With the opening of A Place to Paint - Colin McCahon in Auckland, at the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki until January 2020, three major works in the Chartwell Collection by Colin McCahon are now on show. They represent a fascinating history of collecting McCahon's works - all being acquired between 1980 and 1987.
The first work acquired by Chartwell, in 1980, was:
May His Light Shine ( Tau Cross), painted between 1978 and 1979.
Chartwell acquired this work just a year after it was completed via auction.
Are there not twelve hours of daylight, acquired by private sale in 1985, is a large unstretched canvas painted in 1970 and is also in the current exhibition.
Rocks at French Bay, acquired through a private sale, is a scroll-like painting in ink and oil on unstretched canvas, from 1959.
These three works are joined by other works of Colin McCahon's in the Collection and can be viewed here:
The opening of A Place to Paint - Colin McCahon in Auckland, at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki, was a well attended event in August 2019- Jacinda Ardern, NZ's Prime Minister and Minster for Arts, Culture and Heritage, gave an Opening Address.
Jacinda Ardern at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki 2019