tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28871617325050265492012-02-03T15:31:42.396+13:00Blogs from the staff of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmakifeedbackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07510758077634254709noreply@blogger.comBlogger3061100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-54392893177578350822012-02-03T15:25:00.000+13:002012-02-03T15:25:46.181+13:00

If you’ve been keeping up with the Gallery via Twitter or Facebook you might have noticed some teaser posts letting you know which high-profile artists will be ‘coming to town’ as part of Degas to Dalí… but if you haven’t, here are the names we’ve shared so far: René Magritte Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Francis Bacon Edouard Manet Auguste Rodin Pablo Picasso Max Ernst Georges Seurat Andy

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-54466528473287450222012-02-03T15:23:00.007+13:002012-02-03T15:31:42.407+13:00

This is Alexander Turnbull (14 September 1868 – 28 June 1918) at the age of 23. If you want to know more about him read Jim Traue's short biographyhttp://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t53/1or tackle E.H.McCormick's full scale biography.On Turnbull's death, his bequest to the National Library led to a research library established in his name. His gift included over 55,000 books.Turnbull is

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-22237207173204137142012-01-27T12:00:00.005+13:002012-01-27T12:03:03.617+13:00

Statisitics have released news that on Wednesday 1 February 2012, the population of Auckland will reach 1500000. That makes this city among the five largest in Australasia. Also, that is now way more than 33% of New Zealand’s population.

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-56605682138094696412012-01-26T09:29:00.003+13:002012-01-26T09:56:24.957+13:00

Kura: Story of a Māori Woman Artist was launched 21 January 2012 at Mangere Arts Centre — Ngā Tohu o Uenuku. The book takes its title from the exhibition currently on display at the Centre, which was curated by Nigel Borel and opened 16 December last year. Conceived as a retrospective exhibition of a senior Māori woman artist, it offers an experience of quality ideas and achieves all it set out

Ngahiraka Masonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16530213948928543973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-52431390175679724112012-01-25T10:29:00.001+13:002012-01-25T10:30:44.107+13:00

A quick shortcut to arts news at the New York Times website; check out the arts beathttp://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/category/art-design/It is always topical and international.They recognised how important Ryan Trecartin’s video art is!Here is their review of Ryan’s showhttp://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/24/arts/design/ryan-trecartins-any-ever-at-moma-ps1-review.html?pagewanted=all

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-73172125217097318482012-01-24T08:36:00.005+13:002012-01-24T08:42:42.160+13:00

Flavorwire have posted Emily Temple’s profile of ten traditions giving homage to literary mavens such as Edgar Allan Poe, Ernest Hemingway, Harry Potter, Herman Melville, James Joyce, Jane Austen, and Oscar Wilde.http://flavorwire.com/251506/10-cult-literary-traditions-for-truly-die-hard-fansPerhaps the most brilliantly obsessive homage is the three-day continuous public reading of Melville’s

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-30073324626687830552012-01-20T15:36:00.005+13:002012-01-20T15:38:19.355+13:00

Digital photography has finally caused the demise of the Eastman Kodak Company. Yesterday, the company declared itself bankrupt. For over a century Kodak was the leading manufacturer of analogue photographic supplies. Their easy-to-use cameras and state of the art film stock (both moving and still) supported the medium of photography. Internationally, Kodak has done more to support the everyday

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-63607000509615433502012-01-18T15:19:00.003+13:002012-01-18T15:22:14.845+13:00

Over the New Year break, I re-read many of Christopher Hitchens essays. It is often said that he was the best English essayist of his generation. He was certainly one of the most insightful and challenging cultural commentators.If you have not read much of Christopher’s work, you can gain an introduction by visiting his websitehttp://www.dailyhitchens.com/His essays on Mother Theresa are every

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-4251072245334048362011-12-23T11:48:00.008+13:002011-12-23T11:54:52.922+13:00

Rod MacLeod asked me to post his tribute to Eric Resetar:"I would just like to let people know that Eric Resetar, one of the original pioneers of comics in New Zealand, has died at the age of 83. He was well known by much of the front of house staff for his visits to the art gallery over the last few years, usually to visit me and exchange DVDs of old movies that we shared. Eric was one of the

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-50898490448841532912011-12-23T10:55:00.005+13:002011-12-23T10:58:52.921+13:00

Throughout Emily Dickinson’s poetry, she mentions God and Heaven.I always find it fascinating to link her work with portraits from the time of the American Civil War. If ever there was a time when photography recorded emotion in the faces of people, it is in the ambrotypes made of soldiers taken in New York’s photographic studios. Here is such a pairing. An Emily Dickinson poem and a double

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-17901490635867424152011-12-18T12:40:00.012+13:002011-12-21T09:13:10.449+13:00

I am often asked which camera artist has published the most photography books in New Zealand. Twenty years ago, the answer would have been either Brian Brake or Robin Morrison. Not now. At last count, Harvey Benge has published 35 books. That is a phenomenal achievement. Harvey is a natural maker of books. His two latest books are Truth and Various Deceptions and Paris Diary, November 2011. He

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-1178589571549893622011-12-16T09:18:00.005+13:002011-12-16T09:23:14.837+13:00

New Zealand has lost one of its most colourful and brave expatriates with the passing of Carmen Rupe in Sydney on 15 December after months of poor health. I only met her on three occasions but we became instant friends. Once, Carmen rescued me in Sydney from a nasty situation in the early morning and she has been a special person in my heart ever since. Visiting her International Coffee Lounge or

