Marita Hewitt

  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
  • The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
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The Symphony of Worth and Worthlessness, 2021
Porcelain, stoneware, glazes, resin, stainless steel
480 x 1200 x 800mm

At first appearing as the remnants of a forgotten project or the ruins of an illegally dumped rubbish pile, the encounter with Marita Hewitt’s Symphony of Worthlessness might evoke an initial response of skepticism or puzzlement from viewers. And while that response is encouraged by the artist, her artwork also requires more careful viewing and consideration to tease out the reality of its existence from trash to treasure. On closer inspection, a slumping black rubbish bag and a pile of old cardboard reveal themselves as glazed stoneware while the packaging seemingly made from polystyrene is an assemblage of exquisitely crafted casts made from delicate white porcelain. 

Described by the artist as a ‘trompe l’oeil treasure of trash’, Hewitt’s sculptural assemblage seeks to question our modern sociological relationship with production, consumption and waste. The installation comprises a number of earlier porcelain and stoneware works which were moulded, sculpted and cast by the artist, documenting an inquiry into her electronic and packaging waste between 2011 and 2016. 

As Hewitt explains: “A circular, zero-waste ideology lies at the centre of my practice, driving both process and exploration. I collect various personal waste streams to use as both material and muse, lionising these sometimes mundane fragments of presence in a pragmatic metaphysics of destruction and renewal.” 

Piled into a careful heap, the objects read as a complex history of personal storytelling as we observe parts from the artist’s Macbook computer and Epson Stylus camera, along with piles of receipts and junk mail. There is a deliberate tension between the fragile beauty of the crafted porcelain and stoneware components and the distasteful character of the throwaway society they represent.  

In the way we gaze upon the relics and ruins of civilisations past through preserved sites and archeological digs, Hewitt’s assemblage urges us to observe the constructs of our own society with a curious and critical eye. What will future civilisations make of our absurd rubbish piles, which we consider ‘thrown away’ to be out of sight and out of mind, but which will long outlast us? Will trash piles be mined and studied, and if so, what clues will they offer to our society? With the clever staging of this artwork, Hewitt encourages us to reflect on our collective ecological footprint and gently calls for a more responsible way of living.

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The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness
The Symphony Of Worth And Worthlessness

More from this artist

Artist Bio

After studying and working in Auckland for a number of years, Marita Hewitt is now based in Kerikeri, Northland.

EDUCATION

Graduate Diploma in Secondary Teaching: 2009 : Auckland University of Technology

Bachelor of Visual Arts: 2002-2004: Auckland University of Technology

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

Here I Am, 2021, The Art Counsel, Wellington, NZ

Material Efficiencies, 2020, Page Galleries, Wellington, NZ

This Moment Has No End, 2019, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

High Tide, 2017, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Pulp, 2015, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Object Lure, 2014, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

That Was Yesterday, 2013, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Entropy, 2011, Level 1 358 K' Rd, Auckland, NZ

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

Acervo Rotativo (Complete Collection Module 1/3), 2021, Oficina Cultural Oswald de Andrade, São Paulo, Brazil

The Nomadic Art Gallery, 2021, Connells Bay Sculpture Park, Waiheke Island, Auckland, NZ

Beyond Kāpene Kuku/Captain Cook, 2019, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Marita Hewitt, Emily Wolfe, 2018, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Everyday Lines, 2017, Hastings City Art Gallery, Hastings, NZ

Toby Raine, Max Gimblett, Marita Hewitt, 2017, Sydney Contemporary (Page Blackie Gallery Booth), Sydney, Australia

2016, Gallery Artists, 2016, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

John Pule, Marita Hewitt, Layla Walter, 2014, Corban Estate Arts Centre, Auckland, NZ

Imposters: Sculptures from the Wallace Arts Trust Collection, 2014, Little Gallery, Pah Homestead, Auckland, NZ

Value, 2014, Masterworks Gallery, Auckland, NZ

Artworks from a Private Collection, 2012, Te Awamutu Museum, Te Awamutu, NZ

Group Show, 2010, Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington, NZ

Best Before, 2009, Rm, Auckland, NZ

Paint on Paper, 2009, Rm, Auckland, NZ

Walking Stella, 2007, Rm 103, Auckland, NZ

The Considerations of Marita Hewitt and Elliot Collins, 2005, Stanbeth House Gallery, Auckland, NZ

AWARDS

National Contemporary Art Award 2018, People’s Choice Award

Portage Award 2015, Finalist

National Contemporary Art Award 2015, Finalist

National Contemporary Art Award 2013, Finalist

Wallace Award 2013, 1st Runner Up

Portage Award 2013, Merit Award Winner

RESIDENCIES

The Pottery Workshop, Jingdezhen, China, April 2016 (Funded in part thanks to Creative NZ)

Vermont Studio Centre, USA, May, June ,July 2014 (Awarded by Wallace Arts Trust)

Detroit, New York, USA, (Self funded), June, July, August 2010

PROJECTS

Innocent Packaging Compostable Canvas coffee cups: Bibliography for an Unwritten Thesis, 2016

Our Kerikeri, Commission to create a large scale public artwork in recognition of Tūhono (200 year anniversary), 2020- ongoing

COLLECTIONS

Wallace Trust Collection

Price Waterhouse Coopers Collection

Parkin Collection

Poison Creek Sculpture Project

Gallery of Modern Art, Queensland Art Gallery

Along with work in a number of private collections in New Zealand and abroad.