adrienne ranson
ADRIENNE RANSON (Doctor of Fine Art)
Born in Kawerau – growing up across Aotearoa/New Zealand, Australia and Fiji – I now happily live in Awakeri. My paternal grandmother Bette Ranson was the first person to encourage me to paint for which I am deeply grateful.
In 2023 I gained a Doctorate of Fine Art from Elam, University of Auckland, focusing on the secular manifestation of Buddhist philosophy and practice in painting. This led me to learn about and train in the Chinese genre of shānshuĭ [mountain(s) – water(s)] painting aesthetics. Shānshuĭ – with its focus on the process of ‘breathing’ the brush-stroke – is a practice akin to mindfulness, considering painting as a manifestation of multiple relations arising in the immediacy of the moment. I found this study to be profoundly inspiring and to this day I engage with shānshuĭ principles and practice in several mediums including; ink on rice paper, acrylics on paper/canvas, collage, photography and sculpture.
Since returning to the Eastern Bay of Plenty I have also had the great privilege to teach and mentor art students and established artists in my role as Community Education Art Tutor. I believe being creative is fundamental to human nature and deeply important for our health and well-being. I currently have one art class on the go Thursday mornings in Edgecumbe and welcome anyone of any level of art practice from beginners to advanced, to join us.