2 August, 2026

River runs through local painter’s latest exhibition

Going with the flow… Artist Graham Downs says he’s always been interested in water

Devonport artist Graham Downs has teamed up with longtime collaborators Satellite2 gallery for his latest exhibition, River Spirit.
The series of 13 works shows a more metaphysical approach to Downs’ interpretation of the river compared to his typical neo-impressionist style, says Satellite2 co-owner Linda Blincko. “It’s quite new and evocative.”
Downs says he normally paints from life, or from his sketchbook. “It’s based on reality, but this was just drawn in the studio, from thinking a thought that passed through my mind.”
In depicting water and rivers, he returned to one of his primary interests and artistic topics. “I’ve always painted water, and been interested in water since I was quite young.”
Sketching his ideas on 8cm-square thumbnails allowed him to keep the paintings more simple and abstract.

He says he used some cubist perspective, and wanted to capture the feeling of watching a river.
“They are quite primal, a lot of New Zealand rivers. When you’re painting, you want to get close to the feeling you had when you saw it.”
His process is intuitive, and he can only explain why a painting works after the fact. “Sometimes a thought comes into your mind and you have to pursue it,” he says.
“The work has to be uplifting as well. I aim to make beautiful images.”
For up and coming artists, he recommends taking a sketchbook everywhere.
“I paint every day, but when I go on holiday my most important things are my sketchbook and my watercolour box.
“You’re only doing it for yourself, so you don’t need to worry about failure.”
He says revisiting a sketch can take him back to the memory, the lighting, and the place he was when he created it.

Piha product… Sophie Clark’s show reflects the place she grew up in

The exhibition runs until 11 August, from Wednesday to Sunday, 10am-2pm.
Downs’ exhibition as an established artist is contrasted with first-time exhibitor 24-year-old Sophie Clark’s Listen & Feel collection, which features paintings of Piha.
Growing up in Piha, then moving to Freemans Bay, inspired her art.
“I found myself missing the abundance of nature when I moved to the city. It was this huge loss of biodiversity.”
She is an architecture graduate from AUT, and hopes to use her art to inspire change in the city, brightening home and office spaces.
The collection features 11 paintings, with one triptych portraying the finding of a waterfall at Piha through the bush.
Her exhibition also runs until 11 August.