Anne Hamblett
Early Works

11 March — 09 April 2020

Information

Colin McCahonPortrait of Anne, 1942-43, oil on paper, 481 x 398mm. Courtesy of Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art & History

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Portrait of Matthew Hamblett, c. 1934, oil on board, 300 x 400mm

Anne Hamblett, Pisa Range from Bendigo, 1934, oil on board, 370 x 455mm

Anne Hamblett, Otago Harbour Landscape, 1939, oil on canvas, 284 x 304mm

Anne HamblettEast Otago Landscape, 1937, oil on un-stretched canvas, 265 x 330mm

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Spring Blossom, 1939, oil on board, 600 x 520mm

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne HamblettPoppies, 1937-40, oil on canvas, 456 x 452mm. Courtesy of Hocken Collections, Dunedin

Anne Hamblett
Early Works

11 March — 09 April 2020

An outstanding student at the Dunedin School of Art from 1934-1937, Anne Hamblett (1915-1993) became an accomplished painter of landscapes, portraits and still life compositions who exhibited her work at the Otago Art Society and with the Wellington Sketch Club to considerable acclaim.

At this time, many of the male art students were enlisted to serve abroad in the Second World War. In order to provide continued support to each other to paint and exhibit, Doris Lusk, Mollie Lawn and Anne Hamblett established an all-women’s art gallery and studio above the UFS Dispensary in Princes Street, Dunedin in 1939. The space was always filled with fresh flowers in vases and pots, and these were a favourite subject for Anne.

After she married Colin McCahon (1919-1987) in September 1942 and became mother to their four children, Anne practised successfully as a graphic artist, supplementing the family income with commissions to illustrate stories for the New Zealand School Journal. She also modelled for her husband, and gave him important feedback on his own painting. A portrait of Anne by Colin McCahon, painted during their first year of marriage, is included in the exhibition to acknowledge this aspect of their relationship.

Early Paintings follows on from A Table of One’s Own at Te Uru Waitakere Contemporary Gallery, Auckland, curated by Linda Tyler in 2015-2016. This exhibition brings together 15 of Anne’s oil paintings, demonstrating the range of work which established her reputation in the period before her marriage.

With special thanks to Linda Tyler, the McCahon family, Hocken Collections, Dunedin, Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art & History, Masterton.

 

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Colin McCahonPortrait of Anne, 1942-43, oil on paper, 481 x 398mm. Courtesy of Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art & History

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Portrait of Matthew Hamblett, c. 1934, oil on board, 300 x 400mm

Anne Hamblett, Pisa Range from Bendigo, 1934, oil on board, 370 x 455mm

Anne Hamblett, Otago Harbour Landscape, 1939, oil on canvas, 284 x 304mm

Anne HamblettEast Otago Landscape, 1937, oil on un-stretched canvas, 265 x 330mm

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne Hamblett, Spring Blossom, 1939, oil on board, 600 x 520mm

Anne Hamblett, Early Worksinstallation view, 2020

Anne HamblettPoppies, 1937-40, oil on canvas, 456 x 452mm. Courtesy of Hocken Collections, Dunedin