Arnoldini has always been obsessed with ideas, so it’s no wonder that her creative history is so ‘eclectic’. Arnoldini’s greatest and lasting loves however are for Painting and Film and they are the permanent residents of this website. Craft, Zines and their extended whanau also like to pop in occasionally. Arnoldini hopes you enjoy the site and invites you make contact with any questions or two cents. Enjoy Arnoldini.

You are welcome to attend my Opening and show from 31st August 2010 until 1st September.

For the press here’s a little more on me-

Anya Whitlock: In Hot Pursuit of a Tale
31st August- 2nd October Preview 5:30pm August 31, Pierre Peeters Gallery, Parnell, Auckland

“I imagine I’m a hostage forced to paint naked ladies for the Bratva, the Russian mafia…” — Anya Whitlock

Following whiffs of nostalgia to rediscover what she was instinctually drawn to in childhood, Anya Whitlock’s first solo painting show sees her delve into childhood fairy tales, using hindsight and research to understand the various stages and psychological traps that a woman can become damaged and broken by.

“Fairytales are often cautionary tales and it is possible if attentive to avoid many booby traps and also deeply heal present hurts,” she explains.

Raised on the mean streets of Manurewa, Whitlock later studied Art Direction for Film under Tracey Collins at Elam. Her work in the film industry has seen her work across feature films, music videos and set dressing, set design and props for theatre, short films and advertising. Her company Arnoldini Ltd functions as an umbrella for various ventures – her Skateboard bag and fanzine gaining cult commercial success.

Her obsession with adventure and new sensations has taken her around the world, and given her tales to tell – from being shot at and tear gassed by the Israeli Army in a demonstration against the barrier wall in The West Bank, to being stoned by kids in Egypt. She’s been followed, chased, scammed by Cambodian mafia, threatened, harassed and stood on the street in the middle of the night with nowhere to sleep in strange cities… and that’s just the good stuff.

Since returning to New Zealand in early 2009, Whitlock has committed to painting full time, portraiture a resonant and haunting practice for her. She works from a leafy studio north of Auckland, where she creates her arresting large-scale paintings; their Utopian and seductive depiction of the female form underlined by something darker and slightly sinister.

ENDS