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Publishing Details Printer Blue Star 154 Swanson Road Henderson Auckland 0612
Edition of 6,000 Offset printed, 80 pages 120gsm Eco100 Natural 150gsm Matt Art 4 fold-out sections
Freely distributed to subscribers or available at select public art spaces and hospitality venues.
Publishing Contacts Head Office Paul Evans Managing Director paul@webbs.co.nz +64 21 866 000
Advertising Christine Kearney General Manager christine@webbs.co.nz +64 27 929 5604
Holly Hart Jenkins Partnerships Manager holly@webbs.co.nz +64 27 557 5925
Charles Ninow Director of Art charles@webbs.co.nz +64 21 053 6504
Adrienne (AD) Schierning Head of Art ad@webbs.co.nz +64 27 929 5609
Tasha Jenkins Specialist, Art tasha@webbs.co.nz +64 22 595 5610
Julian McKinnon Content & Research julian@webbs.co.nz +64 21 113 5001
Olivia Taylor Editor & Copywriter editor@webbs.co.nz +64 9 529 5609
Charles Tongue Valuations Specialist valuations@webbs.co.nz +64 22 406 5514
Connie Dwyer Registrar, Art connie@webbs.co.nz +64 9 529 5609
Jo Bragg Administrator, Art art@webbs.co.nz +64 9 529 5609
Art Department Auckland
Wellington Carey Young Specialist, Art carey@webbs.co.nz +64 21 368 348
David Maskill Specialist, Art david@webbs.co.nz +64 27 256 0900
Table of Contents
Foreword 04 List of Essays
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The Group: An Introduction
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Programme 16 Plates 17
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Index of Artists
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Foreword
Webb’s is proud to present this stunning catalogue of artwork by artists who exhibited with the renowned artistic circle, The Group. From 1927 to 1977, The Group provided an alternative exhibition platform to the long established tradition of yearly exhibitions by conventional art societies. It attracted progressive artists, predominantly from Christchurch, but also from further afield, who were increasingly embracing modernist approaches to art. Webb's
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David Maskill, Specialist, Art.
This unique auction provides an opportunity to view and acquire works by artists who were part of a burgeoning movement. The activities of The Group saw the emergence of a distinctive thread in New Zealand art; its early participants were united in their collective rejection of ‘chocolate-box’ sentimentality favoured in the art of The Group’s parent institution, the Canterbury Society of Arts. They looked instead to new trends in progressive artmaking, and sought to capture something unique to New Zealand. Some embraced modernist trends more radically than others, but they were all committed to a new vision for art. Reviewing those artists who participated in exhibitions by The Group reads like an art history lesson. During the early years of The Group in the 1930s, exhibitors included Evelyn Page, Robert Nettleton Field, Christopher Perkins, Rita Angus, Leo Bensemann, Louise Henderson, Olivia Spencer Bower, Rata Lovell-Smith, Margaret Frankel, Doris Lusk and Toss Woollaston. In the 1940s, they were joined by the likes of Colin McCahon, Douglas MacDiarmid, Bill Sutton, John Weeks and Russell Clark. These artists strongly influenced the development of New Zealand art from this time. The 1950s saw the consolidation of The Group as the primary platform for progressive New Zealand art; the number of exhibited works and artists increasing dramatically. Artists from outside of Christchurch began to exhibit regularly, such as Dunedin-based Frank Gross and Auckland-based Milan Mrkusich. In the 1960s, a younger generation of artists showed alongside their more established peers. Artists such as Tony Fomison, Philip Trusttum, Quentin MacFarlane, Don Binney, John Drawbridge, Tanya Ashken, Michael Illingworth, Don Peebles, Richard Killeen and Ralph Hotere were involved at this time. Despite the growing network of dealer galleries in the main centres, The Group continued to hold exhibitions into the 1970s. Newcomers such as Philip Clairmont and Don Driver exhibited their bold art alongside work by their older colleagues. The Group’s stalwart, Olivia Spencer Bower, exhibited a suite of linocuts in the final Group exhibition in 1977, forty-four years after her first showing with The Group in 1933. It is a delight to present many artworks by these iconic artists. It has also been a pleasure to produce a catalogue that references the strong design aesthetic of The Group. One of the distinctive aspects of their catalogues was the use of modern design and typography. This was especially the case from the mid-1940s when they were designed by Leo Bensemann, and printed by the Caxton Press. This aesthetic has directly inspired the design of this publication. We have also reproduced two classic New Zealand poems by Denis Glover and Charles Brasch, publishers and writers of the Caxton Press, to acknowledge the interconnections between the artists of the Group and their literary contemporaries. It has been a real pleasure researching this period in New Zealand’s art history, working with collectors, and hearing the stories of The Group artists and the work they produced. It is a joy to showcase works from this significant time in our cultural history.
The Group Show: Retrospective Exhibition 1927 – 1947 (Christchurch: The Caxton Press, 1947). Held in the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puria o Waiwhetū Collection.
David Maskill Specialist, Art david@webbs.co.nz +64 27 256 0900
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List of Essays
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Rita Angus Lake Wanaka by Neil Talbot
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Colin McCahon Small Landscape by Julian McKinnon
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Louise Henderson Abstract 4 by Molly Lawton
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Evelyn Page Living Room by Olivia Taylor
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The Group: An Introduction
Olivia Taylor
Innovative New Zealanders have long wrestled with the dichotomy of our country’s remote condition. On the one hand, Aotearoa’s profound isolation can be stifling, with a limited resource supply and small population. On the other hand, it is a place of aspirational freedom, with a permissive social culture and openness to creativity. The Group was an affiliation of individual artists who saw opportunity in exploring homebound subject matter and the psychological condition of inhabiting this part of the world. Exhibiting together from 1927-1977, The Group were grass-roots artists who produced works of whatever they saw fit and hung their own exhibitions. By self-managing, they unintentionally revolutionised the New Zealand modern art aesthetic and improved art accessibility.
W.A. Sutton, Homage to Frances Hodgkins, 1951. Artist Bill Sutton, then a young lecturer at the art school, registered his protest at the rejection of Pleasure Garden by painting a large composite portrait of Hodgkins's supporters grouped around the work. At the centre of the image is Hodgkins and a young Colin McCahon. In the foreground, a discarded copy of The Press lies crumpled on the floor.
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W.A. Sutton, Colour sketch for 'Homage to Frances Hodgkins', 1951.