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-86618504046242725302011-12-15T12:55:00.005+13:002011-12-15T12:59:04.114+13:00

Throughout the 1970s, a camera artist like Walker Evans was lauded as a ‘documentary’ photographer. It was easy, then, to regard his work so simply. Such a skewed perspective was fashionable and a stance driven by the recognition that the Farm Security Administration’s photographic project resulted in some of the best portraits ever of America’s identity. As a plain record maker, Walker’s

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-65303545823312574132011-12-09T14:44:00.001+13:002011-12-09T16:02:19.327+13:00

It is a sad task to be asked to recall one of New Zealand’s most significant artists, Don Driver, who died in New Plymouth on Wednesday 8 December 2011. Don, an intuitive, maverick artist, was virtually self-taught. He had an innate understanding of the power of images. This understanding, or vision, was informed and expanded by his voracious appetite for books about other cultures. The

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-12036938115011257552011-11-28T16:29:00.001+13:002011-12-01T11:30:07.114+13:00

I recently wrote about a 1979 work by Billy Apple titled Revealed/Concealed. This was one of several artworks made by Apple at Auckland Art Gallery in the 1970s when he toured New Zealand’s art galleries, making site-specific works that turned a critical eye on the gallery spaces themselves. Not long after he made Revealed/Concealed, Apple had the opportunity to effect a more lasting change in

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-5284612353273003012011-11-28T15:24:00.007+13:002011-11-28T15:28:27.139+13:00

One of the best art books of the 1970s was Interviews with Francis Bacon by David Sylvester published by Thames and Hudson. After the initial publication in 1975, Sylvester expanded it further in 1980 and 1987.If you have not read this remarkable book yet, please seek it out. Bacon is a ruthless speaker about himself, self-mythologizing and searingly honest at the same time. Sylvester was one of

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-48249887648849511112011-11-22T17:25:00.001+13:002011-11-25T15:52:08.031+13:00

New Gallery [now Mackelvie Gallery], c1916 One of the highlights of the developed Gallery building is the Mackelvie Gallery, which has been painstakingly returned to its former glory as a Victorian neo-classical picture gallery. The interior of this 1916 room was removed in successive renovations in the 1950s and the 1980s. The last time its decorative columns saw the light of day was in

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-64771192237842341942011-11-22T09:00:00.006+13:002011-11-23T12:49:50.354+13:00

A few days ago an artist told me how he admired Clement Greenberg’s writings. I was not able to respond sufficiently as it is some years since I read Greenberg’s essays. Also, he has a reputation of being a formalist that despised the social and cultural significance of visual art. A sort of proto post-modernist without the European theoretical underpinnings. Today, Greenberg is considered a

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-77666237691294245682011-11-21T08:29:00.008+13:002011-11-21T08:47:07.857+13:00

Yesterday at the Gallery, Jennifer Ward-Lealand presented a preview of her brilliant performance piece - Rita and Douglas. Created by Dave Armstrong from the letters of Rita Angus and delivered with Michael Houston at piano, this theatrical portrait of the relationship between Rita Angus and Douglas Lilburn has already gained plaudits throughout New Zealand for its insightful

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-91924720485530680002011-11-17T08:40:00.002+13:002011-11-17T14:40:46.810+13:00

The performance artist Marina Abramović is following on from her MoMA retrospective in New York with another iteration at the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture in Moscow. Curated by Klaus Biesenbach, it is on view until 8 December and features approximately 50 works that overview more than forty years of her work including sound works, video, installations, photographs, solo and

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-82485185255473295752011-11-03T16:31:00.010+13:002011-11-03T16:37:39.129+13:00

A friend asked me to recommend to them a good book on contemporary art. There has not been a book solely about contemporary art produced in New Zealand in the last year or so. In Australia, a good one was published by Queensland Art Gallery/Gallery of Modern Art during 2010.21st century – Art in the First Decade is an up to the minute book and the art in it feels contemporary. By that, I don't

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-74165064651772359622011-11-02T16:34:00.007+13:002011-11-03T09:38:47.821+13:00

Hamish Keith visited the Gallery today and spoke eloquently about Colin McCahon's 1952 painting On Building Bridges. As well as discussing the importance of the very first work by the artist to enter a public collection, Hamish noted how important this painting has always been to him. I told Hamish that I was thrilled to be able to show this work from a 30 metre sight-line within our collection

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-38381095622353954922011-10-28T09:13:00.003+13:002011-10-28T09:19:35.411+13:00

I’ve had some luck in researching Raymond MacIntyre’s portrait of Haraldur Hamar c 1923, he’s the distinctive looking man with the great brows.Hamar was born in Reykjavik in 1892. He was the son of a poet and a headmaster, Steingrimur Thorsteinsson, and later changed his name from Thorsteinsson to Hamar.A Reference Librarian at the National Library of Iceland found two articles about Hamar, you

Julia Waitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04482997198751337494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-80562580253085340692011-10-26T11:54:00.008+13:002011-10-26T12:08:53.116+13:00

The Gallery’s staff is much saddened to learn of the passing of Sir Peter Siddell. We extend to his family and friends our heartfelt condolences.Peter and his late wife Sylvia were close friends of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki over many years. At the launch of the impressive illustrated book dedicated to his work, I spoke to those present about how much the public admire Peter’s paintings as

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-31672198813836744372011-10-25T16:12:00.006+13:002011-10-28T09:55:51.034+13:00

