Kā Kaupapa o te Wā
What’s On
Edith Collier: Early New Zealand Modernist
A rare opportunity to view the work of one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most adventurous and experimental modernist artists.
Made in the Pacific: A Collection of Tāoga
A selection of Pacific tāoga from the Canterbury Museum in conversation with contemporary artworks that highlight the continued strength in culture and traditional art forms.
Mark Adams: A Survey | He Kohinga Whakaahua
A comprehensive survey spanning the artist's career.
E tuwhera ana te wharetoi i kā rā e 7 o te wiki, 10am - 5pm
Ka tuwhera ki te 9pm i kā pō Wenerei
Open 7 days, 10am - 5pm
Late night Wednesday until 9pm
Uruka utukore, ahokore utukore
Free entry, free wifi
Collection
Max Gimblett moon enso - king
The circular enso is a sacred symbol of enlightenment in the Zen school of Buddhism. For Max Gimblett this form, painted in a single fluid motion, is also a key to his painting process: “All mind – no mind. You empty your mind, and you don’t have any activity, and you operate out of your body in that space in relation to your soul where you’re poetic and soulful. You just let it come.” The unbroken line and its trail of floating dots was created in seconds, yet it somehow suggests the eternal. It’s an infinite universe, a shimmering moon and an empty zero – everything and nothing, all at once.
(Absence, May 2023)
Collection
Max Gimblett the water buffalo comes through the window - enso - 4 - 9/20/09
“Enso is perhaps the leading motif in Japanese calligraphy. It certainly has become mine. It took maybe fifteen years’ drawing before my ensos became round – previously they were ovals or sort of one-sided squeezed circles as I misjudged my centre and ran towards the left or right side of the paper. Also, I had not resolved my in and out; practice makes perfect. […] I was introduced to Zen calligraphy in San Francisco. I studied with the Japanese masters of all ages; they came to my studio and instructed me when I invoked their name.” —Max Gimblett (Max Gimblett: Ocean Wheel, 1 August – 15 November 2020)
Collection
Max Gimblett fierce fire
“Enso is perhaps the leading motif in Japanese calligraphy. It certainly has become mine. It took maybe fifteen years’ drawing before my ensos became round – previously they were ovals or sort of one-sided squeezed circles as I misjudged my centre and ran towards the left or right side of the paper. Also, I had not resolved my in and out; practice makes perfect. […] I was introduced to Zen calligraphy in San Francisco. I studied with the Japanese masters of all ages; they came to my studio and instructed me when I invoked their name.” —Max Gimblett (Max Gimblett: Ocean Wheel, 1 August – 15 November 2020)
Collection
Max Gimblett the heart of man like a black valley can with polishing turn into a pure white stream
“Enso is the Self, living two fingers sideways below the navel in the stomach and known as the Dantian. Also the Sun and the Moon, our eyes, our spinning globe, continuous time with no beginning and no end. I could go on and on.” —Max Gimblett This is one of a set of ensos that is more contemplative and quieter than their fellow ensos in this exhibition. Drawn at a slower pace with a smaller brush, they, like all ensos, were painted in one stroke, on the outward breath of the artist. (Max Gimblett: Ocean Wheel, 1 August – 15 November 2020)