Bikes to add sound to skin and canvas show

The roar of a hundred motorcycles will open a leather and tattoo art show in Carterton early next year.

The show is one of six events to get funding in the latest round of the Creative Communities Scheme, administered by Carterton District Council.

Carterton leather artist Trevor Lamb is holding his Rumble In The Skin: Lamb Unleashed exhibition at the Carterton Events Centre at the end of March and was granted $1000 from the Creative New Zealand scheme for the show, says Barbara Durbin, Carterton district councillor and scheme committee chair.

Other events to win scheme funding include the South End School cultural festival ($1250), St Mark's Church music concert ($1250), Rimutaka Kindergarten Association - Carterton art exhibition ($775), Greytown Music Group Chamber Music concerts in Carterton ($700), and the creation of a Carterton Preschool mural of native flora, fauna and aspects of life in the Mangatarere stream ($775).

Mrs Durbin said the scheme annually disperses close to $10,000 through two funding rounds and the next round of funding will be next May.

Lamb, who has been creating art and utilitarian goods from leather since 1994, said he hopes to have about 100 motorcycles open his leather and tattoo art exhibition, which will run for two weeks at the events centre.

The exhibition will include the work "either on skin or canvas" of two tattooists - Noel Mason of Ink Tattoo Studio in Palmerston North and Hayden McCullough of Tattoo Hades in Petone - and Lamb's re-interpretation in leather of their work.

Lamb, who is looking to take up tattoo art as well, said there is "a crossover for me between my artwork and that of the tattoo industry". He said he shares similar attitudes to art and design as the tattooists.

Lamb said he will stage a similar exhibition in 2014 if the show next year is successful.