Susan Knaap is part of an exhibition called ‘Going Solo’ at NZ Academy of Fine Arts on Wellington’s Waterfront. We interviewed her and profiled the show.

How did you find the space for your exhibition ‘Going Solo’ and what appealed to you about the space?

I’ve belonged to the NZ Academy of Fine Arts for several years and this Going Solo is something they organise -- two a year. Any one artist is able to participate every two years -- this is my third one. The space is beautiful -- light and airy with plenty of space to view the art.

Who are some of the other artists exhibiting?

Lisa Chandler who did Stage 3 with me.. I can’t remember the others -- check out www.nzafa.com -- it has a list of people involved.

Can you describe your body of work for this show in a sentence? It looks at the contrast between form and formlessness -- the ’something’ and the ‘nothing’. I’ve continued to use cloud formations as the ‘form’ aspect and portrayed space as a solid mass of colour. I’m particularly interested in the boundaries between form and formlessness and this will continue to be a focus in my art in the future.

What were there any surprises in putting this show together?

It was a fairly arduous time actually -- I hadn’t painted in a year and thought I could simply start where I left off, but that wasn’t the case. Long story short -- I left way too little time to do the set and complicated things by working in oils which, with the cold weather, meant many days waiting for paint to dry.

What was your biggest struggle?

Trying to find and locate my style. I thought I would simply start painting where I left it a year earlier, but it didn’t work that way. In the meantime obviously there was an inner journey which continued to happen and in a way my painting had to catch up with that. So many weeks were spent simply figuring out what I was doing and by the time I was ready to actually start working on a consistent body of work, it was time to exhibit! As such, the resulting collection is somewhat eclectic. On the plus side it reflects a very genuine journey.

Was there any public feedback?

Lots of positive feedback; interesting how people related to different paintings -- each one portraying a different part of my journey. I probably got the most compliments on the very last painting I did, which in some ways confirms my journey got my art to a good place.

Which artists do you love?

Monet, Rothko (and several of the other Abstract Expressionists of the 1960’s).

Has the work lead you in a new direction, or sparked any new ideas?

Definitely. Right before the exhibition, I discovered new materials -- Golden Open Acrylics -- and found they allowed for much more spontaneity in my work. I’d like to really explore those further and perhaps allow for a more experimental style to open up.

Watch other clips from our Youtube Channel