Te Huringa/Turning Points

20 November 2008

Pākehā colonisation and Māori empowerment are featured in an exhibition of paintings from some of New Zealand's best known modern and historical artists in Christchurch Art Gallery this December.

The exhibition charts a journey from early European contact, settlement and colonisation to the present day through contemporary perspectives from twentieth and twenty-first-century artists. Drawn from the collections of the Fletcher Trust and Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua Whanganui, Te Huringa / Turning Points features work by Augustus Earle, Charles Goldie, Gordon Walters, Shane Cotton and others.

A special feature of this exhibition will be that each painting will feature a dual interpretation by the two curators - Peter Shaw, curator of the Fletcher Trust Collection and Dr Jo Diamond, Nga Puhi-nui-tonu, lecturer in art history at the University of Canterbury - reflecting their differing cultural viewpoints.

“Likely to appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds, Te Huringa / Turning Points can be viewed as an extremely interesting collection of paintings by many leading New Zealand contemporary and historical artists, or it can offer an opportunity to engage more deeply with the issues presented in the two curators’ interpretations,” says Christchurch Art Gallery Curator Ken Hall.

“Te Huringa / Turning Points marks a maturity in the path of culture and art,” according to Christchurch Art Gallery Director Jenny Harper. “It depicts Māori through the eyes of both Pākehā and Māori, and is sometimes controversial - mirroring the history of Māori/Pākehā relations in New Zealand.  This is an opportunity to give some emphasis to a Māori viewpoint without excluding non-Māori points of view.”

Te Huringa / Turning Points, toured by the Serjeant Gallery of Wanganui and supported by Te Puni Kokiri and the Fletcher Trust, was first exhibited two years ago and has since toured much of New Zealand. It is now the turn of Christchurch people to experience this enriching meeting place between two cultures. 

Te Huringa / Turning Points will be at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu from 19 December 2008 until 15 February 2009.

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