Radical Beginnings

Radical Beginnings
Arnold Manaaki Wilson
Hine of the Lake 1976
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, The Ilene and Laurence Dakin Bequest, purchased 2017

Exhibition Details

The 1950s witnessed the rise of the first generation of Fine Arts trained Māori artists. This young group represented a radical turning point in Māori art as they consciously broke away from the traditional carving practices of their forebears to create new carved and painted expressions about their Māori heritage. They fused a unique understanding of Māori knowledge and cultural narrative with that of Western Fine Arts learning and practice.

Māori creation narratives and the relationship of people to the whenua (land) are told through the ideas, mediums and techniques of the times in which they lived. The artists whose work is on display in this exhibition were greatly influenced by the modernist art movement, and particularly by sculptors Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore and Constantin Brâncuși. This influence is seen in the pared-back simplicity of the human form and evident in the piercing of forms where ‘the void’ produces the weight of both positive and negative space. The works are bold, confident and explorative. Today, we appreciate these artists’ forthright artworks as the radical beginnings of contemporary Māori art.

 

Tīmatanga Hōu Rerekē Rawa

I nga tau o 1950 i tīmata ai te pūanga mai o te whakatupuranga tuatahi rerekē o ngā toi pukenga Māori. He hurihanga hōu mo tea o toi Māori i tō rātou pakarutanga mai i ngā tikanga whakairo tūpuna ki te hanga momo whakairo, uku rere kē mō to rātou ao Māori. Ka honoa e ratou he momo mātauranga Māori, tikanga Māori ki era o te akoranga me mahi o te Ao Pākehā.

Ko te mātauranga oroko hanganga me te pānga o te iwi ki te whenua e whakamaaramatia ana e nga whakaaro e nga tohu me nga ahau o te wā e noho  ana rātou.  Ko ngā tohunga toi e kite nei koutou i a rātou mahi i tēnei wahanga i awengia e te rōpū toi hōu, e nga kaiwhakairo nei e Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore me Constantin Brâncuși mā. Ko taua awe e kite ana i te whakaitinga ngawari o te ahua tangata me te kitea o te werohanga ahua i te waahi e hanga ana te kore i te taimaha o te wehenga o te hua me te kore. He toa, he aheia, he mahi kimi aua mahi. I ēnei rā, e whakanui ana tātou i nga mahi toi whakahirahira nei hei te tīmatanga Rerekē Rawa o te toi Māori o naianei.

Date
Curated by
Nigel Borell
Location
Ground level

Artworks on display

View Artwork

Not on display

Whiti Te Ra
Whiti Te Ra

Fred Graham

Production date
1966
Medium
oil stick on board
Size (h x w)
550 x 1290 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 2008
Accession no
2008/20
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Not on display

Standing Figure – Warrior
Standing Figure – Warrior

Para Matchitt

Production date
1965
Medium
totara
Size (h x w)
775 x 240 x 180 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 2015
Accession no
2015/17
View Artwork

Not on display

Ringamutu
Ringamutu

Para Matchitt

Production date
1958
Medium
wood (totara)
Size (h x w)
380 x 220 x 75 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of the artist, 2007
Accession no
2007/13
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Not on display

Crucifix
Crucifix

Para Matchitt

Production date
1964
Medium
wood (matai)
Size (h x w)
600 x 400 x 14 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, The Ilene and Laurence Dakin Bequest, purchased 2007
Accession no
2007/12
View Artwork

On display

He Tangata, He Tangata
He Tangata, He Tangata

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

On display

Production date
1956
Medium
totara
Size (h x w)
1170 x 360 x 300 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1993
Accession no
1992/33/1
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Not on display

Tane Mahuta
Tane Mahuta

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1957
Medium
kauri
Size (h x w)
1210 x 213 x 148 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1992
Accession no
1992/33/2
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Not on display

The Three Carvers
The Three Carvers

Para Matchitt

Production date
1964
Medium
oil on board
Size (h x w)
757 x 1510 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 2010
Accession no
2010/17
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Not on display

Ringatu
Ringatu

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1958
Medium
kauri
Size (h x w)
1015 x 235 x 145 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1992
Accession no
1992/33/3
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Not on display

Mask
Mask

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1955
Medium
pine
Size (h x w)
640 x 163 x 43 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased 1993
Accession no
1992/33/4
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Not on display

Hine of the Lake
Hine of the Lake

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1976
Medium
totara
Size (h x w)
1600 x 355 x 255 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, The Ilene and Laurence Dakin Bequest, purchased 2017
Accession no
2017/43
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Not on display

Te tu a te wahine
Te tu a te wahine

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1974
Medium
acrylic on hessian on chipboard
Size (h x w)
2430 x 1223 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, on loan from St Stephen's and Queen Victoria Schools Trust Board
Accession no
L2010/12.1-2
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Not on display

Head
Head

Arnold Manaaki Wilson

Production date
1958
Medium
perlite
Size (h x w)
270 x 150 x 105 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki purchased 1993
Accession no
1992/33/5