Hotere original up for auction
A rare Ralph Hotere original will go under the hammer in Hamilton next week.
It’s one of 93 historical and contemporary works up for grabs at the Waikato Art Auction 2018, run by the Fine Art Society New Zealand and Aesthete Gallery.
The mixed-media painting, called
is expected to fetch about $25,000.
It’s part of a series featuring the Union Jack, which Hotere worked on for about 15 years.
Hotere, an esteemed Ma¯ ori sculptor and painter who died in 2013, was well known for his minimalist style of paintings.
In 2012, an 11-piece collection by Hotere sold for about $250,000, with a single piece selling for $183,000.
But he was silent about the his work, saying ‘‘there are very few things I can say about my work that are better than saying nothing’’.
His Union Jack series are among his hardest to find, Aesthete Gallery coowners Lyn Chapman and Lynden Earl said, amid the 93 artworks hanging against white walls at the gallery.
Another anticipated artwork is an original photograph of the Terra Nova in Antarctica taken by Herbert Ponting in 1911 up for auction for the first time.
Still in mint condition, it’s expected to be of national – and possibly international – interest, Chapman said. The pair expect it to sell for about $12,000.
‘‘It’s just rare,’’ Chapman said. ‘‘You wouldn’t get a better photograph.
‘‘There’s the light on the ice, it’s melting, there’s a ship. It’s perfect, really.’’
There’s usually something for everyone at auction, from students to top-end collectors, Earl said, with works ranging from $100 to $30,000.
But if two buyers fall in love with the same piece, anything can happen.
Earl remembers buying her own first watercolour at auction for $300, 40 years ago.
It had cost her week’s income at the time, but she had to have it.
Chapman and Earl hope the pieces are won by people who ‘just have to have it’.
And it will be a bonus if they’re locals.
‘‘We aim for the Waikato, we like to keep them here,’’ Chapman said.
The auction will take place at the RSA Rooms on Rostrevor St on September 17 at 6.30pm. The Tribal Huk gang has been linked to a fatal shooting at a senior Mongrel Mob member’s home.
It is understood that four gang members, three who were members of the Huk gang allegedly orchestrated the shooting.
On July 8, an early morning shooting at senior Waikato Mongrel Mob member Mark Griffiths’ home resulted in the death of Robert Nelson, 23.
The revelations have shocked those in the gang scene because the Waikato Mongrel Mob and the Tribal Huk, the Nga¯ ruawa¯ hia gang, are close associates.
While one man waited in a getaway car, three men brandishing guns knocked on Griffiths’ door at 12.45 am asking for him, then opened fire.
Griffiths was at the address at the time and was uninjured in the early morning attack, but Nelson was fatally shot.
Police are yet to make an arrest in relation to the shooting and say the hit was intended for Griffiths.
Tribal Huk leader Jamie Pink said he had been told some of his members were involved in the shooting, and the gang was treating it seriously.
Gang sources said one of the four allegedly involved was jailed for other matters after the shooting, and was dealt with severely by Mob loyalists in prison. He is now in protective custody.
The latest development comes after the Tribal Huk de-patched their sergeant-at-arms in a public ceremony in Nga¯ ruawa¯ hia on August 8, which saw the member’s legs and arms broken.
Pink wouldn’t say whether the de-patching was linked to the shooting.
‘‘We’ve had a few members go rogue on ‘P’ (methamphetamine).
‘‘We are looking into it.’’
In another incident on Sunday police arrested gang members after some were seen chasing a man down the road with a knife, Waikato police’s western area commander Inspector Andrew Mortimore said.
Mortimore said Tribal Huk members began yelling abuse and pulling hand signals at police.
That type of behaviour raises questions over the gang’s suitability to be running an after-school drop-in centre, he said.
‘‘They want the community to believe they are law abiding citizens, however their behaviour over the last few weeks has shown their real motivations and position.
‘‘This was intimidating behaviour and not something you would expect from people purporting to be a positive influence on youth.’’
Police have asked witnesses to the de-patching to contact Huntly Police on 07 828 7560. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.