Charles Blomfield

Castle Rock, Coromandel, sunrise, from the Mercury Bay track

Castle Rock, Coromandel, sunrise, from the Mercury Bay track by Charles Blomfield

Artwork Detail

Blomfield, a self-taught painter, first took up painting while on the Coromandel mining for gold in the late 1860s. Perhaps this scene is a memory from the time spent camping in the bush and exploring the area. The distinctive outline of Castle Rock, also known as the ‘Sleeping Giant’ for the recumbent visage its volcanic form takes, is silhouetted against the morning sky. In the foreground a pioneer accompanied by a packhorse makes his way along a track. The sides are lined with remnant tree stumps, suggesting it has been freshly cut into the bush. (Te Moananui a Kiwa, 2005)

Title
Castle Rock, Coromandel, sunrise, from the Mercury Bay track
Artist/creator
Charles Blomfield
Production date
1888
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
495 x 762 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of Mr A E T Devore, 1889
Accession no
1889/2
Other ID
0/16 Old Accession Number
Copyright
No known copyright restrictions
Department
New Zealand Art
Display status
Not on display

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