3 Julie A. Catchpole. Thesis for the completion of the Master of Arts in Art History – The Group. University of Canterbury. 1984. p. 3-4. 4 Jill Trevelyan. Rita Angus – An Artist’s Life. Te Papa Press. 2008. p. 20
The Group first emerged in the late 1920s. This post-WWI period was a time of turbulence and social disruption, which led to considerable upheaval in the established frameworks within the arts. Established arts and literature societies evidently became more rigid, catering to conservative popular taste, and focussing on older styles of painting and writing. Consequently, fresh talent was often excluded. This created conditions in which young, adventurous artists and intellectuals had to carve out their own artistic space. The Group, which came to be the most prolific and enduring artist run initiative in New Zealand, started from humble beginnings in 1927. Graduates of the Canterbury College School of Art often gathered at the shared flat of Rita Angus, Leo Bensemann, Lawrence Baigent, and Archibald F. Nicoll at 97 Cambridge Terrace – near the Bridge of Remembrance of central Christchurch.1 Notably, the house was owned by Sydney Thompson, a leading post-impressionist painter, who invited the younger artists to live there. This ‘house of art’ became home to a circle of artists working in varying genres and styles, and an axis of the budding literature and visual arts scene in the south of New Zealand. 2 The collective obtained a scantily furnished studio in Cashel Street, where founders Evelyn Page, Voila MacMillan Brown, Margaret Frankel, Ngaio Marsh, Edith Wall, and William Henry Montgomery invited new contemporaries to congregate for discussions and occasionally draw from live models. In 1929, the group of friends held their first show in the Durham Street Art Gallery of the Canterbury Society of Arts (CSA), which became the venue for the majority of their shows thereafter.3 Evelyn Page remembered it as “a social club for young painters who wanted to find somewhere to meet away from their Victorian parents.”4
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1 Peter Simpson, Bloomsbury South, The Arts in Christchurch 1933 –1953. Auckland University Press. 2016. p. 3. 2 Ibid, p. 73.
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5 Robert McDougall Art Gallery Publication. The Group 1927-1977 (November 1977. Issue 16.) Robert McDougall Art Gallery. Contribution by Leo Bensemann. pg. 11. 6 Robert McDougall Art Gallery Publication. The Group 1927-1977 (November 1977. Issue 16.) Robert McDougall Art Gallery. Contribution by Olivia Spencer Bower. p. 3.
Over the course of The Group’s long span as an artist run initiative, many New Zealand modern art luminaries were involved. Shows were always hosted in Christchurch, displaying works by artists directly from the city and around the country. Membership fluctuated, extending from the surrounding South Island centres of Nelson and Dunedin, and to the further reaches of the North Island. Notable members included Olivia Spencer Bower, Toss Woollaston, Robert Nettleton Field, Rata LovellSmith, Louise Henderson, Rita Angus, Leo Bensemann, Tony Fomison, Colin McCahon, Doris Lusk, Douglas MacDiarmid, Evelyn Page, Christopher Perkins, William Henry Allen, and William James Reed. The Group’s annual shows went on to become one of New Zealand’s leading forums for contemporary art. Even though The Group countered the stiff approach of established frameworks, it was not a collection of mavericks. The Group never had the objective of reforming or ‘shaking-up’ established galleries, art schools and art societies. Members simply wanted to make art their own way and exhibit it to their contemporaries. As well as being an active participant and exhibitor, Bensemann was also involved in the Caxton Press – which produced The Group’s show catalogues. He noted in his account of The Group in 1977 that it would have been impossible for the collection of individual artists to revolutionise the art establishments, due to the lack of uniformity and intention of its members.5 There was no committee, there was hardly a ledger, and finances were slim, meaning a hat was often passed around members to fund the shows. Sales were numerous, but for modest sums, therefore exhibitions often failed to break even. McCahon’s works would sell for only a few guineas, unfathomable prices by today's standards. Further reinforcing the idea that The Group was not revolutionary in its aims, members continued to exhibit and maintain memberships with other societies, such as the CSA. The Group’s shows in the early years even followed a similar format to the CSA. Openings were formal affairs. Dinner coats and glamourous dresses were worn by attendees who filled ballrooms adorned with primroses and offerings of lavish suppers.6
Group Show 61 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1961) and The Group Show 64 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1964) retrieved from Christchurch City Libraries Heritage publications.
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Leo Bensemann is pictured working at the Caxton Press, Christchurch. He started working for Caxton in the early 1930s and became a partner in 1937.
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Jean Bertram, Rita Angus painting Self portrait, (1936 – 37), c1936.
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7 Peter Simpson, Bloomsbury South, The Arts in Christchurch 19331953. Auckland University Press. 2016. p. 5.
8 Peter Simpson, Bloomsbury South, The Arts in Christchurch 19331953. Auckland University Press. 2016. p. 6.
9 Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū. South Canterbury Artists: A Retrospective View 1990. 10 Ibid.
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The period in which The Group operated – from the late 1920s through to the mid 1970s – was a significant time for New Zealand social evolution. Established norms were questioned, and age-old repressions were mitigated to some degree. The Group is notable for strong female representation; women were founding members and active leaders who made up the majority. Diverse sexual orientation of members was accepted without prejudice. Further, many members embraced pacifism during the Second World War. Membership was largely drawn from those educated at the Canterbury College School of Art and their friends. Even with cyclic replenishment of membership over decades, most, if not all, members who flowed through The Group were Pākehā New Zealanders. Consequently, the prevailing attitudes of Pākehā were over-represented in the cultural output of The Group. Those attitudes were dominated by recent pioneering memory and economic conditions. Ideas of self-reliance, the challenges of surviving in New Zealand’s raw environment and weakening ties with Britain in the face of plummeting prices for export commodities were all factors. A broader cultural drive towards developing an authentic brand of national culture was in play, which ran in opposition to the shadow of identity cast by the rigid, industrialised, overcrowded mother country. Art production and subject matter between the 1930s and 1950s can be described as ‘nationalist’, borne out of a desire to create unique, idiosyncratic tropes that are akin to New Zealand’s national vernacular. Although The Group directly contributed to a nationalist aesthetic – with many depictions of raw landscapes in ochre tones contrasted with dramatic, icy, pacific blues – the term ‘nationalist’ was denounced by artists at the time; it carried connotations of the fascist movements that had engulfed Germany, Italy and Spain.7 The political liberalism of The Group and creatives of the inter-war and Second World War period advocated instead for the use ‘internationalism’. Twentieth Century writer and founder of the Caxton Press, Allen Curnow, preferred descriptions such as, ‘the condition of being a New Zealander’ to nationalist.8 Landscapes were a popular subject matter for members of The Group. Artists such as Toss Woollaston, Rita Angus, Olivia Spencer Bower, Rata Lovell-Smith, Doris Lusk, Margaret Frankel, and William James Reed rendered sparse lands that appeared to extend eternally past the frame. Reed spoke of his preference to paint the landscape in watercolour, stating that, ‘we are surrounded by fascinating landscapes of infinite variety.’9 He also spoke of The Group’s process of art making, stating that, ‘The Group believes that a well based technical knowledge of the fundamentals of visual art is necessary, but not of over-riding importance in the production of works of artistic merit. These exist to serve that faculty, not to drown it.’10 A common practice among members were excursions to the West Coast, the Canterbury High Country, and Mackenzie Country to paint, capturing light across plains and minimal emblems of settlement. Often, these paintings were made in modernist fashion, breaking the scenes down to basic forms and simplified arrangements of colours that celebrated the painting process. This approach to colour selection and application of paint was also adopted by those who painted portraits and still life works, such as Evelyn Page and Rita Angus. 2022
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Olivia Spencer Bower, Ngaio Marsh Painting, c1936.
11 The Robert McDougall Art Gallery was later superseded as the central hub of art by the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū in 2002, and then decommissioned after substantial earthquake damage in 2010 and 2011.
