Extra

Wairarapa Art Review ends

The New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty Wairarapa Art Review wound up at Aratoi on a very wet Sunday with a function to announce the winner of the Frank Minehan People’s Choice award, Jason Burns, already the winner of the Rosewood Premier Award.

The review would not be the success it was without the input of several organisations and individuals.

For the first time, the review was sponsored by New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty. Brady Bingham and Connie Stewart from Sotheby’s approached the Friends of Aratoi with an offer of sponsorship for the next two reviews. The Friends committee, whose members spend countless hours organising the review, was delighted as this meant precious funds, which once would have been spent on expenses associated with the exhibition, could now be diverted to other areas such as helping with Aratoi’s electricity saving solar panel project.

The sponsors of the prizes must be acknowledged too: Wairarapa businesses ConArt Gallery & Studios, Hillview Property, Pete Nikolaison Photography. Rigg Zschokke and Rosewood Funeral Home as well as Gwenda Saunders, Jane Hyder and Frank Minehan.

Minehan, who has sponsored the People’s Choice Award many times before, is a longstanding member of the Friends of Aratoi, serving at one time on the committee. He said he was delighted to be at the presentation with “such a loyal and supportive group who came to Aratoi for the announcement in the middle of the deluge”.

“I don’t always agree with the choice, but I always respect it,’ he said. “However, this year was exceptional. It is a stunning work that you need to visit time and again to absorb. I do hope that Jason keeps working and that he feels supported by the arts community.”

Minehan likes the concept of the award. “It generates more interest and more foot traffic at Aratoi. It makes the exhibition more interactive.”

Sandra Debney and Megan Slight, chairwoman and deputy chairwoman of the Friends of Aratoi committee, agreed. They volunteer at Aratoi and are aware of the interest the award generates.

“It’s lovely to see children involved in the voting,’ Debney said. “One family spent a very long time in the exhibition and came out talking animatedly, defending their own choice before casting their apparently very different votes.”

Slight said the voting was very close this year. “Rebekah Farr’s portrait Big Brother was a firm favourite along with Jacky Pearson’s Cuba Street. Both Rebekah and Jacky came to the award presentation so that we could honour them too.”

• The New Zealand

Sotheby’s International

Realty Wairarapa Art

Review will next be held in 2023.

Sponsors Gwenda Saunders, Pete Nikolaison and David Dew at the preview event. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

Autumn’s busy with topical issues

Aratoi, Wairarapa Museum of Art and History, is gearing up for a busy autumn season with exhibitions on a range of topical issues.

Keynote display, Toitu Te Whenua, The Land Will Always Remain, starts on March 5. In the main gallery, the installations and paintings will focus on forces shaping the environment. Five artists investigate the ecological, historical, political and social influences that shape our world.

Artist Jacqui Colley spoke about the exhibits.

“This exhibition is designed to be minimalist, with a meditative quality. The main gallery feels like dusk, each work quietly lit with a beam of light.

“The works are meant to be experienced collectively and enhanced by a sense of materiality to ensure a visceral experience,” she said.

Work by Colley, Bruce Foster, Ian-Wayne Grant, Simon Lardelli, and Jenna Packer will be on display until June 26.

A second exhibition featuring immigrants to the region also opens on March 5. A portrait collection, it is called William’s Legacy: The Beetham Portraits. The display focuses on immigrant families and their stories.

William Beetham was already established as a widely exhibited professional artist in England when he arrived with his large family in Wellington in 1855. He became well known for, among other things, his portraits. He also founded one of the biggest pastoral stations, Brancepeth, in Wairarapa.

He had a society clientele and painted portraits of aristocrats and national leaders, including important Maori Rangatira chiefs. He was also the founder and chairman of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts.

Beetham was one of the first professional portrait artists in New Zealand, before Gottfried Lindauer and Charles Goldie. The exhibition showcases family portraits, including some never before seen in public. Most are still owned by his descendants.

Jenna Packer The House That Jack Built. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

COULD YOU QUALIFY FOR 25% OFF YOUR DOG REGO?

Does this sound like you? y property is fully fenced y at least one door is accessible by visitors without encountering the dog y dog is de-sexed and microchipped y registration has been paid on time for two years y dog has not been the subject of a substantiated complaint in the previous two years. If the answer is yes, you may be eligible for our responsible dog owner status, saving you 25 per cent off your dog registration fee. An application fee of $20 (non refundable) applies, and you can apply via the website or at the Queen Street Office. Applications close 31 March. Note: some dogs, including rural, menacing by deed, or dangerous dogs are not eligible. Further details available at: www.mstn.govt.nz