The Gallery was recently visited by Mr Hartley Joel. Hartley is the nephew of Grace Joel (1865-1924) and it was from him that we were able to secure her painting Girl with Scarf c1896. This informal oil portrait is one of the most important nineteenth century portraits created in New Zealand. It was Hartley’s specific wish that his aunt’s great painting, dating from her Dunedin period, remain

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-83498858282722073172011-10-25T11:37:00.006+13:002011-10-25T12:28:59.621+13:00

One of the most interesting publications on New Zealand photography published by a local dealer gallery is Michael Graham-Stewart’s Crombie to Burton – Early New Zealand Photography. It was issued by the John Leech Gallery in Auckland during 2010 to accompany their exhibition of the same title. If your library does not hold a copy, it can be obtained via the following ISBN: 9780473165390.John Gow

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-68415375879969370152011-10-14T10:39:00.013+13:002011-10-17T12:32:16.438+13:00

With our current collection exhibition Toi Aotearoa, I thought it worthwhile to generate on-going research about the artworks. As Jim Allen’s sculpture Polynesia is exhibited for the first time at the Gallery, I asked Jim to respond to some questions. RB: When did you begin work on Polynesia? JA: Polynesia was the stone carving component of my final year at Royal College of Art in 1951-52. RB

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-6501553951272154182011-10-10T16:31:00.001+13:002011-10-10T16:41:44.386+13:00

The creation of an exhibition is a huge team effort, and at the end of the process it all comes down to the team of preparators and technicians who physically install the artworks in the galleries. Each exhibition comes with its own challenges - whether it's moving very large, heavy or fragile objects, installing 7,081 tiny objects in the right configuration, or abseiling down a wall to hang a

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-64826793037841499132011-10-07T08:01:00.005+13:002011-10-07T08:06:24.187+13:00

1955-2011Thomson Reuters has posted key quotes by Steve Jobshttp://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/06/us-apple-jobs-quotes-idUSTRE7950SU20111006Business leaders express loss for one of the great innovators of our timehttp://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/06/us-apple-jobs-quotes-idUSTRE7950SU20111006

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-81289404717749200502011-10-06T09:18:00.011+13:002011-10-06T09:29:33.711+13:00

Auckland’s Heritage Festival has grown rapidly to be New Zealand’s largest event concerned with regional heritage.The event has this mission: “to encourage people of all ages to celebrate, embrace and learn about the unique social, cultural and built heritage of the Auckland region. Its agenda is to foster Auckland as the ‘world’s most livable city’.”This year, the event that caught my eye was

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-45142163186579565242011-10-06T09:06:00.000+13:002011-10-06T09:06:25.031+13:00

Kate Sylvester showcased her Autumn/ Winter 2012 collection at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki on Tuesday night. Inspired by Steven Shainberg’s film Secretary (2002), her designs cat-walked out from the mise-en-scene onto our mezzanine. Many Zhu

Many Zhuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11341356159916799654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-55046504796055723982011-09-30T14:44:00.006+13:002011-09-30T16:21:45.588+13:00

I have read Martin Edmond’s recent book Dark Night: Walking with McCahon again. It is an impressive book for two reasons – it is wonderfully personal and almost autobiographical in its take on McCahon’s life and work. It also reads like a parable paralleling the Stations of the Cross as a subject that McCahon thought much about over decades.McCahon’s own voice is included and the selection of his

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-26330175482349917322011-09-21T12:34:00.001+12:002011-09-21T12:34:30.925+12:00

In the week before our opening we wanted to get people excited about the Gallery and the concept of seeing art in everything. So we placed an intriguing piece of furniture near the Viaduct Events Centre in the new Wynyard Quarter development by the waterfront - A SCULPTURE PLINTH. With a photographer on hand and some guides to get the plinth party started, we turned passers-by into living works

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-3613861040022221092011-09-14T12:54:00.002+12:002011-09-14T12:54:31.299+12:00

Through form and colour, the garments of AUT fashion designers engaged with our art collection in Toi Aotearoa, transforming the space into a catwalk on our opening day. While photographing the event, it reminded me of something I read for my dissertation; where perhaps in the indiscernible boundary of image, body and space, those in situ of the pictures before it is a body yielding to the

Many Zhuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11341356159916799654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-25476321800411181952011-09-14T10:32:00.009+12:002011-09-14T12:50:41.297+12:00

27 September 1924 – 6 August 2011 I invited Richard Wolfe to contribute a eulogy for Dennis Turner for the Gallery’s blog. Dennis’s painting Main Street 1939-45 is currently on exhibition. Ron Brownson  “Wanganui-born artist and illustrator Dennis Turner recently died in London. His drawing ability was apparent at a young age, and a lifelong interest in Maori art began when he visited the homes

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-18964911256110457622011-09-10T12:46:00.017+12:002011-09-12T10:43:55.875+12:00

The genesis of the name “All Blacks” is revelatory. According to Professor Harry Orsman’s Dictionary of New Zealand English – A Dictionary of New Zealandisms on Historical Principles (Auckland, Oxford University Press 1999), the name “All Blacks” first appeared at the time of the New Zealand Representative Rugby Union team’s tour of England and Wales in 1905-1906. Richard John Seddon had

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-77028008959020693162011-09-09T08:25:00.005+12:002011-09-09T08:33:53.781+12:00

There are thousands of sites offering information about international arts activity on a daily basis. One of the most varied and cross-media is artdaily.org.I subscribe and they deliver a news summary every morning. There is frequently great photographs such as this image by Vincent Yu of a 13th century Nepalese gilt copper figure of Tara on show at Sothebys in Hong Kong. The coverage of Asian

