B.

The Rotterdam-born Petrus van der Velden arrived in New Zealand in 1890. Following his first visit to Otira Gorge in January 1891, he became engrossed with this subject, and painted its powerful, surging torrents many times over the next two years.

This painting was purchased by Gilbert Anderson, a leader in New Zealand’s frozen meat industry, also involved with the Canterbury Society of Arts. Anderson sold it to the Society in 1912; it was purchased from them in 1996 through the Community Trust and Christchurch Art Gallery Trust.

(Treasury: A Generous Legacy, 18 December 2015 – 27 November 2016)

Quadrant: Four themes of Petrus van der Velden, 20 October 2006 – 25 March 2007

This squared-up tracing drawing of the Otira Gorge provided important steps for Van der Velden to complete his large oil paintings of the same subject. Often, he would take these tracings from original sketches and square them up in preparation for transferring the image to a large canvas. This allowed him to keep the correct scale and proportions in the finished work.

This tracing drawing relates to the large oil painting of the same name.