Angels & Aristocrats: Early European Art in New Zealand Public Collections

by Mary Kisler

It is entirely possible to immerse oneself in the glories of European art without having to travel to the Louvre, the Uffizzi, the Tate or the Frick. That's because New Zealand's public art galleries are richly studded with works collected by benefactors over the last 150 years and generously gifted to the nation. Many are infrequently seen and the richness of the collections often goes unacknowledged. In this outstanding book, respected curator Mary Kisler delves into the storerooms and reintroduces our historic art treasures (and those generous individuals who collected them) to us. Superbly illustrated, accessibly written and meticulously researched, Angels and Aristocrats is both a long-overdue celebration of magnificent and important works and also an indispensible and expert guide to art history. ' Angels and Aristocrats is not only a triumph for the author and publisher, but it also deserves distinction for the way this book provides an engrossing and wide-ranging narrative of the history of European art on display in New Zealand. It is the type of volume that is indispensable to museum-goers in that country, and indeed in Australia.' Anne Kirker, Adjunct Associate Professor at the Queensland College of Art, Brisbane, writing in Museums Australia magazine.

Genres: Art

392 pages, Hardcover

About the author

Mary Kisler is the Senior Curator, Mackelvie Collection, International Art at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. Mary earned her master’s degree in art history and Italian at the University of Auckland in 1994. She has been a curator at the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki since 1998, caring for a collection that spans from c.1150 to 1950, a large part of which is European art but which also includes a small collection of Indian miniatures and Japanese ukiyo-e prints. In 2010 Godwit published her book Angels & Aristocrats: Early European Art in New Zealand Public Galleries. In 2019 the Auckland Art Gallery will publish her Hodgkins catalogue raisonnée to accompany a major Hodgkins exhibition.

Reviews

[Isaac Toit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!