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-41676739922450095962011-09-08T14:21:00.012+12:002011-09-08T14:41:31.642+12:00

A renowned collaboration between a New Zealand artist and model occurred in London’s Cheyne Walk studio of Raymond McIntyre between 1912 and 1914. Born in Christchurch in 1879, he was one Petrus van der Velden’s most talented pupils. McIntyre felt Canterbury constricted his vocation. Arriving in England during February 1909, he never returned. He soon became a pupil of London painters William

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-89322737833677028312011-09-01T15:39:00.002+12:002011-09-16T16:41:49.789+12:00

This morning I was privileged to attend the dawn blessing ceremony of the Gallery and the unveiling of three commissioned artworks by Māori artists which form a permanent part of the building. We assembled across the road from the Gallery and moved onto the forecourt, where three intricately carved works by Arnold Manaaki Wilson were revealed after months spent hidden from the public eye.

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-80343038457173652472011-08-31T15:49:00.001+12:002011-08-31T15:55:38.069+12:00

Poster advertising the opening of Auckland Free Public Library, 1887 E H McCormick Research Library, Archive Folder PH01/3 As we race towards the reopening of the Gallery this week, it’s hard not to think about how this building’s original opening day must have caused similar levels of excitement and anticipation. Initially designed to accommodate Auckland’s public library, art gallery and

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-48270767066410122592011-08-30T11:30:00.001+12:002011-08-30T11:38:10.255+12:00

Friend of the Gallery Warwick Brown shares his memories of the Gallery building in today's instalment of 'If these walls could talk...' Having been born in 1940 I remember the Auckland City Art Gallery building when the southern end still housed the Old Colonists’ Museum and the library. The former was infrequently visited and the displays never changed. I often wonder what happened to the

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-52270572898771856732011-08-29T13:27:00.004+12:002011-08-29T13:31:22.417+12:00

Since blog posting two of Toss Woollaston’s paintings held at Auckland Art Gallery, I wondered how whether people are familiar with his 1937 Wellington landscape? Rita Angus’ painting Cass of a year earlier gets attention for its lyrical image of backcountry hills and its honed realism but Woollaston’s Wellington is as fascinating. Maybe it is the mix of angular geometry and gritty shadow. The

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-49377537532713628702011-08-26T08:22:00.007+12:002011-08-26T14:55:44.604+12:00

I have been looking daily at how our forthcoming display of modern New Zealand art will look on Saturday 3 September. The Gallery's new lighting system is the best technology that the artworks have ever been served by. It is pleasing to see what new lighting can improve how works are perceived. With a combination of wall washes and spotlights we have modulated both the ambient and direct light

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-46251637583021388822011-08-25T16:29:00.010+12:002011-08-25T18:15:45.045+12:00

Gallery Director Peter Tomory once said that Toss Woollaston's Figures from Life was the first modern portrait in New Zealand. He was both right and wrong. Modern portraits really began here in New Zealand with the arrival of James Nairn and Petrus van der Velden in 1890. Their example was paralleled by Grace Joel at Dunedin. What Peter meant, I think, was that Figures from Life was the

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-39443801673000213952011-08-23T11:17:00.003+12:002011-08-23T11:41:00.342+12:00

Some members of the Friends of the Gallery have written to us to share their own memories of the Gallery – below is a selection, with recollections ranging from spine-tingling emotion to gluttonous buffet-hogs! "Far and away my most memorable time was at Te Māori - Te Hokinga Mai. My friend and colleague at the Auckland Teachers College Wally Penetito arranged for a contingent of us to be

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-71084970482944504932011-08-19T14:18:00.001+12:002011-08-19T14:19:36.438+12:00

As a born and raised Aucklander, the Gallery was a recurring presence in my childhood. My earliest memory of it is only half-formed: flickering images of intimidating carved wooden figures. A quick talk to my mum confirmed we did indeed go to see the exhibition Te Maori Te Hokinga Mai: The Return Home – I was only four years old at the time but it clearly made an impression. The first exhibition

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-55449539286313957682011-07-28T12:28:00.001+12:002011-08-01T13:52:54.866+12:00

With the exception of the Library, shop and Friends staff, we are now ensconced in our new offices inside the Gallery. There were a lot of boxes to be moved... (and this doesn't include what was sent to be archived) I've put this next picture of a certain manager's office in for Gallery staff - it's almost unrecognisable all packed up. Visualise stacks of paper covering every available surface

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-25223362152845910882011-07-25T14:29:00.000+12:002011-07-25T14:29:38.848+12:00

Paintings conservator Ingrid Ford celebrated 10 years with the Gallery over the weekend. Here’s just a short list of some of her many achievements for the conservation department during the last decade: Playing a significant part in the preparation of works for the Gallery’s opening exhibitions, treating numerous paintings in a wide range of styles and periods Overseeing the treatment, glazing

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-73239751686464931762011-07-15T15:11:00.000+12:002011-07-15T15:11:14.177+12:00

... are amazing. Seriously. Today the Gallery was the scene of an inspiring and evocative performance by 21 students from Matipo Primary School and cellist Katherine Uren of the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. Every year the APO and the Gallery collaborate with schools, helping them engage with artworks and create music in response. This year the students used Heart Book: Butterfly by Philippa

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-64067002908089316522011-07-08T15:24:00.001+12:002011-07-11T08:55:45.361+12:00

Today is the last day of Māori Language Week and I could not let my 101st blog be about anything other than one of the most important books published in New Zealand during 2011. Taonga Māori in the British Museum is an emblem of scholarship that every reader of this spectacular book should be inspired by. First published by the British Museum in 2010, and now republished by Te Papa Press,

