New Zealand artist Richard Ponder has developed his art into colourful free-flowing expressionistic paintings. The recent paintings are expressive, nay explosive oil colours, with thin transparent areas and thick sculptured impasto bravado curls, sweeps and slashes. Some of the paintings are designed to be back-lit, accentuating the jewel-like thin transparent areas. Subjects of the recent paintings include landscape, cityscape, floral, urban, portraits, as well as an important pondscape series, and paintings that come directly from his soul.

These are the worst paintings I have ever seen. I advise you to stop painting.' Art lecturer and critic, James Cook University, 1975

Richard Ponder has been painting professionally since the 1970's, and first started painting with his father in New Zealand. During his four years of painting in Australia the artist developed the palette knife technique which he passed onto many followers, and other New Zealand artists including his brother Michael Ponder. Richard Ponder paintings originally were impressions of various subjects; later he became well known and sought-after for his impressionistic Flower series and his representational paintings, especially landscapes. During the 1990's Richard's painting became more impressionistic to expressionistic, and includes the cityscape at night series. Recent influences on Richard Ponder's paintings include Monet, Van Gogh, Perceval, Pollock, Affandi and Sumadiyasa. Recent work of Richard and many other New Zealand artists are on display at the RPonders' RONA GALLERY in Eastbourne Wellington, New Zealand.