Dean Buchanan’s oil painting exhibition Journey delivers a vibrant introduction to the new gallery space at the East Auckland temple.

His colourful and dynamic paintings explore an intimate connection to the New Zealand landscape and environment.

Each landscape is rendered into semi-abstract forms, outlined in thick strokes of colour that reflect the country’s rugged scenery.

He says his journey is about seeking nature and immersing himself in the quiet.

“I find the urban chaos difficult to comprehend. The power of the mountains the supremacy of the clouds and purified air stirs my immigration.”

Buchanan is an Auckland-born artist, with works in public and private collections all around the world.

My painting has from the beginning been directed to my feelings for the landscape. I try to convey this. Striving to gain the essence of the places I go and how it resonates within me," he says.

Buchanan’s son, Rudi Buchanan Strewe, also has works featured in the show.

Strewe is a trained motorcycle mechanic and self-taught sculptor, whose pieces are made using a bronze casting method and delve into the characters of Alice in Wonderland.

The The Journey exhibition displays until April 2, one in a series of events the temple has planned to promote and support local artists.

The opening day's celebrations on March 4 included the inaugural Art Salon.

Venerable Youcheng says: “We're starting the Art Salon in the hope of creating a venue for young artists to have an opportunity to meet and share with other artists and have a space to exhibit their work.

We're inviting artists of different genres to come and take a tour of the temple and see our venue."

The temple is seeking expressions of interest from artists who would like to use the exhibition space during this November's Cherry Blossom Festival.

“The exhibition is a way to reach out to the community by using art and culture”, Venerable Youcheng says.

The exhibition also showcases sculptures by Dean’s son, Rudi Buchanan Strewe.

Source: stuff.co.nz