Last weekend drove to Palmerston North for a rushed trip for the opening of an
Art exhibition at Te Manawa. The exhibition was a
retrospective of the work of
John Bevan Ford. John died in 2005 and is the father of my wife. I had known John for only a few years but he had influence on most people he met through his vision and ideas.
It was humbling to see so many pieces of art depicting John's work over many years. With about 70 works on display (a couple from our collection) it is an exhibition well worth seeing. If you are in Palmerston North drop in and see it (is there much else to do in Palmerston North). I think it is also going to tour.
2 comments:
8 July 08
Now I've worked it out - Dad tells me that John did the carved gateway in the Hutt Hospital foyer! The gateway was a calming influence over 5 days for me 18 mths ago... Was pretty noticable to me then that apart from that, and all the Maori influences I've had from friends while growing up there, my Lower Hutt is pretty bloody anglofied ;-) . I really appreciated having the carving there at such an intense time. But I remember John's carving there from much further back. I know that hospital all too well, and that's all that esoteric link supplied is intended to convey here. Actually, God knows the countless times my lot have congregated in front of that gateway over the years, to get our heads around whatever we have needed to. I s'pose lotsa families have done the same.
Dad and I escaped to the Dowse Art Gallery too for five minutes once there was no more urgency, and yeah, the Maori pieces I've known all my life settled me right down. I once didn't like believing that art could do that! Having said that, I remember really clicking with Robyn Kahukiwa's work in my teens.
Roger/Dad's just finished his part of preparing the British Museum Maori artefact catalogue for publication, but as paintings, John's work won't be in it, we think (?). Dad remembers John well and fondly, from Dad's time at the National Museum - I had a squizz of John's site at the weekend - and it seems they probably had the same rugby-mad principal at HVHS. I don't think I need to say much more than that, but I'm sure that principal has had something to do with the inherited distrust I've acquired in how NZers view learning and academia... Lamarck lives!
I don't want you to end up wasting time downloading this while in some far flung 'net cafe overseas. But my guess is it'll be loaded under a heading that you'll see can wait.
cheers
Dunno why I stuck that silly winking emoticon after citing "anglofication", either. I wasn't laughing. fwiw. What I felt seemed a more natural realisation than ever of how comfortable I was back there with everything being done in the ways I'm most used to, but yet also noticing and feeling that a whole raft of ways of seeing have been neglected that are just as dear to others meanwhile. It suggested to me that I can't really see much through other eyes with as much sensitivity as I'd like, unless also continually keeping abreast of what's coming in through my own.
I'm gonna end up self-correcting myself to death just anywhere I seem to end up, I think, if I'm not careful. Apologies for doing that here.
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