Max Gimblett

The Kiss

The Kiss by Max Gimblett

Artwork Detail

The gorgeous silver-leaf surface of The Kiss reflects light but also seems to soak it in. Like a gilded icon it has a strong physical presence. Max Gimblett says this mirror surface is ‘about including the viewer in the painting’. Gimblett began experimenting with metallic pigments in 1982; the alchemy of silver and gold marking what he terms his ‘mid-life transformation’. Like Constantin Brâncusi’s 1916 sculpture of the same name, or the circular form of a Buddhist mandala, The Kiss is a sign of wholeness or ideal union.

Title
The Kiss
Artist/creator
Max Gimblett
Production date
1991
Medium
gesso, water gilded silver and lacquer on wood panel
Dimensions
1016 x 1016 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of the Patrons of the Auckland Art Gallery, 1994
Accession no
1994/27/3
Copyright
Copying restrictions apply
Department
New Zealand Art
Display status
Not on display

To find out which artworks are available for print requests and reproduction please enquire here. This service only applies to select artworks in the Gallery's collection.