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-58683028342680725492011-07-05T09:13:00.002+12:002011-07-08T15:41:55.317+12:00

Here's a quick update in pictures of what's been happening at the Gallery since our phased handover of the building began... Our registration team moved in and the artworks started arriving... And our photographers moved into their new digs (but there's still some unpacking to do!)... but best of all... ...There is art on the walls once more! This McCahon is the very first artwork to be

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-1826027468900495342011-07-01T11:14:00.000+12:002011-07-01T11:14:28.828+12:00

When I started working at the Gallery in November I joined a people in exile. For more than three years the staff have waited in their temporary office environs, planning for the moment when the Gallery building would be returned to them in all its glory. Now that the day is approaching there's been a discernible shift in the atmosphere in our offices. While there is still a huge amount of work

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-52197196198223067382011-06-28T09:29:00.004+12:002011-07-01T09:57:27.321+12:00

When the Gallery opens on 3 September (67 days away!), visitors will be able to experience a huge selection of art from our collection of over 15,000 artworks in a series of opening exhibitions. But we can now announce another treat for art lovers - and for the people of Auckland. On opening day, and right through the Rugby World Cup, the Gallery will have the entire Robertson Promised Gift of

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-12814071590216557192011-06-15T11:31:00.000+12:002011-06-15T11:31:18.010+12:00

12 September 1947 – 3 June 2011 On Sunday 12 June 2011, the Fale Pasifika at the University of Auckland became the venue for a truly heart-rending and beautiful funeral service to honour the life of Jim Vivieaere. Hundreds of people gathered to remember and respect this exceptional New Zealander. Jim himself was involved with all aspects of planning towards this gathering. The intimacy and

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-53418789670348927342011-06-08T10:59:00.001+12:002011-06-08T11:01:38.170+12:00

As we announced last week, the Gallery's main building will open its doors on September 3 - but there's still a lot of work to be done behind the scenes in the coming months! Hawkins are putting the finishing touches on the building (which you can continue to peek at on our webcam), while staff are preparing to move back in after three years in 'exile'. Our security team has already settled into

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-21252413022693997132011-06-03T13:21:00.003+12:002011-06-03T13:27:40.690+12:00

It is not widely known that Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886- 1969) collaborated with the brilliant Lilly Reich (1885-1847) on many interior and furniture designs between 1927 and 1939. Their joint work for the house Mies designed for Hermann Lange in Krefeld (1927-30) subsequently influenced the direction of avant-garde interior design.Mies and Lilly collaborated for more than 12 years. The

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-47187715380990865172011-06-03T09:17:00.000+12:002011-06-03T09:17:08.440+12:00

OPENING SEPTEMBER 3 2011

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-3651266634756824612011-06-03T09:10:00.002+12:002011-06-09T17:06:12.245+12:00

In 2009, artist Fiona Connor produced a series of drawings recording the demolition of the Gallery’s Edmiston Wing. The seven works in the Documentation through Drawing series were commissioned for Reading Room, the journal of art and culture published by the Gallery’s E.H. McCormick Research Library. They form a delicate and poetic response to the demolition of the Edmiston Wing, a part of the

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-57698793316658474722011-05-27T08:24:00.007+12:002011-05-27T08:28:07.146+12:00

That wonderfully obsessive website called Wordnik -http://www.wordnik.com/has reminded me, again, that archaic and unused words can sometimes be more contemporary, more satisfactory for a particular moment, than one of our more frequently used words.One just has to forget what the word sounds like to register how people react immediately to words that are foreign to them. A bit like how an

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-69341332399386037352011-05-18T14:54:00.001+12:002011-05-18T14:57:02.102+12:00

Jeffrey Harris, The Memory of a Journey, 1974 oil on hardboard, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki Every year, museums and galleries around the world celebrate International Museum Day. This year the theme is 'Museums and memory' - a theme which perfectly coincides with our 'If These Walls Could Talk' series on this blog. You can read all the entries in the series here. If you have memories of

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-7378151185554645962011-05-17T09:19:00.000+12:002011-05-17T09:19:09.807+12:00

Yesterday in the E.H. McCormick Research Library I came across a little catalogue of an exhibition held at the Gallery exactly 40 years ago. Called Pacific Cities, it was a remarkable show of artworks loaned from institutions in nine cities around the Pacific: Honolulu Academy of Arts, Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco, Henry Gallery in Seattle, The

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-34513568712143180162011-05-16T09:19:00.000+12:002011-05-16T09:19:45.529+12:00

Are you aware of the 'Easy Listening' series of art talks? It's a collaboration between Artspace, Elam School of Fine Arts and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki. These free talks by artists, curators and commentators happen on an irregular basis. They are advertised primarily by email - you can find out more about them and sign up for the mailing list here. The latest Easy Listening talk has

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-84597533349459339382011-05-06T16:07:00.002+12:002011-05-06T16:09:13.467+12:00

There's an article about our amazing conservation team in the latest Auckland City Harbour News. You can also view it online on Stuff.co.nz - and it comes complete with a slideshow and audio! Well worth a watch to find out more about their work.

