A Place To Paint Colin Mccahon In Auckland

An in-depth exhibition of Colin McCahon’s work focuses on his connection with Auckland and marks the centenary of his birth. Auckland Art Gallery curator Ron Brownson discusses the survey of one of New Zealand’s foremost artists.

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There are 25 key paintings from the gallery’s collection and from private collections. What can we expect to see?

The exhibition is divided into three sections – the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s – with a very focused sampling to give you a sense of McCahon’s major contribution to Auckland art. He came here in 1953 and spent the majority of his life here, so the exhibition really has to do with the works he painted between 1953 and the end of his career, around 1987. A number of the works are very large, or long and multipart – diptychs and triptychs – and others have more elements. It will feel very rich, but intimate at the same time.

Tell us about some of the rarely seen works.