Chris Melville Presents “Material World” At Depot Artspace, Devonport

A deeply personal exhibition exploring memory, place, and the poetic potential of material

Auckland-based artist Chris Melville returns to Devonport this May with Material World, a new solo exhibition at Depot Artspace running from May 1-31.

Melville is known for his distinctive abstract photography process: photographing fabric and textiles using slow shutter speeds to create immersive, atmospheric works that blur the boundary between landscape and abstraction. The resulting images evoke distant terrain; misty lakes, rolling hills, shifting horizons, while remaining grounded in the tactile reality of the materials themselves.

At the heart of Material World is a quiet but powerful idea: that meaning is not fixed, but formed through perception. By transforming familiar materials into expansive, almost cinematic landscapes, Melville invites viewers to reconsider how they see - and how they feel - about the world around them.

This exhibition holds particular significance in its setting. Devonport is not just a gallery location for Melville, but a place of personal resonance and creative grounding.

“Devonport has featured in my life since childhood,” says Melville. “There’s a relationship to the sea and hillsides here that aligns closely with how I work. Showing this body of work at Depot feels like bringing something home - not literally, but emotionally.”

That sense of return and reflection threads through the exhibition. While the works are abstract, they carry an unmistakable emotional clarity - meditative, immersive, and open to interpretation. Viewers often project their own memories and geographies onto the images, seeing landscapes from New Zealand and beyond reflected back at them.

Melville’s practice sits at the intersection of photography, performance, and intuition. Known also as a jazz singer, his visual work shares a similar sensibility; improvisational, responsive, and deeply attuned to mood and nuance.

Material World offers a rare opportunity to experience this unique body of work in an intimate gallery setting, where scale, texture, and atmosphere can be fully appreciated.

https://depot.org.nz/event/chris-melville-material-world/

Exhibition Details:
Material World - Chris Melville
Depot Artspace, 3 Victoria Road, Devonport
May 1 - May 31, 2026

Opening Event:
Thursday May 1, 6pm
All are welcome

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