A Busy Summer Ahead At Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki
While it has been an understandably quiet few months in the corridors of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, the months ahead look to be increasingly promising for one of the city’s cultural hubs. Since reopening its doors in November following several months without a visitor in sight due to lockdown restrictions, the Gallery has re-opened with a range of new exhibits to make up for the lost time. Here is just a sample of the jam-packed slate that is on the way this summer and beyond.
Firstly, the Gallery will be extending Bill Culbert | Slow Wonder which began in June and was cut short by the Delta outbreak just a couple of months later. Free entry, Slow Wonder highlights the fascinating photography of Bill Culbert, whose use of unique lighting techniques and composition make for fantastic and often mystifying viewing.
Among the new exhibitions on offer this summer is Manpower: Myths of Masculinity, a contemporary examination of the depiction of male bodies in art. Free to enter, the collection charts the evolution of attitudes about male sexuality as reflected in art from Victorian times to the modern day. Curated by Senior Curator, International Art Dr Sophie Matthiesson, Myths of Masculinity will run until November 2022 and is accompanied by a four-part course Manpower Lectures | Antiquity, aesthetes and athleticism. The course will invite participants to fully deep dive into these ever-changing depictions of masculinity, exploring works seen in Ancient Greece, the influence of poet Oscar Wilde, how men were portrayed in art in early 20th century New Zealand and what it all means today. Tickets are available now, the course will run throughout March 2022.
Also on the books is Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary, a celebration of the work of iconic London designer Mary Quant. This international, touring exhibition explores the trailblazing Quant, offering a comprehensive examination of her life and career, which featured work modelled by a myriad of famous names in the industry, including British icons Twiggy and Grace Coddington.
Maybe the summer’s most conspicuous addition comes in the form of vocabulary of solitude, an exhibition as ambitious in scale as it is in conception. International contemporary artist Ugo Rondinone’s epic project covers the Gallery’s North Atrium in an alluring colourful glow, basked in by a collection of despondently characterised still-life clown figures. The curious work is another example of the ‘sweet melancholy’ that Rondinone has made a signature of his work. Free to view, Rondinone’s mesmerising clowns will occupy the gallery’s third storey until February 27th, 2022.
Finally, the work of one of the country’s most experienced figures behind the camera, Max Oettli, will be celebrated in Max Oettli: Visible Evidence, Photographs 1965–1975, set to open on the December 18th, 2021. Oettli has long been renowned as one of New Zealand’s most important independent photographers and his signature realist, black-and-white depictions of life in Aotearoa spans a number of fascinating, and at times tumultuous, periods in our national history. Free entry Visible Evidence highlights his work from 1965 to 1975 and few collections can comprehensively and vividly transport you to a time and a place like this one.
It’s fair to say, with the stunning diversity of art on display over the coming months, there might never be a better time to stroll down to Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, which, aside from a handful of premium exhibits, is free for the public to enjoy in all its glory.
