James Dignan ‘‘Freedom and Structure: Cubism and New Zealand Art 19301960’’
(Dunedin Public Art Gallery)
DUNEDIN PUBLIC ART GALLERY’S exhibition ‘‘Freedom and Structure’’ is a major display examining the development of Cubism in New Zealand. The style, originating in France, became influential in many countries worldwide, and New Zealand was no exception.
Here, the style found an early champion in John Weeks, but really hit its stride in the 1950s, when artists such as Colin McCahon, Melvin Day and Louise Henderson became major exponents. The current exhibition looks at the works of Henderson and McCahon, in particular, though Weeks and Day are both well represented, as are other New Zealand cubists.
Of particular note is the development of specific artists. We can see, for example, the changes in McCahon’s work through an extended series of images he did of Kauri forest which show his shift from a formal cubist structure to something more original and more in keeping with the New Zealand landscape. Henderson’s work shows an even more dramatic shift, from recognisable forms such as her Braqueinfluenced 1951 townscape of Duravel and 1954 reclining portrait to the bright semiabstract forms of her Dieppe series of the late 1950s.
As always with DPAG exhibitions, the display is fastidiously annotated, detailing individual works and also giving general overviews.
The display is fascinating, highly informative and equally entertaining.