Gordon Walters, painter, printmaker and designer
Gordon’s iconic, and at times controversial, contribution to New Zealand culture is largely due to his synthesis of Māori and European symbols through geometric abstraction.
His investigation of the koru motif began in 1956 and, combined with hard edge modernist abstraction, formed the basis of his life’s work. Although Gordon is best known as a painter, printmaking and design were an integral part of his work.
In 1979 Gordon designed the well known NZ Film Commission logo. He is represented in all major art institutions in New Zealand, in the National Gallery, Canberra, and the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney.
Art
Gordon was one of the most influential people in the history of New Zealand education, and lead a revolution in the teaching of art and craft in schools in New Zealand and the South Pacific.
Art
Mervyn dedicated his life to being both an artist and a communicator; bringing art close to people. He was of a generation that wanted to cast off colonialism and discover a way to see the world and interpret its character from a South Pacific perspective.
Art
Guy Ngan is described as one of New Zealand’s most prolific artists, with many large-scale public artworks located throughout the country.