Well regarded for his realist depictions of family domestic scenes, Michael Smither has revisited his own childhood in Boats at Pukekura Park. Located in New Plymouth, Pukekura Park features a lake, complete with rowboats for hire, in a beautiful garden setting. Having grown up and spent much of his life in New Plymouth, it’s a place that Smither knows well. In 2004 he recalled: My Grandfather, Ninian Duncan, took me for pram rides in Pukekura Park to feed the ducks. Big black swans used to reach right into the pram and terrify and delight me all at once. At The Gables I lived right beside Pukekura Park and made many paintings of these lakes. This painting was acquired from the artist’s exhibition at Peter McLeavey Gallery in Wellington in 1975.

(1969 Comeback Special 27 August – 6 November 2016)