B.
Ralph Hotere
Behind the scenes
Hard to believe two years have already gone by since the passing of Ralph Hotere on 24th February 2013. Unlike many public galleries around the country at the time of his passing Christchurch Art Gallery was frustratingly unable to display any works by Ralph from the collection due to our ongoing closure.
Well we are now hoping to re-open round Xmas this year, fingers crossed, and part of the opening exhibition will feature a tribute to Ralph drawn from the Gallery's permanent collection. A highlight for me personally will be the stunning Malady Panels which will be backed up by Sangro Litany, Kyrie Eleison 3 (Requiem Series) and Dawn/Water Poem to name a few.
Related reading: Ralph Hotere
Collection
Ralph Hotere Sangro Litany
In 1962 Ralph Hotere visited his brother’s grave in the Sangro River War Cemetery in Italy. While there, he copied from headstones the ages of the Maori Battalion soldiers who, like his brother Jack, were killed while attempting to cross the Sangro River in late 1943, during World War II. Hotere has formed the numbers into a Greek cross, with a large ‘X’ shape ‘crossing’ out the space beneath them. Together, these images suggest both a private requiem and a public protest at the futility of war.
Across the bottom of the canvas, Hotere has stencilled phrases from an ancient Maori chant that calls for the return of the godwit – a symbol for the spirits of the dead – to familiar shores. The paint runs and falls like rain, blood or tears.
Hotere was born in Taikarawa, Northland, and was widely regarded as one of New Zealand’s greatest artists. He is represented in public and private collections throughout New Zealand. He lived in Port Chalmers, near Dunedin, where he died in 2013.
Notes
Ralph Hotere: Ātete (to resist)
The extraordinary exhibition Ralph Hotere: Ātete (to resist) provided Ōtautahi Christchurch audiences with a truly remarkable opportunity to experience artworks by Ralph Hotere at first hand. Ralph was one of Aotearoa’s most talented artists and, significantly for Christchurch, two of his most notable works, Godwit/Kuaka (1977) and Black Phoenix (1984–88), were shown for the first time in the city.
Notes
Ralph Hotere (Te Aupōuri) 11 Aug 1931 - 24 Feb 2013
Join us in commemorating the first anniversary of the death of one of New Zealand's most significant and acclaimed artists.
Notes
Black Union Jack
With the death of Nelson Mandela, the history of the anti-apartheid struggle is being re-examined, including the protest movement that emerged here in New Zealand.
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Black Painting
Ralph Hotere's recognition as a Member of the Order of New Zealand in the New Year was a fitting tribute to an artist whose work has truly reflected social, political and environmental issues relating to New Zealand and the wider international community throughout his career.
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Sangro Litany by Ralph Hotere
The Sangro series, begun in 1962, is a memorial to Ralph Hotere's brother Jack, who fought with the Maori Battalion and whose grave lies among those of hundreds of other young soldiers at the Sangro River War Cemetery on Italy's Adriatic Coast.
Notes
Drawing (KO WAI KOE?) by Ralph Hotere
This article first appeared in The Press on 28 March 2007
Among the highlights of the Christchurch Art Gallery's drawing collection is Drawing (KO WAI KOE?) by Otago artist Ralph Hotere. Produced in 1977 Drawing (KO WAI KOE?) illustrates Hotere's development from his formal geometric approach found in his earlier work of the late 1960s and early 1970s towards the more expressive manner he developed throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Commentary
Ralph Hotere: Ātete (to resist)
Ralph Hotere’s art charted his journeys throughout Aotearoa and the world, reflecting on his experiences, identity and politics. As the first major survey exhibition of Hotere’s artistic career for over twenty years, Ātete celebrates his achievements and brings his vision to a new generation. It’s been a huge project to bring together so we thought it was timely to ask the four curators to tell us a little about their relationship with Hotere – how do they connect as individuals with the artist’s works, and the themes and the locations that they explore?
