In View  features a selection of artworks from the Ashburton Art Gallery Incorporated Collection (AAG Inc.) and the Ashburton District Council’s Civic Art Collection. AAG Inc. was founded in 1995 before a gallery and collection were formed. The Ashburton District Council collected works over a period of years, often purchasing works from the annual Ashburton Society of Arts exhibitions.

Whakatere Ashburton’s first public art gallery at Baring Square East was opened in 1995 by AAG Inc. The first artwork in the collection was Love Me Tender by Llew Summers, purchased in 1997. Many of the works in the collection have been generously gifted by artists and donors or purchased through the fundraising efforts of the governing committee and significant contributions made by members of the community.

This exhibition follows the development of the two collections, including a work developed for a recent commission at Te Whare Whakatere, and works that are among the earliest of the collection. Traditional and contemporary artworks are juxtaposed, creating new dialogue between the pieces and highlighting the growing nature of the collection. Stories are brought to the fore – exploring the histories of artists and their oft-times connected work. New acquisitions are revealed for the first time and works which have been exhibited infrequently are vivified.

Main image | Ethel Susan Jones, Ashburton Under Snow, 1904, watercolour on paper. Collection of Ashburton District Council, Civic Art Collection.

Left image | Tara Douglas, In Praise of Shadows IV, 2014, photograph. Ashburton Art Gallery Incorporated Collection.