By the 1930s, Shurrock had established a reputation for public sculpture commissions in Ōtautahi Christchurch and further afield. This carving is a maquette, or practice piece, for a design he completed above the entrance to the city’s Robert McDougall Art Gallery which opened in 1932. The design of these two works incorporates the use of sharp diagonal shapes and lines, reflecting his interest in the modernist art deco movement at the time.

(Dear Shurrie: Francis Shurrock and his contemporaries, 8 March – 13 July 2025)