The Artist

Jason Fastier is an award-winning Wellington-based artist with paintings featured in numerous art shows and galleries across New Zealand. Working from his studio in the heart of the city, his work invites viewers into a bizarre alternate reality grounded in the natural beauty of New Zealand’s landscapes. He highlights hidden local spots and weaves native flora and fauna into his scenes. All of his reference imagery is self-shot, with a particular focus on capturing the warm, evocative light of the golden hour.

These surreal worlds also act in response to the ever-increasing environmental destruction of today’s modern world. Each piece gives a snapshot into an alternate ‘surreal’ reality where nature is allowed the freedom to regrow and flourish into something new. Fastier is particularly fascinated with hidden abandoned spots, highlighting the way nature reclaims man-made structures into something organic.

The snail creature features throughout and acts as a ‘symbol’ for the force and beauty of nature fighting back. They are primarily based around the Powelliphanta, a giant breed of snail only found in NZ. Spiral shapes like those found in snail shells link back to the Golden Ratio spiral, which features in countless examples throughout nature. The natural ‘perfection’ of growth in flowing curves and lines are juxtaposed with rigid, straight lines of structures in his work.