Trust Waikato Annual Report 2015

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During the year the Trust sponsored two art talks by reknown
New Zealand artists Michael Smither and Dick Frizzell. Held
in the Trust Waikato Gallery at Waikato Museum in Hamilton,
each Art Talk coincided with the artist’s exhibition.
Smither’s exhibition Smither! Michael Smither Works from the
Collections, ran from January to mid-April 2014. The exhibition
comprised some of his earlier works from the 1960’s and
featured rarely seen working drawings. A composer and pianist
also, Smither delighted the audience at his Art Talk with a piano
performance, bringing together the world of colour and sound.
The exhibition also included The Procession and
Blue = F paintings from the Trust Collection, among others.
Art and taonga are important
symbols of who we are and where
we have come from. They form
part of the rich cultural and artistic
heritage of our region. To help ensure
that art and taonga of significance
to the Waikato remain here, the
Trust has been collecting pieces
since 1999.
The Trust Waikato Art and Taonga Collection, now
comprising over 260 paintings and artefacts, focuses on
the Waikato region, with works that bring a historical,
contemporary or social context. Housed at the Waikato
Museum in Hamilton, the Collection is properly conserved
in museum conditions. The Trust has a dedicated gallery
located on the ground floor of the Museum which displays
works from the Collection all year round. A small number of
works are also displayed at our Annual Public Meeting, held
in different towns across the region.
An online catalogue of the Collection can be viewed from
our website or on Waikato Museum’s
website .
Pile of Stumps, a stunning gallery-sized oil painting by Dick
Frizzell, was added to the Trust Collection in late 2014.
The purchase was made possible with the support of Dick
Frizzell and contributions from Tompkins Wake and Aesthete
Gallery. The painting featured in Frizzell’s exhibition When
Tom and Elizabeth Took the Farm which ran from February
to June 2015 at Waikato Museum. Frizzell entertained his
Art Talk audience by sharing many happy memories of art
adventures across New Zealand and abroad. Another Frizzell
painting Visiting the Waitomo Caves (1981) was acquired by
the Trust in 2013 for its Collection.
Preserving Art and Taonga
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