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-65809449802268193202011-05-03T16:35:00.008+12:002011-05-04T11:21:18.177+12:00

On 30 April, I attended the ‘Oto’Ota Fahina Society’s official presentation of the remarkable Ngatu that they created at the Fale Pasifika during their recent one month residency. The Society are the first recipients of the inaugural Pacific Heritage Residence Programme that has been co-ordinated by Taylor Taufo’ou and Nina Kinahoi Tonga. Lolohea Tupouniua presented the Society’s report, in

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-88277614231066433072011-04-29T11:20:00.001+12:002011-04-29T11:21:56.877+12:00

I have enjoyed the video art of Campbell Patterson since I first encountered his work at art school. He participated in APT6 in 2009 at the Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane.They cleverly made many of the artist’s talk available on Youtube. Here are two links to the fascinating presentation by Campbell about the work that he had on display:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbaNA56m6akhttp://

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-60520676363955534542011-04-21T14:36:00.001+12:002011-04-26T09:38:19.341+12:00

Associate curator Jane Davidson-Ladd, who started this blog as a companion to the upcoming exhibition on the Gallery’s architecture, has recently taken parental leave. I have assumed responsibility for delivering Jane’s other babies, her exhibition projects, into the world. Quite a responsibility – but I’m very excited about being involved in this phase of the Gallery’s life as we prepare for the

Anna Parlanenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-34522706637741716772011-04-15T07:51:00.009+12:002011-04-15T14:59:02.348+12:00

Between 7 and 9 of April, the remarkable New Zealand choreographer Lemi Ponifasio, showed his latest dance piece, Tempest: Without a Body, to acclaim at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Click here to see a Youtube video showing a segment of this astonishing ensemble dance work when it was shown in Sydney in 2010: Tempest: Without a Body is a political work about apocalypse and

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-78540952756064137792011-04-12T14:19:00.007+12:002011-04-15T16:43:09.135+12:00

Have you ever wondered how works of art get moved around from place to place? It’s not as simple as wrapping them up and popping them in the post! Exhibitions Project Coordinator Judith Cooke experienced the whole process last month when she accompanied a historic painting from the Gallery’s collection on its journey to Melbourne. Read her tale below:Eugène von Guérard's Lake Wakatipu with Mount

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-62558395564876124452011-04-11T08:01:00.005+12:002011-04-11T08:25:51.515+12:00

Bill Pearson, in his essay Fretful Sleepers, noted that New Zealanders did not like big words. They did not like to use them and they did not like to hear them. I realised this recently when I used the word amanuensis in an illustrated lecture I gave to Ian Wedde’s inspiring new course on art writing for the University of Auckland’s Department of Art History. The students had obviously not heard

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-67051608136391275762011-04-07T16:31:00.016+12:002011-04-07T16:58:15.498+12:00

We sometimes forget how much New Zealand’s art has changed since the 1950s. In 1955 there were no dealer art galleries in Auckland. The Ikon and Argus galleries had yet to open. Auckland Art Gallery Director Peter Tomory described New Zealand’s art scene as being in a watertight situation. When he wrote that he was thinking about the beginning of the twentieth century, not mid-century. Put it

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-55160844900484341682011-04-07T09:07:00.007+12:002011-08-30T15:03:02.579+12:00

High in the Gallery’s clock tower, horologist Michael Cryns has been spending the last several weeks fighting some formidable opponents. A slight, softly-spoken man, he’s battling the effects of the elements, and even time itself. It’s likely most people won’t ever see the results of his painstaking labour… but they’ll certainly hear it. Last year this blog featured the story of how Michael

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-52787801502698598902011-04-04T11:02:00.012+12:002011-10-28T09:33:23.267+13:00

It was brought to my attention the other day that I, like Haraldur Hamar, can raise one eyebrow. Hamar is the impish subject of one of Raymond McIntyre’s most penetrating and confrontational portraits. An Icelandic writer and snappy dresser, Hamar had a penchant for nice ties which didn’t escape the attention of this reviewer... You can read the full review on Papers Past. Raymond McIntyre,

Julia Waitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04482997198751337494noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-70239589779634191442011-03-25T16:22:00.007+13:002011-03-30T08:44:49.143+13:00

Is it ever a waste of time to wonder who took the best photographs of Vaslav Nijinsky? Was it Edward Hoppé or Baron De Meyer? Hoppé’s are some of the most romanticised images ever created of a male dancer. Nijinsky appears so effete that it looks as if he is being consumed by the epicene. Sugary, syrupy and frou-frou. Yet, the images are unforgettable in the extreme. It is as if Nijinsky is

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-91400884439530293412011-03-22T11:04:00.005+13:002011-03-22T11:07:53.601+13:00

‘Sport is the entire trajectory separating a combat from a riot.’I have always been a fan of Roland Barthes’s writings. He has a wonderful French combination of erudition, humour and insight. One of his least known texts is What is Sport? commissioned for a documentary by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The text was originally planned for Mythologies (1957) but was omitted and it was not

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-79002038357846871372011-03-18T16:59:00.005+13:002011-04-05T11:31:06.710+12:00

Last weekend the Gallery stayed open late - really late - as part of the Auckland Festival's White Night events programme.The Gallery was open til midnight, with a whole range of family-friendly activities laid on.We were staggered by the amazing public response - around 1400 people stopped by for an evening of art, stories, colour and sound!Here are a few images of the evening:The puppet shows

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-29989882190234455422011-03-16T08:38:00.013+13:002011-04-05T11:36:38.379+12:00

Painting conservator Angela Ruegger joined the Gallery team as one of our two Marylyn Mayo interns at the end of 2010. Angela can now reveal the fascinating work she's been doing on a special painting from the Gallery's collection.Tell me about the project(s) you’re working on during this internship.The focus of my internship is a 15th Century panel painting but I also carried out minor

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-19667446725308100192011-02-25T15:24:00.004+13:002011-02-28T15:47:10.613+13:00

I have been a fan of Toss Woollaston’s art since I first encountered his watercolours at the Eric Scholes Gallery in Rotorua when I was a child. These 1960s drawings were luminous with bright, clear colour. I have never forgotten how impressed I was with them and I did not have an understanding then how exceptional Toss was as an artist. The hues were not the cuspy colours of his oil paintings,

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-15678875794149330122011-02-17T10:52:00.007+13:002011-04-05T11:31:24.740+12:00

Exactly 123 years ago today, on February 17 1888, the Auckland Art Gallery was opened in the building which also housed Auckland City's free library and municipal offices. You can find out more about the history of the buildings on our website... and check our webcam to see how the Gallery has been transformed as work continues for this year's grand reopening!

