convinced him that he should sit. In this catalogue are two preparatory drawings in pencil, and two separate oil paintings of Les and I. One day I asked Peter Peryer if he would do a commission and photograph Les on his birthday. Peter’s answer was that he wasn’t doing portrait commissions anymore. As Les was approaching 60 I wanted a photograph to mark the occasion, so I asked Adrienne Martin if she would be interested and eventually she came to our home and took the two the photographs of Les and I. Two years later Peter came to us and said he was ready to take the photograph. And Peter only took one shot which you see today. While in Melbourne one year we visited Darren Knight who was showing Shane Cotton and what a surprise. We had previously seen Shane’s work at Hamish McKay and this show was a sell out. Hamish offered to put us on waiting list and we responded “this is not how we buy art”. We walked into the gallery and were blown over by all the works on show. Whilst we were deliberating between two paintings, Gary Langsford walked in with a client… Well, I’ve never seen Les move so fast as he did that day with Gary in the showroom, our decision was made very quickly... Much to the delight of Darren Knight. Each year Les and I would drive up to Auckland, with an empty car to do the galleries and meet the dealers, and artists, it was on one of these trips that Tony Fomison arranged for us to meet Colin McCahon at his home and see his studio. We had a delightful afternoon there and felt very special as he was so private, we later acquired the Marti Friedlander Photograph of Colin McCahon’s Living Room as this had meaning for us both, having been in that room. Needless to say the car came home full of paintings on many occasions. Les drove an old Falcon 500 Station wagon, column-change and bench seat, and once when Zalman was young he asked Les why he drove around in an old bomb – the car that was and Les replied: “Because I’ve got 6 Mercedes on the Wall”. These trips continued for many years and eventually we ventured to other cities in New Zealand and so many of the artists that we met through the dealers became
26 Bentinck Ave. prior to it being raised to incorporate the ground floor gallery. Milly Paris at home in 2012. This photograph originally appeared in Jewish Lives in New Zealand: A History. Photo: Chris Coad.
lifelong friends. We were entertained by many of them and entertained many in our home including: Don Binney, Allen Maddox, Philip Clairmont, Tony Fomison, Tony Lane, Gordon Walters, Geoff Thornley, Ralph Hotere, Michael Smither, Don Driver, Charles Tole, Toss Woollaston, Peter Peryer, Pat Hanly, Jeff Thompson, and the dealers John Gow, Peter Webb, Peter McLeavey, Janne Land, Kobi & Patricia Bosshard, Denis Cohn, Barry Lett, Kim Wright, Hamish McKay, Rodney Kirk Smith, Elva Bett, and of course Petar Vuletic. Unfortunately, my deadline has arrived. I have been writing over the past few days, but it has taken up much time, notwithstanding all the interruptions and subsequent broken line of thought. In closing I thank you all for coming and congratulate you on your choices. I am sure you will derive many years of enjoyment and pleasure, and can only hope that it will be to the same degree Les and I did for the last 55 years.
Milly Paris