Deep dark oceans, bright mysterious nebulas, the overgrown seduction of the jungle – all things brought together by artist Bode Klein in his new exhibition Synapse.
Synapse, consisting of 30 artworks on canvas, is currently showing in the Niven Room at Taupō Museum.
Bode, who has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Denver, Colorado, has had an eclectic life; from working as a master scuba diver in Honduras to commercial fisherman in Alaska. Over the last 40 years the Tūrangi-born artist has lived in 14 countries on five continents.
“I first started taking art seriously in high school but it wasn’t until I went to university that I really just started to understand it and paint a lot and that’s really where it took off and I really knew what I wanted to be doing.”
Bode originally worked mostly in black and white charcoal drawings but he became inspired by the ocean reef colours during his time in Honduras and switched to colour painting.
“I’m definitely inspired by the ocean, by the nebulas, the cosmos as well as the jungle.
“To me everything is connected and these are just like weaving this web of energy.”
His primary tools are acrylic paint, spray paint and fishing net.
“My technique is with a few different layers. The first layer, I use acrylic house paints and water, and then I go in from there with mostly spray paint. From there, I go in again sometimes with another layer of acrylic paint, it depends on the piece.
“With most of my pieces I use commercial fishing net and it creates a lot of the effects that I use. I use it almost like a masking technique.”
In Melbourne, where Bode lived briefly, he made a name for himself as a street artist and he also participated in Taupō’s Graffiato Street Art Festival in 2021.
He returned to Taupō before the first lockdown in 2020 intending just to visit temporarily, but he, wife Belle and daughter Akaya, 4, have settled here.
Synapse runs until 9 May and all the artworks are for sale. Taupō Museum is open seven days from 10am to 4.30pm (closed Good Friday). Entry is free to children and district residents with proof of address.