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-67262400899662066532011-02-03T16:21:00.008+13:002011-04-05T11:37:19.827+12:00

Charles Blomfield’s question ‘Are the Terraces Destroyed?’, which he posed around a sketch showing the devastation caused by the eruption of Mt Tarawera, can finally be answered.A team of scientists led by GNS Science have discovered remnants of the Pink Terraces submerged in Lake Rotomahana. For details of this fascinating find, see yesterday's newspaper and television reports.The eruption of Mt

Jane Davidson-Laddhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04340354467799332212noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-72409565119304206442011-02-01T10:21:00.011+13:002011-02-01T11:03:54.658+13:00

Following on from my blog If these walls could talk..., I came across this fantastic image from 1940 in the Auckland Star in one of the Gallery's newspaper clippings books.It shows the coronation picture of George VI, being carried into the Gallery through what was then the main Gallery entrance - in the middle of the Kitchener St facade. The painting obviously made it in, as it is pictured below

Jane Davidson-Laddhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04340354467799332212noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-91646980783732374182011-01-28T12:34:00.007+13:002011-01-28T13:47:00.917+13:00

Two Australian artists with significant reputations are Sidney Nolan (1917-1992) and Ian Fairweather (1891-1974).Nolan remains in the eyes of Australians one of their finest artists. He was a painter who could encapsulate how Australians feel about their country. His work has grown in regard and become even more emblematic of place than Russell Drysdale’s. Nolan’s art is, arguably, more searingly

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-40584790301962745222011-01-26T12:04:00.007+13:002011-01-27T16:15:30.807+13:00

For reopening, I have been working on an exhibition that looks at the Gallery’s architecture - from the competition for its design in 1883 to the present day development. Of course, a building’s history is much more than the bricks and mortar with which it’s made. It has made me wonder: ‘if these walls could talk, what would they say?’City Gallery, looking through to Mackelvie Gallery, 1897 (left

Jane Davidson-Laddhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04340354467799332212noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-7082454378993595312011-01-25T11:01:00.006+13:002011-04-05T11:31:45.365+12:00

Well, the holidays are well and truly over - if you're an adult, that is. But school's still out and for the last couple of weeks' the Gallery's been holding its popular school holiday programmes.Last week's classes were based around one of the artworks in our current Call Waiting exhibition: Ndebele by Terry Urbahn. Inspired by his diorama with its mashup of cultural themes, they made their own

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-48854095097435775162011-01-19T16:08:00.011+13:002011-04-05T11:32:15.494+12:00

Late last year Kyla Mackenzie joined the Gallery team as one of our two Marylyn Mayo interns (you can find out more about the internships here). I asked Kyla to tell us a bit about herself and the project she's working on, which involves delving through a large collection of artworks that have barely been seen - until now. Kyla in the conservation lab. Photo: Jennifer FrenchTell me about the

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-8775996801068261122011-01-17T13:15:00.006+13:002011-04-05T11:34:14.230+12:00

Peter Peryer, Bluff, 1985, gelatin silver printAuckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1989 Here's hoping the bottom of the Mainland is putting on some good weather - today could be the first day the province is united in celebrating its anniversary on the same day! What's more, it marks the 150th anniversary of Southland's founding.You can read more about Southland's history and the

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-8895334453860707642011-01-11T14:03:00.004+13:002011-04-05T11:34:33.421+12:00

Happy New Year! I hope you’ve all had a relaxing holiday break.The Gallery had some special visitors at the end of last week – a group of students and their teacher from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, who got a behind-the-scenes tour of our works on paper conservation lab.Since 1996, Professor Fred Hagstrom has been visiting the Gallery every two years, bringing with him about 25

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-27570880583827203902011-01-11T09:25:00.013+13:002011-01-11T14:03:07.911+13:00

The Gallery is much saddened to learn of the passing of Professor Denis Dutton on 28 December 2010 at Christchurch.Born in 1941, Denis has been a distinguished professor of Philosophy at the University of Canterbury since 1984. His 1999 book The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution was an innovative introduction to the relationships between aesthetics and our current understanding

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-12776227455099821972010-12-28T09:16:00.004+13:002010-12-28T09:22:51.197+13:00

I thought you would enjoy some Māori words for ko nga kara [Māori colours].Mangu, pangoBlackMāWhiteWheroRedPara, karakaOrangeTuapōkereVioletPurūBlueKikorangiSky-blueKākarikiGreenKōwhaiYellowPūma, kereiGreyParāoneBrownWhakahekehekeStripedThe Māori alphabet has the following letters:A E G H I K MN O P R T U WRemember G is used with ‘n’ (ng) only.Aalto Colour, one of the Gallery's paint sponsors,

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-88967777613308491712010-12-24T08:34:00.010+13:002010-12-24T08:51:17.984+13:00

