That was then

In september we: got unduly excited at te papa changing its photo policy • raved about the kentridge exhibition at the city gallery • wondered when the hell the te papa north thing would get off the ground • added some new faces to otn/studio • loved the hang of hotere’s airport mural • followed the shake-up at webb’s • went to see the walters prize • questioned numbers through the door as a measurement for art museums • showed flagging interest in the koru • visited Fiona conner’s studio • gave it up for luke willis thompson • reported jenny gibbs walking out the venice patrons after all those years • stuttered in indignation at the Auckland art gallery sound system

Spot that koru No.4

Answer here on OTN Stuff

Spot that koru competition #2

This weeks answer here on OTN Stuff  (2.53 pm: well it is now anyway)

Clubbing

Back in the days before the art market boomed, when art-interested people talked about korus they probably meant paintings by Gordon Walters; nowadays it’s just as likely to be Air New Zealand’s VIP lounge the Koru Club. Air New Zealand and its Koru Club have always had an uneasy relationship with art, particularly contemporary art, as we have mentioned here, here and here. In the current iteration art has all but gone in the New Zealand lounges although works by Albrecht, Parekowhai, Hammond and others still linger on in the international ones. 

This history came to mind when the latest Koru Club magazine paid a tribute (of sorts) to Gordon Walters' koru by using one of his paintings on the back cover of its Winter/Spring 2010 issue. Apart from giving eye-stopping drama, the painting also served as an illustration for a short article by Webb’s Neil Campbell on investing in art and the stability of the art auction market. Campbell estimates the size of the art market in 2009 as $14.5 million and concludes "the demand for quality art investment opportunities has surged against the tide of economic uncertainty". But then he would, wouldn't he.

Clubbed

We have mentioned the Koru Club's cheese initiative before and on the way over to Melbourne spotted the cheese prints on exhibition in the lounge. Unfortunately, in the rush to create the cheesy exhibition, the Stephen Bambury attached to the window was lost.
Image: Front Philip Trusttum cheese print. Rear Stephen Bambury installation.