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In the later years of the 1950s and 1960s, a time of consistency and consolidation for The Group, shows became the centralised exhibition platform for a new wave of young artists that hosted the display of now extremely significant names from across New Zealand. Notable artists featured frequently in catalogues and exhibitions including Pat Hanly, Don Binney, Tony Fomison, Philip Trusttum, Quentin MacFarlane, Ralph Hotere, and John Drawbridge. Colin McCahon exhibited some of his most iconic works with The Group during the 1960s. In 1962, The Group offered a public subscription to buy McCahon’s Tomorrow will be the same but not as this is (1958-59) for the city of Christchurch. The painting is now held in the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū collection. Strong annual exhibitions continued into the 1970s, championing notable female artists such as Robin White and Gretchen Albrecht. The Group disbanded in 1977. This came after 50 years of sustained annual exhibitions, except for a brief period when The Group became the New Zealand Society of Artists, and during the Second World War. This disbandment was largely due to a changing cultural context; globalisation was shifting the narrative on New Zealand’s national isolation, and the local art scene had evolved. The public were increasingly engaged with the arts, and dealer art galleries were proliferating. The Group’s 1977 survey exhibition, 50 years after its establishment, was held at Robert McDougall Art Gallery. At this time, the gallery enjoyed the distinction of being Christchurch’s predominant art gallery. The show was a significant full-circle moment. The Group had started as an alternative community and exhibition space for art and artists outside of institutional norms, and it ended with a prestigious show in an established gallery. The survey show was held during Robert McDougall Art Gallery’s heyday as the city’s major gallery; exhibiting the non-conformist contemporary art group bolstered the gallery’s status even further.11 This advantage was mutually beneficial. The gallery’s endorsement of The Group increased its status, highlighting its historical influence and important role in Christchurch city’s vibrant art history. The Group left an enduring legacy as a nexus of intersecting relationships that promoted the production and display of 20th century contemporary art which has resonances within New Zealand culture to this day. May
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Programme
Wellington Evening Preview Wednesday 11 May
6 – 8pm
Wellington Floor Talk with David Maskill Tuesday 17 May
5.30pm
Wellington Viewing Thursday 12 – Friday 13 May
10am – 5pm
Saturday 14 – Sunday 15 May 11am – 3pm Monday 16 – Friday 20 May 10am – 5pm Saturday 21 May
11am – 3pm
Auckland Evening Preview Tuesday 24 May
6 – 8pm
Auckland Viewing Wednesday 25 – Friday 27 May
10am – 5pm
Saturday 28 May
10am – 4pm
wellington 23 Marion St Te Aro Wellington, 6011
Sunday 29 May
10am – 2pm
auckland 33a Normanby Rd Mount Eden Auckland, 1024
Auction
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Auction & Viewing Location
Sunday 29 May
2pm 16
Plates
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Louise Henderson Wharf Crane 1970 graphite on paper 470 × 330mm
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$500 — $1,000
Louise Henderson Pattern for a Stained Glass Window 1960 graphite on paper 640 × 485mm $500 — $1,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland.
Provenance Private collection, Auckland.
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Louise Henderson The Coast of East Greenland 1972 graphite on paper 325 × 445mm est
$500 — $1,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Toss Woollaston untitled 1985 watercolour on paper signed Woollaston and dated 85 in brushpoint lower right 305 × 445mm est
$6,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Nelson. Webb's
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Toss Woollaston Rangitoto, Auckland 1990 watercolour and ink on paper signed Woollaston and dated 21.2.90 in graphite lower right 290 × 400mm est
$4,200 — $6,200
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Colin Lovell-Smith untitled oil on canvasboard signed Colin Lovell-Smith in brushpoint lower right 310 × 440mm est
$1,500 — $2,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Acquired from McCormack McKellar, Christchurch; McDougall Family Collection, Christchurch. Webb's
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Rata Lovell-Smith MacKenzie Country c1932 oil on canvasboard signed Rata Lovell-Smith in brushpoint lower right 342 × 447mm est
$5,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. May
Exhibitions New Zealand Society of Artists First General Exhibition, Durham and Armagh Street Art Galleries, Christchurch, 1933. Literature New Zealand Society of Artists, First General Exhibition (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1933), item 101.
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Leo Bensemann Canterbury, Winter c1961 oil on canvasboard inscribed Mountain Upland in ink verso 472 × 596mm est
$25,000 — $35,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Acquired from New Zealand & International Art, Watson's, 17 April 2007, lot 39. Webb's
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Note One of a set of four landscapes representing the seasons that were exhibited in the Group Show 61. Exhibitions Group Show 61, Durham Street Gallery, The Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1961. Literature Group Show 61, (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1961), item 73; Peter Simpson, Fantastica: The World of Leo Bensemann (Auckland: Auckland University Press, 2011), 127.
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Doris Lusk Sketch for Sunset Demolition 1980 graphite, charcoal and watercolour on paper signed D. Lusk, dated 1980 and inscribed Sketch for Sunset Demolition in graphite lower edge 410 × 590mm est
$5,000 — $7,000
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Doris Lusk Tuam St. II 1982 watercolour and collage on paper signed D. Lusk and dated 1982 in graphite lower right 410 × 590mm est
$4,000 — $7,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington.
Provenance Private collection, Auckland.
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Doris Lusk College Demolition 1981 acrylic on canvas signed D. Lusk and dated '81 in brushpoint lower edge 855mm × 630mm est
$25,000 — $35,000
Provenance Private collection, Nelson. Acquired from Important Paintings & Contemporary Art, Webb's, Auckland, August 2012, lot 67. Webb's
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Exhibitions Doris Lusk: Practical Visionary, Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, Christchurch, 4 June - 30 October 2016.
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Rita Angus – Lake Wanaka Essay by NEIL TALBOT
Rita Angus is one New Zealand’s most highly regarded artists. She is widely celebrated for her enduring contribution to New Zealand art, and the singular vision she pursued in painting. Her work is held in every major public collection in the country and has been admired by many across generations. Angus was a key figure in The Group. She became a member after moving to Christchurch from Napier in 1927, the same year as the first show. Living with Lawrence Baigent and Leo Bensemann at 97 Cambridge Terrace led Angus to connect with like-minded contemporaries who were involved in The Group. She exhibited in many of The Group’s annual shows, particularly in the earlier years. Lake Wanaka was exhibited with The Group in 1938, the same year she painted it under her married name, Rita Cook. It shows a view of the snow-covered Southern Alps across the lake with a grove of evergreen trees in the foreground. The contrast of this with the more defined application of paint in the mountains and trees effortlessly demonstrates her mastery of watercolour. This work was most likely painted when Angus accepted an invitation from her friend Marjorie Marshall to visit the lakeside town. She had recently left her job as a commercial artist and found herself out of work but with some freedom to travel. Marshall’s invitation presented a welcome opportunity. Angus found inspiration in the spectacular scenery of Central Otago and was drawn to create many works depicting the rugged landscape. Her work in the late 1930s amply featured this part of the country, and it was subject matter that she would revisit in the 1950s. Lake Wanaka demonstrates the strength of the artistic vision that has made Angus a household name. The vibrant cobalt blue shadows on the pale brown hills and blended whites of the mountains showcases a subtle mastery of colour, just as the carefully arranged pictorial space reveals a tenacious eye for composition. Webb's
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Rita Angus Lake Wanaka c1938 watercolour on paper signed Rita Cook in brushpoint lower right 230 × 290mm est
$45,000 — $75,000
Provenance Private collection, Golden Bay. Gifted c1980s; Private collection, Golden Bay. Acquired directly from the artist, 1944. Webb's
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Exhibitions Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings by the 1938 Group, Dunham Street Gallery, The Society of Arts, Christchurch. Literature Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings by the 1938 Group (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1938), item 93. Note Two related works showing Mount Maud and Lake Wanaka were also exhibited at the 1938 Group show, and are depicted in Peter Simpson’s Bloomsbury South: The Arts in Christchurch 1933-1953 (Auckland: Auckland University Press, 2016), 103.