Horatio Ross and his son, the winner of the Queen's Prize, Wimbledon, July 1860.From left: Charles Lucy, Horatio Ross, J.H. Parker, Mr Ross Jnr. Horatio Ross and Son, the teacher and pupil, Wimbledon, July 1860.Mr Ross Jnr. the winner of the Queen's Prize. Wimbledon, July 1860.Of all the English photographers of the nineteenth century, Roger Fenton is among the most inventive. Fenton (1819-1869)

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-29934355990331032292010-12-23T15:46:00.001+13:002010-12-23T15:47:49.169+13:00

In 1818, two young Māori men, Titore (Nga Puhi, 1795?-1837) and Tui (Nga Puhi, 1797?-1824), visited Professor Samuel Lee of Cambridge University. They assisted him in the preparation of a grammar and vocabulary of Māori.On 28 October 1818, he wrote to May Ann Ferriday at Madely.This may be one of the earliest letters written by a Māori in English.My Dear Girl Mary AnnI hope you very well, I very

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-40508128682605276072010-12-23T13:52:00.003+13:002010-12-23T14:04:06.083+13:00

This is my first post so I’ll make a brief introduction. I started work at Auckland Art Gallery in October as Assistant Curator/Project Coordinator. I’m interested in New Zealand Modernism and I’m going to look at various works in the Auckland Art Gallery’s collection, starting with urban views of industrial sites….Industry and Modernism The 1930s and 40s was a period of profound social and

Julia Waitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04482997198751337494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-81124879041812139182010-12-22T11:54:00.001+13:002010-12-22T11:57:20.249+13:00

The American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was already a recluse by 1870. Perhaps even as early as 1860, according to some accounts. She really did not like to leave the house much. She travelled in her head.During her lifetime, she only published seven of her 1775 documented poems. Arguably, America’s greatest 19th century poet, Emily is also that period’s most mystical, lyric maverick.She

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-57826918603462599622010-12-20T11:05:00.008+13:002010-12-20T11:12:51.151+13:00

W.D. Hammond’s Sea Chest is a clever painting. It looks, at first glance, as if it is an example of antique maritime folk art, perhaps created by a whaler below deck during the 19th century.The object is, in fact, an actual Baltic pine door that has considerable age. The stains and marks on all genuine and are not faux surface effects but actual evidence of its use over many years as a door to

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-9154464853280904962010-12-17T09:22:00.006+13:002010-12-20T09:04:25.798+13:00

Are you aware of http://www.review.mai.ac.nz/, the important New Zealand based cultural journal edited by Professor Les Tumoana Williams of Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga?This site is produced as part of the work Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga at Waipapa Marae Complex, at The University of Auckland.MAI Review Journal has been published since 2006 and is entirely web based. It includes an impressive selection

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-23172750133917077812010-12-16T16:24:00.005+13:002010-12-16T16:29:35.513+13:00

Recently, I was fortunate in being able to attend an event held at the house Ron Sang designed for Brian Brake in Titirangi during 1976.It was a special occasion. Ron Sang generously discussed the genesis of the house’s plan and how he had worked closely with Brian to ensure that the building would accommodate all of the artist’s needs, as well as his exceptional collection of furniture.Years ago

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-85795528909685280072010-12-13T17:50:00.005+13:002010-12-13T18:09:24.113+13:00

This carte de visite portrait of Abraham Lincoln was made by Alexander Gardner in his Washington studio in February 1865.Many people believe that this was the very last portrait photograph made of the President, taken a month before his assassination in April.If you have never seen Ken Burn's 1990 documentary series The Civil War, please look for it at your local library. It remains the most

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-74110819395242092052010-12-10T15:03:00.003+13:002010-12-10T15:13:26.869+13:00

I wonder how many people realise just how significant Diane Arbus was as an artist? She is a giant in 20th century American art. Her work just gets better every decade. And more terrifying. When other artwork from her generation appears to fade and retroface itself, her photographs grow larger and yawp with anger, fury and pain.A traditional Jew, Diane Arbus was born Diane Nemerov in 1923. She

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-12021694077096891402010-12-07T14:13:00.006+13:002011-04-05T11:34:59.935+12:00

The title of our latest exhibition comes from an artwork that was specially commissioned for the NEW Gallery's atrium space for its opening in 1995: Call Waiting, by Ralph Paine.Getting the five long printed panels back up into place was no piece of cake. Check out these pictures of Ian from Rich Rigging and Red from Total Access installing the piece from their precarious perches:Plenty of safety

Amy Cooperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05813813896606033451noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-26807709200052169332010-12-03T13:54:00.006+13:002010-12-03T15:01:15.943+13:00

A cyanotype is a photograph that has an overall blue tint. Technically their colour is described as cyan. It is a blueprint process created by coating paper with a light sensitive ferric salt. After the print is exposed, either through direct contact or through an enlarger, it is permanently fixed by washing in distilled water.Anna Atkins (1799-1864) was the first artist to produce a book

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2887161732505026549.post-68477823463021461052010-12-02T16:49:00.007+13:002010-12-03T14:53:17.513+13:00

I was in Hamilton that day in 1981. Roger Blackley, Dean Buchanan, Helga Strewe and I were there because of the Rugby match. The Saturday when Hamilton’s Rugby Park was invaded by ‘protestors’ – the scheduled Waikato versus Springbok game. Very first game of the Springbok tour, I think. The game was cancelled. The protest threw everything amok.Here’s an aerial view of that superb sports ground:

Ron Brownsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05682815689511190015noreply@blogger.com1