Simon Kaan

Oil on Workers’ Beds

An Otago based painter of Chinese/Ngai Tahu descent, Simon Kaan typifies the New Zealand ideology of nature, peace, family and wide open spaces. His paintings suggest rolling planes, billowing waves or strata of the land, stretching outward in translucent, layers of seductive glaze with distinct reference to the waka – a symbol of migration, genealogy and, in Maori mythology, as the carrier of the soul from the world of the living to the afterlife.

In 2006, Webb’s hosted an exhibition of new works by Kaan.  It was his first solo exhibition in Auckland and a phenomenal success, representing an excellent opportunity for Auckland collectors to view works by the exciting young artist, en masse. Entitled Oil on Workers’ Beds, this presentation featured new work completed whilst the artist was on his Creative New Zealand funded residency in Beijing. All of the paintings were snapped up prior to the exhibition opening, with works selling to collectors as far afield as Hong Kong. Three editions of etchings – a medium in which Simon originally worked exclusively – also sold out during the exhibition.