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Russell Clark Dallington Willows 1949 oil on canvas signed Russell Clark in brushpoint lower left 500 × 600mm est
$20,000 — $30,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Passed by bequest. Acquired from The Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1949. Webb's
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Note A related work, Avon at Dallington, 1948 is held in the collection of Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū.
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Toss Woollaston Pah Hill oil on board signed Woollaston in brushpoint lower right 335 × 600mm est
$30,000 — $40,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Acquired from Fine New Zealand Paintings, Webb's, Auckland, 27 June 2002, lot 57; Private collection, Auckland. Acquired from Peter McLeavey Gallery, Wellington, 1975. Webb's
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Louise Henderson untitled oil on board signed LOUISE HENDERSON in brushpoint lower left 370 × 300mm est
$20,000 — $30,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Doris Lusk Geraniums 1966 oil on canvasboard signed D. LUSK and dated 1966 in brushpoint lower right 745 × 325mm est
$16,000 — $24,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Acquired from Important Paintings & Contemporary Art, Art + Object, Auckland, 10 August 2021, lot 27. Webb's
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Olivia Spencer Bower Tall Ships c1965 watercolour on paper signed Olivia Spencer Bower in brushpoint lower right 550 × 750mm est
$3,000 — $5,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Olivia Spencer Bower untitled 1976 watercolour on paper signed Olivia Spencer Bower and dated 1976 in brushpoint lower right 300 × 400mm est
$3,000 — $5,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Olivia Spencer Bower untitled c1960 watercolour on paper signed Olivia Spencer Bower in brushpoint lower right 400 × 650mm est
$8,000 — $12,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Note One of 57 works made by Spencer Bower during a three-month trip to Samoa, Fiji and Tahiti in 1959 and exhibited at The Canterbury Society of Arts.
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Olivia Spencer Bower Blessings on this House c1969 watercolour on paper signed Olivia Spencer Bower in brushpoint lower left 430 × 540mm est
$3,000 — $5,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Gifted by the artist, 1969. Webb's
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Louise Henderson Brussels 1965 gouache on paper signed Louise Henderson, dated 1965 and inscribed Brussels in graphite lower left 290 × 490mm est
$15,000 — $25,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Doris Lusk Golden Hillside 1982 watercolour and graphite on paper signed D Lusk and dated 1982 in graphite lower left 300 × 410mm est
$6,500 — $9,500
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Excerpt from The Silent Land by CHARLES BRASCH
The Mountains are empty. No hermits have hallowed the caves, Nor has the unicorn drunk from the green fountain Whose poplar shadow never heard the horn. Lives like vanishing night-dew drop away. The seas cast up wreckage, ship or shell, Beams of day and darkness guardedly Break on the savage forests the form groins And armpits of the hills so fiecely look. The plains are nameless and the cities cry for meaning, The unproved heart still seeks a vien of speech Beside the sprawling river, in the stunted township, By the pine windbreak where the hot wind bleeds. Man must lie with the guant hills like a lover, Earning their intimacy in the calm sigh Of a century of quiet and assiduity, Discovering what solitude has meant[.] Webb's
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Rita Angus The Flute Player woodcut print on paper 170 × 115mm est
$3,000 — $5,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Tony Fomison Drawing of and for Dick Lovell-Smith 1973 graphite on paper signed by & from Tony Fomison, dated 16.3.73 and inscribed drawing of and for Dick Lovell-Smith in graphite lower right 310 × 210mm est
$3,000 — $6,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Douglas MacDiarmid Two Samoan Girls in my Flat Above Wellington Harbour 1956 ink on paper signed D. K. MacDiarmid and dated 56 in ink lower edge; inscribed 2 Samoan girls in my flat above Wellington Harbour in graphite verso 350 × 270mm est
$800 — $1,200
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Tony Fomison My Eyes are Your Eyes 1989 oil on canvas signed Fomison and dated 1989 in ink verso 455 × 355mm est
$35,000 — $65,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Acquired directly from the artist, c1989. Webb's
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Exhibitions Tony Fomison: What shall we tell them?, City Gallery Wellington, Wellington, 13 February – May 1994. Literature Ian Wedde (editor), Tony Fomison: What shall we tell them? (Wellington: City Gallery Wellington, 1994), 168.
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Tony Fomison Janis Joplin's Last Song 1988 oil on board signed Tony Fomison, dated 1988 and inscribed Janis Joplin's Last Song in ink verso 447 × 380mm est
$20,000 — $30,000
Provenance Private collection, Rotorua. Acquired directly from the artist, c1988. Webb's
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Rata Lovell-Smith Kaikoura Coast c1932 oil on canvasboard signed Rata Lovell-Smith in brushpoint lower left 280 × 380cm est
Exhibitions New Zealand Society of Artists First General Exhibition, Durham and Armagh Street Art Galleries, Christchurch, 1933. Literature New Zealand Society of Artists, First General Exhibition (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1933), item 99.
$6,000 — $9,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
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Rata Lovell-Smith Whalesback Station, Kaikoura 1947 oil on canvasboard signed Rata Lovell-Smith in brushpoint lower right 340 × 445mm est
$10,000 — $15,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
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Colin McCahon – Small Landscape Essay by JULIAN MCKINNON
1 Survey [The Group catalogue]. Caxton Press, November 1977. Page 14.
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In the early 1960s, Colin McCahon was deeply absorbed in abstraction. He had travelled to the United States in the late 1950s and drew inspiration from the extraordinary collections of modern art he encountered there – he was notably influenced by the work of Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko, and Piet Mondrian. Between 1961 and 1963, he experimented with geometric imagery and created his highly regarded Gate series and Bellini Madonna paintings. In the mid 1960s, McCahon returned to painting images inspired by the natural environment, though with an influence from his exploration of abstraction. Unlike a lot of his landscape paintings from the 1950s, works from this era were not necessarily of a particular location or vista. Rather, they were often impressionistic, inspired by a location rather than depicting it directly. Painted in 1964, Small Landscape is from this period. The painting shows an ochre hill slope set against a dark sky, with contours painted in vigorous gestural brushstrokes. The near-monochrome palette and expressive brushwork give Small Landscape an almost supernatural charge, the stark colours and contours conjuring the primal isolation of the New Zealand rural environment. These were thematic subjects McCahon returned to again and again in paintings and sketches. They can be seen in his earlier work, from the late 1940s and early 1950s, which included his time exhibiting with The Group. Even in those early days, McCahon had stature. In a 1977 reflection on The Group, Bill Sutton acknowledged McCahon’s influence, “[…] one could never anticipate what Colin would bring forth – huge panels, small drawings, rolled canvasses, all done with a single-minded and intense vision.”1 This single-minded vision is what drove McCahon to become such a significant figure in New Zealand art. He gravitated ever further in the direction of abstraction later in life. In Small Landscape, the dialectical tension between hard, non-pictorial abstraction and a gentler pictorial reference to place is palpable. May
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30
Colin McCahon Small Landscape 1964 oil on board signed McCahon and dated ‘4 ‘64 in brushpoint lower left; signed McCahon and dated May June 1964 in brushpoint verso 535 × 410mm est
$80,000 — $120,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Acquired from Peter Webb Galleries, c1980s. Webb's
2022
Note Colin McCahon Online Catalogue (www.mccahon.co.nz) number: cm000411.
