In her exhibition 3(.)6 Degrees of Separation, Julia Morison reprises an earlier work, Vademecum (1986),
and continues to expand an on-going series, Omnium Gatherum (2015-2021).
In Vademecum, 1986 (Collection Museum of New Zealand/Te Papa Tongarewa), Morison referenced
Kabbalistic material traditions to create her own symbolic code from ten logos, which were then
combined, repeated and presented within a pyramid-like structure. Through this curious visual language,
symbolism and logic were blurred into a strange and beautiful enigma. In its new iteration, Vademecum II
continues this wonderful tradition.
Omnium Gatherum, meaning a collection or assortment of things, is another ongoing project featuring
paintings that explore visual language through geometric form – which can be surprisingly fluid and often
playful. In this sense, the series resembles Vademecum’s merging of logic and mystery through the obvious
presence of a system, one that is constantly being teased, stretched and played with by the artist.
Julia Morison is a senior New Zealand artist. She has been exhibiting nationally and internationally since
1975 – out of her studio in central Christchurch.