Art

Claudia Aalderink is a Kihikihi based artist/photographer and the face behind The Mandarin Tree – Art Gallery. Claudia, originally from Holland, has lived with her family in New Zealand since 2005. “The opportunities we have had since we moved here have been life changing”

 

Claudia has always had an interest in re-using and recycling material for artworks and in 2012 she came in contact with a large number of discarded beehives meant for firewood. Without hesitation she started exploring this new medium by disassembling them and revealing the beautiful character of the boxes in a new lease of life. “Each piece has their own story and I love the honesty of the material. I don’t hide any of the ‘scars’ created over time. They merely add to the final outcome of a piece”.

Within a reduced visual vocabulary of circles, squares, rectangles, and lines, Claudia explores the subtlety of colour, scale, and composition creating original pieces of art.  

Working from her Kihikihi workshop Claudia is constantly creating new work for upcoming exhibitions, supplying her own gallery or working on commissioned pieces.

Contact Claudia for more information about her work or custom-made pieces.