B.
Van der Velden vs McCahon
Behind the scenes
Van der Velden is leaving the building.
Petrus van der Velden Mountain Stream, Otira Gorge 1893. Oil on canvas. Private collection
As the exhibition I curated is disbanded and the works returned to owners throughout the country I find myself reflecting on what my favourite painting in Van der Velden: Otira was.
It's the smallest work from the 'Mountain Stream' series. The bigger paintings of this subject are incredible and breathtaking in their sheer scale (something that was very rare in ninteenth-century New Zealand painting), but this small work is the darkest painting of the series and I love it for its vision.
In particular, I love the small touch of white van der Velden used to convey the torrent at the top of the mountain pass and the way that, illuminated in the gloomy half-light, it stands out against the darkness of the surrounding landscape. This painting really reminds me of McCahon's small waterfall series from the 1960s where light penetrates the darkness in much the same way as van der Velden's work. Van der Velden vs McCahon? Well it's van der Velden's Otira series all the way for me.
Related reading: Colin McCahon
Exhibition
McCahon / Van der Velden
18 December 2015 – 11 September 2016
An exhibition of two of New Zealand's most respected painters.
Exhibition
Van der Velden: Otira
11 February – 22 February 2011
This exhibition brings together a comprehensive selection of Van der Velden's paintings portraying the wild, untouched natural beauty of the Otira region's mountainous landscape.
Notes
Canterbury Landscape by Colin McCahon
In 2014 we purchased an important landscape work by Colin McCahon. Curator Peter Vangioni speaks about this new addition to Christchurch Art Gallery’s collection.
Notes
‘Where the picture stops and the world begins’
The way a work of art is framed affects our perception of the piece. A bad frame can detract and distract, a good frame enhances and even extends a work. While the Gallery has been closed we have updated frames for a number of works in the collection.
Notes
Kauri tree landscape by Colin McCahon
This article first appeared as 'Mighty kauris inspired McCahon' in The Press on 10 February 2015.
Notes
as there is a constant flow of light
On a recent printer's residency at the Otago University's Otakou Press Colin McCahon's huge mural painting Waterfall Theme and variations dominated proceedings.
Notes
Light Passing Into a dark landscape
Today is the centennial of the death of one of New Zealand's most treasured artists, Petrus van der Velden.
Notes
There is only one direction by Colin McCahon
This article appeared as 'Divine Innovation' in the The Press on 31 August 2012.
Notes
As there is a constant flow of light we are born into the pure land
After many, many months in the 'Darkness' of the empty gallery, I can think of no better words than those of Colin McCahon to signify the opening of the new gallery shop at 40 Lichfield Street.
Drop in Mon-Fri 10am-5pm, 10am-4pm Weekends
See you all soon!
Notes
O'Reilly/McCahon: an Easter meditation
An Easter-themed excerpt from an article published in 2010 in The Journal of New Zealand Art History...
Notes
Sutton high-fives McCahon
Nothing made it into a W.A. Sutton painting by accident, and the white line that rises diagonally through the sky in Plantation Series II is no exception.