Interconnectedness is a central theme in Ché Rogers’ work. Concentric circles radiate outward and contract inward. Each work pulses with energy and flow and brings to mind dynamic motifs found within nature such as; ripples, waves and rays of light. Like rings inside a tree, his works evoke the passing of time and the layers of experience and growth. Simultaneously, these symbols of circularity are like portals to realms beyond, into the cosmic, reminding us of our insignificant place in this vast, expanding universe. 

Multi-disciplinary by nature, Ché enjoys blurring the lines between art, design, photography, film and sound. His practice includes paintings in which layers of colour are scratched through to reveal a metallic surface beneath, three-dimensional installation light works made from repurposed retro plasticware, and audio/visual films, such as the video works that animate paintings and photographs, set to self-composed soundtracks.
Being a musician, this aural art form seeps into Ché’s visual arts practice. Using line, pattern and repetition, he strives to emulate the resonances, vibrations and oscillations of sound waves. His paintings also mirror the physical forms of a spinning vinyl record, a luminescent compact disc or a quivering speaker membrane. 

Sitting within the framework of Postdigital art, Ché’s artistic practice explores the theme of Human vs Machine as he challenges our relationship with technology. He is particularly interested in the confusion a work might bring with its production. Ché enjoys the ambiguity of his recent paintings which look like they have been manufactured by high-tech processes, when in fact they are hand crafted using basic, analogue, hand-jigged equipment.

Ché’s aesthetic is influenced by the clean and simple design of mid-century minimalism, the playfulness of Op and Pop art, and the abstract geometric structures of Russian Constructivism and Orphism art movements. He is equally inspired by popular culture, such as the surreal and graphically arresting film sets from the sixties, particularly the way designers of the past have envisioned our future. 

In 1990 Ché left high school to study art and craft design at Christchurch Polytechnic. Before he completed his degree, he found himself absorbed into Christchurch’s underground music scene,  performing in bands. In time, he continued to study, moving into photography, computer graphics and web design. 

Drawn to Taranaki in 2003 by cheap real estate and good surf, Ché currently lives and works as a full time artist in Ngāmotu New Plymouth. The coastal landscapes, the waves he rides and the symmetry of Mt. Taranaki naturally effect his work. Ché’s engagement with permaculture, which at its heart has design principles that work in harmony with our surrounding eco-systems, relates to an aforementioned theme in his work—interconnectedness. People to nature, nature to art, art to music, music to machine, machine to people—everything is connected in some way. And in the end, always and forever, we come full circle.