47
31
Toss Woollaston Farmyard in North Canterbury 1972 watercolour on paper signed Woollaston in brushpoint lower right 350 × 260mm est
$5,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Passed by bequest, 2021; private collection, Lower Hutt. Acquired from The High Street Gallery, Lower Hutt, c1972. Webb's
May
48
32
Margaret Frankel untitled oil on canvasboard signed Margaret Anderson in brushpoint lower left 287 × 337mm est
$1,500 — $2,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Acquired from McCormack McKellar, Christchurch; McDougall Family Collection, Christchurch. Webb's
2022
49
Louise Henderson – Abstract 4 Essay by MOLLY LAWTON
Dame Louise Henderson is a key figure in the development of New Zealand art in the twentieth century. A maestro of abstract painting, Henderson was also actively interested in the decorative arts from early in her career. She was born in 1902 and raised in Paris. With a childhood spent immersed in Parisian culture, she developed a strong affinity for the arts. She married New Zealander Hubert Henderson at a young age and left Europe to settle in Christchurch in 1925. After teaching embroidery and design at the Canterbury College of Art — a key source of The Group’s membership — she exhibited in two New Zealand Society of Artists shows in 1933 and 1934. She then became a stable, exhibiting member of The Group from 1935 onward. Many of Henderson’s artworks featured cubist approaches to image making. She explored multi-planar deconstructions of subject matter that abandoned the idea of a single viewpoint of an object. Common subjects she painted included tabletop still lifes, landscapes, and foliage, often with the multi-perspectival approach of cubism. When viewing her works, one can detect the tactility and structural sensibility of embroidery and a strong sense of design. Abstract 4 sees Henderson completely flattening and obscuring painting content to basic colours and tones. This approach takes the work into the realm of abstraction, where pictorial devices of representation and illusory depth are eschewed in favour of explorations of materiality and vision through line, colour, and form. In this work, Henderson explores the visual potential of a cluster of objects through impressions of contrast, colour, and line. The subtle structures create a harmonious composition in a gentle palette. Webb's
May
50
33
Louise Henderson Abstract 4 1967 oil on canvas signed Louise Henderson, dated 1967 and inscribed 4 in brushpoint verso 710 × 1000mm est
$50,000 — $80,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland. Webb's
2022
51
34
Douglas MacDiarmid Portrait of John Drawbridge c1953 oil on board signed D. K. MacDiarmid in brushpoint lower left 375 × 260mm est
$8,000 — $12,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
May
52
35
John Weeks Self Portrait c1930 oil on unstretched canvas 455 × 335mm est
$2,500 — $3,500
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. 36
William Henry Allen untitled oil on canvas 575 × 425mm est
$600 — $1,200
Provenance Private collection, London. Passed by bequest; Private collection, London. Gifted by the artist. Webb's
2022
53
37
Christopher Perkins Still Life with Vase of Flowers, Cabbage and Green Pepper c1930 oil on canvasboard signed CP in brushpoint lower left 590 × 500mm est
$6,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
May
54
38
Denis Knight Turner Antelope Resting 1943 graphite on paper signed Knight in graphite lower right 235 × 280mm est
$500 — $1,000
39
Douglas MacDiarmid First Presbytarian Church, Invercargill watercolour and graphite on paper 264 × 350mm est
$1,500 — $2,000
Provenance Private collection, Auckland.
Provenance Private collection, Wellington.
Webb's
2022
55
40
Ralph Hotere Window in Spain 1978 watercolour and graphite on paper signed Hotere and dated 78 in ink lower left, inscribed Window in Spain in ink lower edge 320 × 240mm est
$6,000 — $9,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
May
56
41
Leo Bensemann Portrait of Lawrence Baigent c1940 graphite on paper 300 × 230mm est
$6,000 — $10,000
Provenance Private collection, Nelson. Webb's
2022
57
42
John Drawbridge Fallout 1966 aquatint on paper signed John Drawbridge, dated October 1966 and inscribed Fallout 5/50 in graphite lower edge 510 × 390mm
43
est
est
$2,800 — $3,800
John Drawbridge French Pacific 1966 aquatint on paper signed John Drawbridge, dated October 1966 and inscribed French Pacific, 1966 4/50 in graphite lower edge 510 × 390mm $2,800 — $3,800
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Passed by bequest, 2005.
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Passed by bequest, 2005.
Literature The Group Show 66 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1966), item 62.
Literature The Group Show 66 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1966), item 65.
Webb's
May
Exhibitions The Group Show 66, Durham Street Gallery, The Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1966.
58
44
John Drawbridge Bush Walk 1966 aquatint on paper signed John Drawbridge, dated October 1966 and inscribed Bush Walk 3/50 in graphite lower edge 390 × 510mm est
$2,800 — $3,800
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Passed by bequest, 2005.
45
John Drawbridge Windflow 1966 aquatint on paper signed John Drawbridge, dated October 1966 and inscribed Windflow, 1966 3/50 in graphite lower edge 390 × 510mm est
$2,800 — $3,800
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Passed by bequest, 2005.
Literature The Group Show 66 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1966), item 61.
Literature Robert MacDonald & Damian Skinner, John Drawbridge (China: Ron Sang Publications, 2008), 208; The Group Show 66 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1966), item 60.
Webb's
2022
Exhibitions The Group Show 66, Durham Street Gallery, The Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1966.
59
Once the Days by DENNIS GLOVER
Once the days were clear Like mountains in water, The mountains were always there And the mountain water; And I was a fool leaving Good land to moulder, Leaving the fences sagging And the old man older To my wild thoughts Away over the hill, Where there is only the world And the world’s ill, sings Harry. Webb's
May
60
46
Robert Nettleton Field Self Portrait 1979 graphite on paper signed R N Field and dated '79 in graphite lower right 460 × 380mm est
$2,000 — $4,000
Provenance Private collection, Hamilton. 47
Robert Nettleton Field Christine de Wolfe 1970 watercolour on paper signed R N Field and dated 70 in graphite lower right; inscribed Christine de Wolfe in brushpoint lower left 375 × 275mm est
$4,000 — $7,000
Provenance Private collection, Hamilton. Webb's
2022
61
Evelyn Page – Living Room Essay by OLIVIA TAYLOR
Cosy, effervescent and cluttered, Evelyn Page’s Living Room serves the viewer simple pleasures of an intimate domestic occasion. The scene is crowded with objects of Page’s immediate reality. Literature, fruit, wine, empty glasses, and spectacles lie still. Yet, they are simultaneously activated by the implication of her habitual use. Page’s work specifically addresses the lives of women. She successfully transfigured the female figure and the dayto-day activities of women from a mere drawing exercise to the principal concern of her subject matter. As one of the founding women of The Group, she saw her role in the association as an escape from her conservative homelife. She often joined her friends, Olivia Spencer Bower and Margaret Frankel, on painting holidays. These trips out of Christchurch allowed her to explore painting and develop her focus on subject matter that celebrated domesticity and lived experience. Page’s career peaked in the 1960s and 1970s as she consolidated the ideas that drove her work. Women’s liberation and second wave feminism were sweeping the world during this time, and this undoubtedly influenced her practice. She analysed the female experience through her expressive portraiture, nudes, still life and landscape paintings. In Living Room, Page is playing with feminine associations of the vessels and fruit ascribed by art symbolism, leaving the viewer with a sense of visceral sensuality. Conditions of previous social constructions of conventional femininity are evident. For example, the lush lathering of blunt markings that are akin to Bonnard and Vuillard are simple compilations of bold layers that speak to broader contexts of vitality and fertility. Page’s visual commentary of assumed feminine subjects are intertwined into the joyful mosaic of 80s colour that warmly engages the viewer with convivial ease. Webb's
May
62
48
Evelyn Page Living Room 1986 oil on canvas signed E M Page in brushpoint lower edge; signed Evelyn Page, dated 1986 and inscribed Living Room in graphite verso 600 × 400mm est
$50,000 — $70,000
Note Painted at the same time as Nude with Magnolias (1985–86) and gifted by the artist to the current owner, who was the model in Nude with Magnolias.
