting and selling my paintings is not a high priority for me at present, although I am working on a series for a possible exhibition at some stage, so to earn an income I am looking at options such as teaching art, picture framing and book illustration.
I feel that the journey for me towards becoming an artist has only just begun and although I am able to paint both landscapes and portraits my paintings tend to be more surreal and abstract as I enjoy the freedom this allows me to use my imagination.
http://www.susanknaap.com/
Graduated Stage Two, 2005
As a mirror of the person I am, my art reflects my interests in spirituality, psychology and antiquity. Concepts of time and timelessness, past and present as well as order and chaos relate to much of what I do impacting upon design, colour choice and texture. I generally begin each painting with an idea in mind, but allow the process of painting itself to dictate the direction it follows. This balance between a planned approach and a spontaneous, intuitive one underlies all my work and, not surprisingly, my life as well.
Contact h.thomas@tlc.ac.nz
Graduated Stage Two, 2005
My paintings to date have been subtly based on life experiences such as history, travel, change and growth for example. I communicate these ideas by using basic elements such as strong colour and texture and my work typically has little imagery, relying on atmosphere to portray my ideas.
My work is instinctive - each painting progresses and changes along the way. I begin with an idea or vision of a finished image, but never rigorously follow this, allowing my work to develope its own personality. I enjoy being free in my work.
I paint with acrylics as I work fast and enjoy the speed and fluidity in which they can be applied, and I prefer to work on a large scale as my work tends to be very gestural. I don't like feeling controlled by the size of a canvas.
I am definitely on a journey of learning and exploration. My work is constantly changing, so watch this space…
Contact pauline.allomes@ihug.co.nz
Graduated Stage Two, 2004
I have always had a deep love of our beautiful country. In bad times the beauty around me has a calming and healing effect. I feel like I am capturing memories; I can feel the summer sun, the smell of the roses and the chill in the winter breeze.
I fell in love with pastels the first time I used them, lovely rich colours that can create the most wonderful textures, and I delight in mixing media.
Today's world is one fraught with tensions, stress and sadness, to create something of beauty keeps me anchored, gives a feeling of peace. Only in art do I feel I have truly come home.
Nga Puhi, Ngati Maniapoto
http://www.flickr.com/photos/36964508@N02/
Contact whatipu@yahoo.com 
Graduated Stage One, 2002
As a child I was carried around the wiley West Coast beaches in my father's fishing backpack.... In painting I choose landscapes that have meaning for me. Places I have been, lived and connected with.... I paint the mythology of a winding river, the gender of a mountain, the history of an island; the stories from the land and sea. I use motifs such as koru, kowhaiwhai and tapa designs. I describe my work as bold, pacific and earthly.
http://www.spokesmonkeyinc.iwarp.com/
Contact spokesmonkeyinc@gmail.com
Graduated Stage Two, 2007
The Learning Connexion
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www.tlc.ac.nz
info@tlc.ac.nz
PO Box 9811
Wellington 6141
Taita Campus
182 Eastern Hutt Road
Taita, Lower Hutt 5019
New Zealand
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