Emma Mc Lellan and Xavier Mead

Maha Tomo -LNP NZ election 2011 political poster

Xaveir Meade - Blessed virgin of the barricades

Emma mc Lellan

Emma McLellan

Emma Mc Lellan Is interested in curiosities such as Wunderkammern (wonder room)cabinets which are like miniature museums of collected oddities from the past which began in the 16th century

Her work is heavily influenced by bestiaries also known as beast compendiums from the 12th century.

She builds up layers in her works randomly doing what feels right to her experimenting and gos with the flow she mergers painting and screen printing to create her work she also appropriates William Morris patterns for her backgrounds she uses a dry paint method to achieve a smokey effect in her paintings called scumbling which makes her CMYK screenprints look like paintings

She is interested in genetic engineering and especially mutations because she sees mutations as the catalyst for change I have a different theory though I think survival and evolution is the catalyst to mutations.

Having Kids is what sparked her interest in genetics and hereditary histories.

I find her work very visceral,organic and unplanned and random like Dr Frankenstein she creates a menagerie of mixed up and sewn together believable beasts of beauty but on canvas.

How does Xavier Meade approach screenprinting differently ?

Xavier has a very different approach to screenprinting he is very much concentrated on what is happening in the world around him today right now as opposed to Emma's references to the past

Where Emma's work is quite personal and almost private like looking into a museum window box by yourself Xavier's work is political and public he sees his artwork as a vehicle to take political veiws to street literally.

His work is for the freedom fighters the poor and the illiterate I remember him saying that Mexico has a very low literacy rate so the posters are all about the image not the text and they have to catch the attention.

Xavier is very in touch with indigenous cultures and shows alot of admiration and understanding to the Maori people in his project Purakau he show cases Maori , NZ and Cuban artists and his booklet is translated into Te Reo , Spanish and English.

His art work pictured at the top is called Blessed Virgin of the barricades which is a prayer or an

homage to all the street artists ,political activists, freedom fighters and protestors of the world

The Virgin Mary /Virgin of the barricades is someone for them to pray to which literally illustrates the power of the poster !

I connected well with Xavier as I appreciated his respect for Maori Subsequently we exchanged gifts he gave me a poster booklet of Purakau and I gave him a political poster I had made called LNP (Labour National Politics) NZ election2011 (Pictured at the very top) the Idea for this poster came to me in May2011 I felt strongly about how detrimental nationals policies were against students and minorities and how they see money as power in the blue at the top is John key all the figures are white and the further down the pyramid you go the less empowered you are.

In the red which symbolises labour all the figures are equal and are linked also they are red not white although I concentrated more on the context than the form I was pleased that I made it when I Did it was a raw expression of protest in a poster and I was glad to give Xaveir one of the originals there is still one in the mac suite at the msva and I have ben inspired to make more after hearing Xavier passionately speak about voicing expressions through posters.