HIGH STREET TO THE HILLS
Events around the country
Toi Koru: Sandy Adsett To 7 November, Pātaka Art + Museum, Porirua
The first major retrospective by Māori artist Dr Sandy Adsett includes 60 paintings over six decades from the late 1960s to today, plus a new series of works created specifically for the event. Referred to as “the Māori master of colour and kōwhaiwhai”, Adsett has inspired generations of Māori artists, curators, and museum professionals. Alongside Toi Koru is Ahi Toi, an exhibition by some of Adsett’s past students. pataka.org.nz Marie Shannon: Sleeping Near the River 14 August to 14 November,
Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua Whanganui The Sarjeant Gallery Tylee Cottage 2019 artist-in-residence, Auckland-based photographer Marie Shannon, pursues a long-standing interest in the domestic environment with new works inspired by the rooms and architectural elements of historic Tylee Cottage and the ebb and flow of the Whanganui River. Along with photographing spaces and changing light, Shannon has created 1:10 cardboard scale models of rooms in the cottage that demonstrate a blend of fact and fiction. sarjeant.org.nz
Romancing the Collection 14 August — long term, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki A look at the gallery’s collection from romantic vistas and frivolities to works reflecting a more modern, contemporary approach. When the Auckland Art Gallery’s collection was established in 1888, traditional European and British art styles dominated. Senior curator Juliana Engberg examines the collection’s early acquisitions of history, portrait, landscape, and still-life painting through a playful and spirited lens. aucklandartgallery.com
Hellzapoppin’! The Art of Flying Nun
21 August to 28 November,
Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū
The 40th anniversary of Flying Nun Records in Ōtautahi Christchurch is saluted in an exhibition of the boundarypushing art and design employed in the 1980s by the rebellious, post-punk record label. Many of Aotearoa’s high-profile Kiwi rock bands signed up with Flying Nun during their careers and Hellzapoppin’! features rare records, vintage posters, paste-up designs to reveal the backstory behind the music. The show includes material from Scorched Earth Policy, The Chills, Tall Dwarfs, The Bats, Pin Group, The 3Ds, The Verlaines, and The Dead C. christchurchartgallery.org.nz
Swallowing Geography 4 September to 14 November, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery/ Len Lye Centre, New Plymouth
Four contemporary artists — Matt Pine, Kate Newby, Shona Rapira Davies, and Ana Iti — present their individual cultural, physical and social interpretations of Taranaki and the concepts of land and site. The collection of large-scale works — involving ceramics, glass, bricks, PVC pipe, wood, metal, and industrial materials and processes — also includes a project in the Govett-Brewster’s space on Queen Street and one in a nearby park. govettbrewster.com