Neil Pardington

Aotearoa New Zealand, b.1962
Clan Cameron, Scottish, Kāti Waewae, Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Māori

Large Mammal Storage Bay #1, Canterbury Museum

  • 2007
  • LED/C-print
  • Gift of the Minty-Pardington family, 2012
  • 1248 x 1502mm
  • 2013/006
  • View on google maps

For a large, intensive photographic project that he called The Vault, Neil Pardington used his camera to see what discoveries could be made in the hidden storage spaces of museums and art galleries throughout New Zealand.

This assemblage of taxidermied beasts was found in a storeroom at Canterbury Museum, kept in safekeeping while unneeded for display. All facing the same direction, it’s almost as if they’re waiting for their moment to escape.

(Beasts, 2015)

Exhibition History