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Leo BensemannNew Zealand, 1912–1986 Self Portrait 1975oil on board, 712 x 725 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased with the Cuthbertson bequest in 2012. ACC: 1147 In what is possibly his last self-portrait, Leo Bensemann has placed himself against a landscape that meant a great deal to him. He was born […]

Leo Bensemann New Zealand, 1912–1986Untitled (Golden Bay landscape) c.1971oil on canvas board, 580 x 915 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by Sue Christie in 2016: ACC: 1372 As a painter, Leo Bensemann was known for his portraits, especially in the 1930s and 1940s, and after 1960, for his landscapes. In this untitled

Jane Evans New Zealand, 1946–2012Ladies Day 1978oil on board 1044 x 896 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: presented to The Suter by the estate of Amelia F. Roe in 2004. ACC. 977 Jane Evans was a Nelson artist who was a wry observer of people. She could sum up a

Jane Evans New Zealand, 1946–2012Saturday Afternoon I 1976oil and acrylic on board, 603 x 756 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: presented to The Suter by the estate of Amelia F. Roe in 2004. ACC: 990 Jane Evans has captured a quintessential Nelson scene: a Saturday afternoon yacht race. She had been visiting

Jane Evans New Zealand, 1946–2012Summer Siesta 1982acrylic on canvas, 1210 x 1510 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by the Goodman Group in 1984. ACC: 725. The story goes that Jane Evans was commissioned to produce a painting for the food conglomerate Goodman Group (now Goodman Fielder), but the resulting work, with

John Gully England/New Zealand, 1819–1888Western Coast of Tasman Bay 1885watercolour on paper, 750 x 1320 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased by public subscription in 1885 as the first painting for a public art collection in Nelson. ACC: 66 If there were ever an artwork intended to ‘sell’ New Zealand in the

Bill HammondNew Zealand, 1947–2021All Along the Heaphy Highway 1998acrylic on canvas, 1070 x 1445 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased with the 10 x 10 Acquisition Fund, with the assistance of The Suter Patron, Sally Hunt, in 2010. ACC: 1108 A long and winding road divides the painting into two realms. The bird-headed

Laura Herford England, 1831–1870The Little Emigrant 1868oil on canvas, 550 x 425 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: presented by Marjorie Sheat in 2007. Acc 1027 In 1860, Laura Herford was the first female artist to be accepted into London’s Royal Academy Schools. She used a little subterfuge when submitting her application, by just signing

Irvine MajorNew Zealand, 1922–2000At the Slip 1991watercolour on paper, 280 x 378 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by Margaret Major in 2002. ACC: 919 Nelson’s port and marina provided Irvine Major with a wealth of interesting subject matter – in this painting it is a variety of colourful vessels on the slipway. The challenge

Irvine MajorNew Zealand, 1922–2000Summer in Nelson 1960oil on canvas, 810 x 927 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased in 2001. ACC: 906 Irvine Major nailed the ‘essence of Nelson’ when he painted this picture, if the sales of postcards bearing this image are anything to go by. Painted more than 60 years

Irvine MajorNew Zealand, 1922–2000Tidal Stream I 1982oil on canvas, 760 x 623 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased in 1982. ACC: 633 Irvine Major created many artworks inspired by the coastline from Tōtaranui to Stephens Bay near Kaiteriteri, where the artist’s family had a bach. For a period, Major owned a bilge keeler

Marjorie NaylorNew Zealand, 1908–1985Mrs Pérrine Moncrieff, Nelson 1941oil on canvas 690 x 573 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: presented by the artist in 1980. ACC: 576 This is an eccentric portrait of a well-known Nelson personality, Pérrine Moncrieff (1893–1979). Moncrieff was responsible for the creation of Abel Tasman National Park, in

Ross Ritchie New Zealand, 1941–Still Life With Mullet 1987oil on canvas, 815 x 672 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased from the Goodman-Suter Biennale 1988 with the Goodman-Suter Fund. ACC: 796 This painting is a conundrum. It’s a painting within a painting, but with a very peculiar fish that is out of proportion with either scene. Ritchie has

Charlotte Sadd (1866–1937)New ZealandRocks Road in the making 1893oil on board 375 x 536 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: bequeathed to The Suter by the artist in 1937. ACC: 201 Charlotte Sadd was born in Nelson in 1866. She showed her paintings in many local exhibitions, and served on the

Cedric Savage New Zealand, 1901–1969Aftermath c.1953oil on canvas, 905 x 1130 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gift of the legatees of the estate of F. G. Gibbs, in 1953. Acc 274 It is likely that Savage painted Aftermath as an impressive centrepiece for a solo exhibition held in The Suter Art Gallery in the 1950s. The

Robin SlowNew Zealand, 1947–Aratoi 2015acrylic and gold leaf on canvas, 1460 x 1140 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by the artist in 2016. ACC: 1363 This painting refers to the Māori name for The Suter Art Gallery: Te Aratoi o Whakatū. Ara means pathway. Toi has many meanings, but in this context it relates to art

Robin SlowNew Zealand, 1947–Kōkōwai 2006kōkōwai (red ochre), soot, acrylic binder and harekeke (flax) paper on canvas; kōkōwai on harekeke woven whāriki (mat), 1935 x 740 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by the artist, 2006. ACC: 1035 This painting depicts the origins of kōkōwai, a stone that is ground to make a

Michael Smither New Zealand, 1939–Boy and Dolphin 1969oil on hardboard, 1210 x 602 mmOn long-term loan to The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū Michael Smither researched and painted a series of humans with a dolphin after being commissioned to do a cover image for Maurice Shadbolt’s novel This Summer’s Dolphin. Smither said, ‘I went through a steep

Brian StrongNew Zealand, 1945– Lake Series 10, Rotoiti 1974oil on canvas, 1820 x 1505 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased with the assistance of the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council in 1976. ACC: 430 Brian Strong grew up in Nelson and studied at Canterbury University. His early career was as an art teacher

Enga WashbournNew Zealand, 1908–1988Untitled (from the verandah at Speargrass Station) 1950swatercolour on paper, 376 x 440 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by Anne Rush in memory of her mother Adele in 2007. ACC: 1043 This painting is the view from the artist’s farmhouse verandah at Speargrass Station. Washbourn and her husband Gerald

Sir Mountford Tosswill (Toss) Woollaston New Zealand, 1910–1998From Spooners Range 1974oil on board, 1200 x 2700 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted 2012 by Peter and Hilary McLeavey and family, in memory of Jessica and Hilcote Pitts-Brown. ACC: 1156 This painting was gifted to The Suter by Peter and Hilary McLeavey. Peter McLeavey

Sir Mountford Tosswill (Toss) Woollaston New Zealand, 1910–1998Kiln near Riwaka 1971watercolour on paper, 268 x 348 mmCollection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: gifted by the artist in 1979. ACC: 528 Toss Woollaston first came to the Nelson region as a teenager, looking for rural work. After studying in Christchurch and Dunedin, and spending

Sir Mountford Tosswill (Toss) Woollaston New Zealand, 1910–1998View from Takaka Hill 1976–78oil on board, 1210 x 1510 mm Collection of The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū: purchased by the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trust Board through the Dorothy Annie Artmore Bequest, with the assistance of the Queen Elizabeth II Art Council of New Zealand in