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Gifted by the artist, 1986. Webb's
2022
63
49
Robert Nettleton Field Faith and Hope watercolour, graphite and ink on paper signed R. N Field in ink lower left 480 × 340mm est
$5,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Hamilton. Webb's
May
64
50
Robert Nettleton Field Epworth, South Canterbury 1927 oil on board 222 × 315mm est
$6,000 — $8,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
2022
65
51
William James (Bill) Reed untitled watercolour on paper signed Reed in ink upper left 270 × 365mm est
$1,500 — $3,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Acquired from Antiques & Art, Cordy's, Auckland, 11 September 2018, lot 768. Webb's
May
66
52
William James (Bill) Reed Puketapu Hill Monument with Tree Stumps watercolour on paper signed Reed in brushpoint lower left 355 × 560mm est
$2,000 — $4,000
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
2022
67
53
Frank Gross untitled 1963 watercolour on paper signed F. Gross and dated 63 in brushpoint lower right 510 × 400 mm est
$1,200 — $1,400
Provenance Private collection, Wellington. Webb's
May
68
55 54
Philip Trusttum The Garden c1975 oil on board 760 × 580mm est
$5,000 — $8,000
Philip Trusttum Untitled (Portrait of Lee) 1988 watercolour and gouache on paper signed Trusttum and dated 1988 in graphite upper left 670 × 540mm est
$1,500 — $3,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch.
Provenance Private collection, Wellington.
Webb's
2022
69
56
Quentin MacFarlane Summer Equinox 1973 tempera and acrylic on board signed Macfarlane in brushpoint lower right 460 × 560mm est
Exhibitions The Group Show 1973, Durham Street Gallery, Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1973.
$3,000 — $5,000
Provenance Private collection, Christchurch. Acquired from Canterbury Society of Arts, Christchurch, 1984. Webb's
Literature The Group Show 1973 (Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1966), item 22.
May
70
Webb's
2022
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Terms and Conditions The terms and conditions of sale listed here contain the policies of Webb’s (Webb Fine Art). They are the terms on which Webb’s (Webb Fine Art) and the Seller contract with the Buyer. They may be amended by printed Saleroom Notices or oral announcements made before and during the sale. By bidding at auction you agree to be bound by these terms.
Webb's
May
72
1. Background to the Terms used in these Conditions The conditions that are listed below contain terms that are used regularly and may need explanation. They are as follows: “the Buyer” means the person with the highest bid accepted by the Auctioneer. “the Lot” means any item depicted within the sale for auction and in particular the item or items described against any lot number in the catalogue. “the Hammer price” means the amount of the highest bid accepted by the auctioneer in relation to a lot. “the Buyer’s Premium” means the charge payable by the Buyer to the auction house as a percentage of the hammer price. “the Reserve” means the lowest amount at which Webb’s has agreed with the Seller that the lot can be sold. “Forgery” means an item constituting an imitation originally conceived and executed as a whole, with a fraudulent intention to deceive as to authorship, origin, age, period, culture or source, where the correct description as to such matters is not reflected by the description in the catalogue. Accordingly, no lot shall be capable of being a forgery by reason of any damage or restoration work of any kind (Including re-painting). “the insured value” means the amount that Webb’s in its absolute discretion from time to time shall consider the value for which a lot should be covered for insurance (whether or not insurance is arranged by Webb’s). All values expressed in Webb’s catalogues (in any format) are in New Zealand Dollars (NZD$). All bids, “hammer price”, “reserves”, “Buyers Premium” and other expressions of value are understood by all parties to be in New Zealand Dollars (NZD$) unless otherwise specified. 2.
Webb’s Auctions as Agent
Except as otherwise stated, Webb’s acts as agent for the Seller. The contract for the sale of the property is therefore made between the Seller and the Buyer. 3.
Before the Sale
3.1. Examination of Property Prospective Buyers are strongly advised to examine in person any property in which they are interested before the Auction takes place. Neither Webb’s nor the Seller provides any guarantee in relation to the nature of the property apart from the Limited warranty in the paragraph below. The property is otherwise sold “AS IS” 2. Catalogue and Other Descriptions All statements by Webb’s in the catalogue entry for the property or in the condition report, or made orally or in writing elsewhere, are statements of opinion and are not to be relied upon as statements of fact. Such statements do not constitute a representation, warranty or assumption of liability by Webb’s of any kind. References in the catalogue entry to the condition report to damage or restoration are for guidance only and should be evaluated by personal inspection by the bidder or a knowledgeable representative. The absence of such a reference does not imply that an item is free from defects or restoration, nor does a reference to particular defects imply the absence of any others. Estimates of the selling price should not be relied on as a statement that this is the price at which the item will sell or its value for any other purpose. Neither Webb’s nor The Seller is responsible for any errors or omissions in the catalogue or any supplemental material. Images are measured height by width (sight size). Illustrations are provided only as a guide and should not be relied upon as a true representation of colour or condition. Images are not shown at a standard scale. Mention is rarely made of frames (which may be provided as supplementary images on the website) which do not form part of the lot as described in the printed catalogue. An item bought “on Extension” must be paid for in full before it will be released to the purchaser or his/ her agreed expertising committee or specialist. Payments received for such items will be held “in trust” for up to 90 days or earlier, if the issue of authenticity has been resolved more quickly. Extensions must be requested before the auction.
Webb's
2022
Foreign buyers should note that all transactions are in New Zealand Dollars so there may be a small exchange rate risk. The costs associated with acquiring a good opinion or certificate will be carried by the purchaser. If the item turns out to be forged or otherwise incorrectly described, all reasonable costs will be borne by the vendor. 3. Buyers Responsibility All property is sold “as is” without representation or warranty of any kind by Webb’s or the Seller. Buyers are responsible for satisfying themselves concerning the condition of the property and the matters referred to in the catalogue by requesting a condition report. No lot to be rejected if, subsequent to the sale, it has been immersed in liquid or treated by any other process unless the Auctioneer’s permission to subject the lot to such immersion or treatment has first been obtained in writing. 4.
