ABOUT THE ARTIST

Whetū was born in the Netherlands in 1961 as Birgitta Nagel which soon became Git. Since immigrating to New Zealand in 2010 she also has been known as Whetū which stands for star in the Māori language and is related to her original name Birgitta.
She has been painting since 2002 and is largely self-taught.

In her work Whetū captures the essence of nature and real live related emotions, by zooming in on details and conveying the mercuriality of colours. Fascinated and attracted to the extraordinary, she digs deeper into the wonder of nature and emotions with every painting. This leads to both abstract and figurative paintings using mixed mediums. In turns, her work glimmers with quiet reflection and explodes with vibrant colours, multi-layered and honest, explicit and vague.
“Details trigger my senses. My enthusiasm grows, my happiness expands, my spirit brightens. The beauty, complexity, depth and unknown reasons of those details makes me paint or catch them with my camera”.

Whetū’s home is her studio, where she works on her creations and visits can be arranged by appointment. Please email or call beforehand. You can find her works on Facebook and also on Flickr.

dōTerra

Whetū’s other passion is natural remedies for health, she is an Independent Wellness Advocate for dōTerra, "gift of the earth".
Please visit her dōTerra page to know more about the benefits of therapeutic-grade essential oils.

GALLERIES REPRESENTING WHETU'S WORK:

Artspace
Alfred Memelink Gallery
223 The Esplanade, Petone, New Zealand

Tutere Gallery
48 Tutere Street, Waikanae Beach, New Zealand

EVENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS & AWARDS

2019, November/December - Mahara Arts Review Exhibition participant, Waikanae
2019, November - Kāpiti Arts Trail Participant, Kāpiti Coast
2019, October - Rotary Paraparaumu Annual Art Show
2019, 24 June-1October - 100Days Journey participant guided by Kate Hartmann and John Cornish
2019, 24 May-16 June - Winter Cash&Carry Exhibition season at NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2019, February to April - Tutere Gallery Local Artists Exhibition, Waikanae
2018/19, 15 Dec-17 FebrSummerCash&Carry and Summer Exhibition of members of NZ Academy of Fine Arts
2018, 28/28Oct & 3/4Nov - Kāpiti Arts Trail Participant, Kāpiti Coast
2018, October - Rotary Paraparaumu Annual Art Show, with Merit Award Abstract category for "Direction"
2018, 12-28 October - Participant Little Sprout Charity Art Event www.littlesproutsnz.org
2018, 24-29 August - Canvas200, short exhibition / Fundraiser, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2018, 16 June-18 July - Winter Exhibition at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2018, 2-29 April - Autumn Exhibition, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2017, 19 December 2017-13 February 2018 - Summer Member Exhibition, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2017, 3 Decemer 2017-14 January 2018 - Mahara Arts Review Exhibition participant, Waikanae
2017, Kāpiti Arts Trail Participant, Kāpiti Coast
2017, October - Rotary Paraparaumu Annual Art Show
2017, 20-25 July - Canvas200, short exhibition / Fundraiser, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2017, 17 June-16 July - Winter Exhibition of members of New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2017, 11 June-22 July - Solo Exhibition "Ocean Depths" at Tutere Gallery, Waikanae
2017, May - Solo 42 participant at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2017, February - Summer Studio Arts Tour 2017 Waitangi Weekend, Waikanae
2017, 18 February-19 March - Summer Member Exhibition, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wellington
2016, Kāpiti Arts Trail Participant, Kāpiti Coast
2016, October - Rotary Paraparaumu Annual Art Show, Merit Award: Best Natural Fauna for the oil painting "Pipo"
2016, July - Participant Kāpiti Artworks Exhibition&Sale at Charles Fleming Retirement Village, Waikanae
2015, Kāpiti Arts Trail Participant, Kāpiti Coast
Member of Art Trails New Zealand
Member of New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts

MEDIA: Interviews, Articles, Press Releases