A very good thing!

More than 100 years after first opening its doors, and some 25 years after the concept of a full renovation and expansion was mooted, Whanganui’s Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery will once again be welcoming visitors from November this year. Good things take time so the saying goes - and this is going to be a very, very good thing.

The Gallery’s story begins in 1912, when its namesake Henry Sarjeant bequeathed a sum of money to establish a gallery to act “as a means of inspiration for ourselves and those who come after us.” Sarjeant had emigrated from the United Kingdom in the late 1850s and soon established himself as a successful farmer, but he was also passionate about the arts and visited many of Europe’s major galleries and museums.

The Gallery opened in 1919, to a world reeling from war and influenza, in a country that often struggled to recognise the importance of the arts, particularly art that did not originate in Mother England.

Sarjeant’s vision at that time was groundbreaking and his legacy - together with those that have subsequently supported it - is arguably one of the best provincial galleries in New Zealand. It is home to a collection of approximately 8,000 works of New Zealand and international art spanning 400 years, including an internationally significant photographic collection and the largest holding of paintings by the New Zealand modernist Edith Collier.

It is the size and importance of that collection that was a key driver for the Gallery’s renovation and expansion. “The idea of expanding the Gallery actually goes way, way back,” says Gallery Director Andrew Clifford. “The original architect Edmund Anscombe revisited Whanganui in the 1940s and said then that he thought it was time for an extension! He felt there was a need for more space, to expand the back of the building and provide a space for events - and that’s exactly what we’ve done.”

“Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery is home to a really unique and substantial collection of national significance, and making space for that has been a key driver of the redevelopment project.

“An unofficial time capsule left by the original clerk of works was found.”

One of the great tales of the redevelopment is a kind of an underdog story in itself. When the Gallery was first envisioned, a competition was held to select the architect; the winning design was submitted by the firm of the aforementioned Edmund Anscombe, but rumours soon swirled that the design was in fact completed by a young clerk in Anscombe’s office named Donald Hosie. But before Hosie could get the recognition he so rightly deserved, the 1914-18 war intervened. Hosie enlisted - and sadly never returned - leaving his employer Anscombe to enjoy the credit.

Whanganui has always had a vibrant arts scene that punches well above its weight.

Until now that is. “One of the other key drivers of the project was earthquake strengthening,” says Andrew, “and in the process of drilling through the building an unofficial time capsule left by the original clerk of works was found. It had photographs, postcards from his sons at the front, newspaper clippings and a hand written note that said - without directly spelling it out - that the writer hoped that the “vexed question as to who is really the designer of this building will have been settled” by the time the capsule was discovered, and that the right person would get the acknowledgement they deserved for the design. It’s pretty clear they were referring to Donald Hosie the actual designer of the building, and it’s wonderful that the note has now seen the light of day.”

It’s also reassuring to know that the earthquake strengthening means the Gallery will be around for another hundred years at least and can continue to serve future generations as per Henry’s original vision. “Prior to the redevelopment project,” says Andrew, “we did have some ceiling masonry come down.

When staff came in in the morning they found a chunk of plaster had fallen and actually hit a carved marble bust of Henry Sarjeant on the shoulder! It was kind of like the building was telling Henry himself that it’s time to go. So we had to leave in a more hasty fashion than planned - and are very much looking forward to being back in the building.”

From November you too can get back in the building. Check the Gallery’s website for a host of events marking the return of this iconic building - there’s never been a better time to visit.