At the Sale
4.1. Refusal of Admission Webb’s reserves the right at our complete discretion to refuse admission to the auction premises or participation in any auction and to reject any bid. 4.2. Registration Before Bidding Any prospective new buyer must complete and sign a registration form and provide photo identification before bidding. Webb’s may request bank, trade or other financial references to substantiate this registration. 4.3. Bidding as a Principal When making a bid, a bidder is accepting personal liability to pay the purchase price including the buyer’s premium and all applicable taxes, plus all other applicable charges, unless it has been explicitly agreed in writing with Webb’s before the commencement of the sale that the bidder is acting as agent on behalf of an identified third party acceptable to Webb’s and that Webb’s will only look to the principal for payment. 4.4. International Registrations All International clients not known to Webb’s will be required to scan or fax through an accredited form of photo identification and pay a deposit at our discretion in cleared funds into Webb’s account at least 24 hours before the commencement of the auction. Bids will not be accepted without this deposit. Webb’s also reserves the right to request any additional forms of identification prior to registering an overseas bid. This deposit can be made using a credit card, however the balance of any purchase price in excess of $5,000 cannot be charged to this card without prior arrangement. This deposit is redeemable against any auction purchase and will be refunded in full if no purchases are made. 4.5. Absentee Bids Webb’s will use reasonable efforts to execute written bids delivered to us AT LEAST 24 Hours before the sale for the convenience of those clients who are unable to attend the auction in person. If we receive identical written bids on a particular lot, and at the auction these are the highest bids on that lot, then the lot will be sold to the person whose written bid was received and accepted first. Execution of written bids is a free service undertaken subject to other commitments at the time of the sale and we do not accept liability for failing to execute a written bid or for errors or omissions which may arise. It is the bidder’s responsibility to check with Webb’s after the auction if they were successful. Unlimited or “Buy” bids will not be accepted. 4.6. Telephone Bids Priority will be given to overseas and bidders from other regions. Please refer to the catalogue for the Telephone Bids form. Arrangements for this service must be confirmed AT LEAST 24 HOURS PRIOR to the auction commencing. Webb’s accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any errors or failure to execute bids. In telephone bidding the buyer agrees to be bound by all terms and conditions listed here and accepts that Webb’s cannot be held responsible for any miscommunications in the process. The success of telephone bidding cannot be guaranteed due to circumstances that are unforeseen. Buyers should
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be aware of the risk and accept the consequences should contact be unsuccessful at the time of Auction. You must advise Webb’s of the lots in question, and you will be assumed to be a buyer at the minimum price of 75% of estimate (i.e. reserve) for all such lots. Webb’s will advise Telephone Bidders who have registered at least 24 hours before the auction of any relevant changes to descriptions, withdrawals, or any other sale room notices. 4.7. Online Bidding Webb’s offers an online bidding service. When bidding online the buyer agrees to be bound by all terms and conditions listed here by Webb’s. Webb’s accepts no responsibility for any errors, failure to execute bids or any other miscommunications regarding this process. It is the online bidder’s responsibility to ensure the accuracy of the relevant information regarding bids, lot numbers and contact details. Webb’s does not charge for this service. 4.8. Reserves Unless otherwise indicated, all lots are offered subject to a reserve, which is the confidential minimum price below which the Lot will not be sold. The reserve will not exceed the low estimate printed in the catalogue. The auctioneer may open the bidding on any Lot below the reserve by placing a bid on behalf of the Seller. The auctioneer may continue to bid on behalf of seller up to the amount of the reserve, either by placing consecutive bids or by placing bids in response to other bidders. 4.9. Auctioneers Discretion The Auctioneer has the right at his/her absolute and sole discretion to refuse any bid, to advance the bidding in such a manner as he/she may decide, to withdraw or divide any lot, to combine any two or more lots and, in the case or error or dispute and whether during or after the sale, to determine the successful bidder, to continue the bidding, to cancel the sale or to reoffer and resell the item in dispute. If any dispute arises after the sale, then Webb’s sale record is conclusive. 4.10. Successful Bid and Passing of Risk Subject to the auctioneer’s discretion, the highest bidder accepted by the auctioneer will be the buyer and the striking of his hammer marks the acceptance of the highest bid and the conclusion of a contract for sale between the Seller and the Buyer. Risk and responsibility for the lot (including frames or glass where relevant) passes immediately to the Buyer. 4.11. Indicative Bidding Steps, etc. Webb’s reserves the right to refuse any bid, withdraw any lot from sale, to place a reserve on any lot and to advance the bidding according to the following indicative steps: Increment Dollar Range Amount $20 $0–$500 $50 $500–$1,000 $100 $1,000–$2,000 $200 $2,000–$5,000 $500 $5,000–$10,000 $1,000 $10,000–$20,000 $2,000 $20,000–$50,000 $5,000 $50,000 – $100,000 $10,000 $100,000–$200,000 $20,000 $200,000–$500,000 $50,000 $500,000–$1,000,000 Absentee bids must follow these increments and any bids that don’t follow the steps will be rounded up to the nearest acceptable bid. 5.
After the Sale
5.3. Collection of Purchases & Insurance Webb’s is entitled to retain items sold until all amounts due to us have been received in full in cleared funds. Subject to this, the Buyer shall collect purchased lots within 2 days from the date of the sale unless otherwise agreed in writing between Webb’s and the Buyer. At the fall of the hammer, insurance is the responsibility of the purchaser. 5.4. Packing, Handling and Shipping Webb’s will be able to suggest removals companies that the buyer can use but takes no responsibility whatsoever for the actions of any recommended third party. Webb’s can pack and handle goods purchased at the auction by agreement and a charge will be made for this service. All packing, shipping, insurance, postage & associated charges will be borne by the purchaser. 5.5. Permits, Licences and Certificates Under The Protected Objects Act 1975, buyers may be required to obtain a licence for certain categories of items in a sale from the Ministry of Culture & Heritage, PO Box 5364, Wellington. 5.6. Remedies for Non-Payment If the Buyer fails to make full payment immediately, Webb’s is entitled to exercise one or more of the following rights or remedies (in addition to asserting any other rights or remedies available under the law) 5.6.1.
5.2. Payment and Passing of Title The buyer must pay the full amount due (comprising the hammer price, buyer’s premium and any applicable taxes and GST) not later than 2 days after the auction date.
May
to charge interest at such a rate as we shall reasonably decide.
5.6.2. to hold the defaulting Buyer liable for the total amount due and to commence legal proceedings for its recovery along with interest, legal fees and costs to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law. 5.6.3. to cancel the sale. 5.6.4. to resell the property publicly or privately on such terms as we see fit. 5.6.5. to pay the Seller an amount up to the net proceeds payable in respect of the amount bid by the defaulting Buyer. In these circumstances the defaulting Buyer can have no claim upon Webb’s in the event that the item(s) are sold for an amount greater than the original invoiced amount. 5.6.6. to set off against any amounts which Webb’s may owe the Buyer in any other transactions, the outstanding amount remaining unpaid by the Buyer. 5.6.7.
5.1. Buyers Premium In addition to the hammer price, the buyer agrees to pay to Webb’s the buyer’s premium. The buyer’s premium is 19.5% of the hammer price plus GST. (Goods and Services Tax) where applicable.
