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Joanna Margaret Paul Two Still Lifes and a Portrait

from Select, June 2023

from Select, June 2023, page 19

Plates 160 Lots

The three works presented here showcase two of Joanna Margaret Paul’s (1945–2003) most frequently documented subjects: still lifes and people. Paul responded to these ‘ordinary’ scenes through a multitude of mediums — drawing, painting, photography, film and poetry. Regardless of the subject matter and discipline, there is a sense of intimacy and atmosphere imbued within all of Paul’s works.

Paul was born in Hamilton to artistic and literary publishers Janet (who was also an artist) and Blackwood Paul. Paul's mother was a strong artistic influence; she grew up in a liberal environment that valued and encouraged creativity. After spending time in London, where she was influenced by international artists, she returned to New Zealand and enrolled at Elam School of Fine Arts. There she was taught by Colin McCahon and Greer Twiss and studied artists such as Willem de Kooning, whose work was to inform her practice throughout her life.1

Paul consistently pushed the boundaries and existing conventions to challenge the disciplines she worked in. She rejected the idea of conventional framing devices within drawing and painting, and treated drawings not as a preliminary exercise but artworks in their own right. By not being constrained or guided by a particular medium, Paul was able to continually explore her relationship with the world around her in a way that felt fresh and new, even when revisiting the same subject matter.

Red is an oil painting by Paul that is simply delightful to look at. A candy-coloured palette of reds, pinks and bluish-purples creates a scene that feels almost unreal — like gazing through rose-tinted glasses. The bowl, flowers and candlesticks are pleasantly organic in shape. The overall atmosphere of the work is one of warmth, as the colour in the title might suggest. The two works on paper appear to be brief moments captured, drawn perhaps in situ: the momentary expression of a sitter or tea about to be served. Again, the strong colours – garish green for the tablecloth and bright blue for the figure’s t-shirt – give the works a dream-like effect. This portrait shows Paul’s antipathy towards the convention of ‘finishing’ an artwork; here leaving half the figure outlined only in graphite.

The recent retrospective Imagined in the Context of a Room, held at City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi, acknowledged the legacy of Paul’s multidisciplinary practice. While Paul had success as an artist and at least one survey exhibition during her lifetime, she has not previously had great public recognition. This was perhaps due to Paul’s unwillingness to engage in self-promotion and pursue a ‘career’ in art. This ideal was endorsed by the 1970s feminist movement Paul engaged with later in life. The movement presented Paul with a more holistic idea of art than she had previously witnessed, and expanded the ideas of what art was. While artwork that drew on women’s experiences had previously been seen as lesser, the feminist movement celebrated and privileged this topic.2

34 Séraphine Pick, untitled 2005 oil on linen signed and dated 610 × 510mm

EST $10,000 $16,000

PROVENANCE Estate of Ans Westra, Wellington.

35 Patricia France, untitled oil on board signed 510 × 490mm

EST $6,000 $10,000

36 Brendan Huntley, untitled 2015-16 oil on canvas on paper signed and dated 1130 × 970mm

EST $4,500 $6,500

37 Arie Hellendoorn, Flow Though 2011 acrylic on canvas 1120 × 1150mm

EST $2,000 $4,000

PROVENANCE Estate of Ans Westra, Wellington.

38 Jeffrey Harris, On the Beach 1975 oil on canvas signed and dated 560 × 770mm

EST $25,000 $45,000

Reflecting on the artist’s life spent as a forestry worker, Dick Lyne (1927–2014) picked up a paintbrush for the first time at age 65. With much of this time spent on Te Rohe Pōtae (King Country) and Matakana Island, these locations became a fixture of the artist’s work.

The three works by Lyne featured in this catalogue showcase the highly trained eye and skilled hand of this self-taught painter. Bush Logging Scene 1953 at Taurewa National Park Centre Nth Island presents a group of loggers hard at work, while the other two paintings present a more apparent conjunction between agriculture and nature; a theme that captivated Lyne throughout his life. The vibrant colours and flattened imagery create a wonderful folk-art feel within Lyne’s work.

Trucks, cars, and tram tracks pierce the natural landscapes of Lyne’s captivating paintings. The people and automobilia in each are always dwarfed by their surrounding flora and fauna, suggesting that right at the intersection between wilderness and agriculture, there is Dick Lyne’s life — a life lived in awe of the majesty of our national forests and trees.

39 Dick Lyne, Bush Logging Scene at Taurewa National Park Centre Nth Island

1953 oil on board signed, dated and title inscribed 830 × 600mm EST $2,500 $5,000

40 Dick Lyne, Tram into Poakani Bush Block in Central Northland oil on board signed and title inscribed 600 × 835mm EST $2,500 $5,000