has said that he is inspired by “wallpaper, Hawaiian shirts, Dad’s ties and my kuia’s party dresses”. Grid designs are also used extensively. As a child, Paterson spent time at Piha, and he credits the sparkling black sand and sea there as an influence on his extensive use of glitter. As well as glitter, Paterson uses diamond dust and theatre foil in his works. Paterson has stated:I think of how light is a visual metaphor for spiritual ideas, how religious art used light as a metaphor for the purity of saints and of the gods. The one thing that glitter does is reflect light. So using glitter is a modern interpretation of religious paintings that have informed art's evolution and history, and my response to all of that. References New Zealand artists 21st-century New Zealand artists 21st-century artists 1973 births 21st-century New Zealand male artists New Zealand Māori artists Living people