Webb's
The buyer will not acquire title to the lot until Webb’s receives full payment in cleared funds, and no goods under any circumstances will be released without confirmation of cleared funds received. This applies even if the buyer wishes to send items overseas. Payment can be made by direct transfer, cash (not exceeding NZD$5,000, if wishing to pay more than NZD$5,000 then this must be deposited directly into a Bank of New Zealand branch and bank receipt supplied) and EFTPOS (please check the daily limit). Payments can also be made by credit card in person with a 2.2% merchant fee for Visa and Mastercard and 3.3% for American Express. Invoices that are in excess of $5,000 and where the card holder is not present, cannot be charged to a credit card without prior arrangement. Bank cheques are subject to five days clearance. The buyer is responsible for any bank fees and charges applicable for the transfer of funds into Webb’s account.
where several amounts are owed by the Buyer to us, in respect of different transactions, to apply any amount paid to discharge any amount owed in respect of any particular transaction, whether or not the Buyer so directs.
5.6.8. to reject at any future auction any bids made by or on behalf of the Buyer or to obtain a deposit from the Buyer prior to accepting any bids. 5.6.9. to exercise all the rights and remedies of a person holding security over any property in our possession owned by the Buyer whether by way
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of pledge, security interest or in any other way, to the fullest extent permitted by the law of the place where such property is located. The Buyer will be deemed to have been granted such security to us and we may retain such property as collateral security for said Buyer’s obligations to us. 5.6.10. to take such other action as Webb’s deem necessary or appropriate. If we do sell the property under paragraph (4), then the defaulting Buyer shall be liable for payment of any deficiency between the total amount originally due to us and the price obtained upon reselling as well as for all costs, expenses, damages, legal fees and commissions and premiums of whatever kinds associated with both sales or otherwise arising from the default. If we pay any amount to the Seller under paragraph (5) the Buyer acknowledges that Webb’s shall have all of the rights of the Seller, however arising, to pursue the Buyer for such amount. 5.7. Failure to Collect Purchases Where purchases are not collected within 2 days from the sale date, whether or not payment has been made, we shall be permitted to remove the property to a warehouse at the buyer’s expense, and only release the items after payment in full has been made of removal, storage handling, insurance and any other costs incurred, together with payment of all other amounts due to us. 6.
Limited Warranty
Subject to the terms and conditions of this paragraph, the Seller warrants for the period of thirty days from the date of the sale that any property described in this catalogue (noting such description may be amended by any saleroom notice or announcement) which is stated without qualification to be the work of a named author or authorship is authentic and not a forgery. The term “Author” or “authorship” refers to the creator of the property or to the period, culture, source, or origin as the case may be, with which the creation of such property is identified in the catalogue. The warranty is subject to the following: it does not apply where a) the catalogue description or saleroom notice corresponded to the generally accepted opinion of scholars and experts at the date of the sale or fairly indicated that there was a conflict of opinions, or b) correct identification of a lot can be demonstrated only by means of a scientific process not generally accepted for use until after publication of the catalogue or a process which at the date of the publication of the catalogue was unreasonably expensive or impractical or likely to have caused damage to the property. the benefits of the warranty are not assignable and shall apply only to the original buyer of the lot as shown on the invoice originally issued by Webb’s when the lot was sold at Auction. the Original Buyer must have remained the owner of the lot without disposing of any interest in it to any third party. The Buyer’s sole and exclusive remedy against the Seller in place of any other remedy which might be available, is the cancellation of the sale and the refund of the original purchase price paid for the lot less the buyer’s premium which is non-refundable. Neither the Seller nor Webb’s will be liable for any special, incidental nor consequential
Webb's
8.
2022
Severability
If any part of these Conditions of Sale is found by any court to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that part shall be discounted, and the rest of the Conditions shall continue to be valid to the fullest extent permitted by law. 9.
Copyright
The copyright in all images, illustrations and written material produced by Webb’s relating to a lot including the contents of this catalogue, is and shall remain the property at all times of Webb’s and shall not be used by the Buyer, nor by anyone else without our prior written consent. Webb’s and the Seller make no representation or warranty that the Buyer of a property will acquire any copyright or other reproduction rights in it. 10.
Extent of Webb’s Liability
Webb’s agrees to refund the purchase price in the circumstances of the Limited Warranty set out in paragraph 7 below. Apart from that, neither the Seller nor we, nor any of our employees or agents are responsible for the correctness of any statement of whatever kind concerning any lot, whether written or oral, nor for any other errors or omissions in description or for any faults or defects in any lots. Except as stated in paragraph 7 below, neither the Seller, ourselves, our officers, agents or employees give any representation warranty or guarantee or assume any liability of any kind in respect of any lot with regard to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, description, size, quality, condition, attribution, authenticity, rarity, importance, medium, provenance, exhibition history, literature or historical relevance. Except as required by local law any warranty of any kind is excluded by this paragraph. 7.
damages including, without limitation, loss of profits. The Buyer must give written notice of claim to us within thirty days of the date of the Auction. The Seller shall have the right, to require the Buyer to obtain two written opinions by recognised experts in the field, mutually acceptable to the Buyer and Webb’s to decide whether or not to cancel the sale under warranty. the Buyer must return the lot to Seller in the same condition that it was purchased.
Law and Jurisdiction
These terms and conditions and any matters concerned with the foregoing fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New Zealand, unless otherwise stated. 11.
Pre-Sale Estimates
Webb’s publishes with each catalogue our opinion as to the estimated price range for each lot. These estimates are approximate prices only and are not intended to be definitive. They are prepared well in advance of the sale and may be subject to revision. Interested parties should contact Webb’s prior to auction for updated pre-sale estimates and starting prices. 12.
Sale Results
Webb’s will provide auction results, which will be available as soon as possible after the sale. Results will include buyer’s premium. These results will be posted at www.webbs.co.nz. 13.
Goods and Service Tax
GST is applicable on the hammer price in the case where the seller is selling property that is owned by an entity registered for GST. GST is also applicable on the hammer price in the case where the seller is not a New Zealand resident. These lots are denoted by a dagger symbol † placed next to the estimate. GST is also applicable on the buyer’s premium.
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Index of Artists
M
A Allen, William Henry Angus, Rita
53 26-27, 39
B Bensemann, Leo
23, 57
C Clark, Russell
28
D Drawbridge, John
58, 59
F Field, Robert Nettleton Fomison, Tony Frankel, Margaret
61, 64, 65 40, 42, 43 49
MacDiarmid, Douglas MacFarlane, Quentin McCahon, Colin P Page, Evelyn Perkins, Christopher
41, 52, 55 70 46-47 62-63 54
R Reed, William James (Bill)
66, 67
S Spencer Bower, Olivia
32, 33, 34, 35
W Weeks, John Woollaston, Toss
53 20, 21, 29, 48
G Gross, Frank
68
H Henderson, Louise Hotere, Ralph
18, 19, 30, 36, 50-51 56 Scan for Digital Absentee Bid Form
I Knight Turner, Denis
55
L Lovell-Smith, Colin Lovell-Smith, Rata Lusk, Doris Webb's
22 22, 44, 45 24, 25, 31, 37 May
76
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77
Webb's
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78
