City Gallery Wellington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids City Gallery WellingtonTe Whare Toi |
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A trapeze outside the City Gallery
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| Former names | Wellington Public Library |
| General information | |
| Type | Art Gallery |
| Architectural style | Art Deco |
| Location | 8 Mercer Street, Wellington, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 41°17′19″S 174°46′38″E / 41.288518°S 174.777270°E |
| Current tenants | City Gallery |
| Construction started | 1935 |
| Completed | 1940 |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | reinforced concrete frame |
| Floor count | 2 |
| Floor area | 3,900 square metres |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Gummer and Ford |
| Other designers | Stuart Gardyne (refurbishment architect) |
| Awards and prizes | NZIA National Award 1994 |
City Gallery Te Whare Toi is a cool public art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand. It's a place where you can see amazing art from New Zealand and around the world.
Contents
The Story of City Gallery
City Gallery Te Whare Toi first opened its doors on September 23, 1980. Back then, it was called the Wellington City Art Gallery. It started in an old office building on Victoria Street. The very first art show featured works by artists from Wellington.
In 1989, the gallery moved to the old Chews Lane Post Office. It stayed there for four years. Then, in 1993, it moved to its current spot in Civic Square. At this time, it was also given a new name: City Gallery. Since 1995, the gallery has been looked after by the Wellington Museums Trust. This group is now known as Experience Wellington.
About the Gallery Building
The building City Gallery is in today used to be the Wellington Central Library. It was built in 1940. The building has a special design style called Art Deco. This style was popular in the 1920s and 1930s. It often uses strong geometric shapes and rich decoration.
The old library moved to a new building in 1991. After that, the City Gallery building was updated. It was changed to be a modern art gallery. In 1994, a cool art piece called Fault was added to the building's windows. It was made by Bill Culbert and Ralph Hotere. It looks like two strips of neon light cutting across the building.
Later, in 2008 and 2009, the gallery got even bigger. Two new galleries were added. These new spaces are for art by local Wellington artists. They also show art from Māori and Pacific artists. A 135-seat auditorium was also built for events and talks.
People Who Led the Gallery
Many talented people have led City Gallery. The first Director was Seddon Bennington. He later became a leader at Te Papa, New Zealand's national museum.
After him, Ann Philbin became Director in 1982. She once said it was hard to work in the gallery's small first home. "You have to sell your ideas," she explained, "when your gallery isn't beautiful or grand."
John Leuthart took over in 1985. He hired the gallery's first curator, Gregory Burke. A curator is someone who plans and organizes art exhibitions.
Paula Savage became Director in 1990. She was in charge when the gallery moved to its current home. She also helped rename it City Gallery. Paula helped create many award-winning ads for the gallery. In 2009, she helped bring a very popular show to the gallery. It was called Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years. Over 88,000 people came to see it! That same year, she hired Reuben Friend. He was the gallery's first Curator of Māori and Pacific Art. Elizabeth Caldwell became Director after Paula Savage left in 2011. Paula had led the gallery for 22 years.
Amazing Art Shows
City Gallery has hosted many exciting art shows over the years. Here are some of them:
Early Exhibitions
- 1982 Greer Twiss: a Survey 1959 – 1981 was the first big touring show. It was put together by the Director, Seddon Bennington.
- 1986 David Hockney: Hockney's Photographs was one of the first popular international shows. It was also the first show people paid to see. The gallery even had to install air conditioning for it! This was needed to keep the art safe by international standards.
- 1986 Karanga Karanga was a very important show. It was the first public art museum exhibition in New Zealand to feature art made by Māori women working together. A reviewer described it as "An exhibition done by Māori women, about Māori women, for Māori women."
- 1990 Now See Hear! Art, Language and Translation was the biggest show the gallery had done so far. It marked 150 years since the Treaty of Waitangi was signed. It featured 236 artists from New Zealand and other countries.
Exhibitions in the Current Building
- 1993 Rosemarie Trockel was the first show City Gallery sent to another country. It traveled to Sydney, Australia. This show also opened the gallery's new building in Civic Square. Alongside it were four shows by women artists. One was Alter/Image, which looked at 20 years of art by New Zealand women.
In 1998, City Gallery worked with a famous Dutch curator, Rudi Fuchs. They presented The Exhibition of the Century: Modern Masters from the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. This show included art from famous artists like Vincent van Gogh and Jeff Koons. In 2006, a big show by Australian artist Patricia Piccinini brought in 120,000 visitors. This was a record at the time!
Since moving to its current spot in 1993, City Gallery has also shown art by many other major international artists. These include Tracey Emin, Keith Haring, Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. They have also featured many great New Zealand artists. Some of these are Rita Angus, Shane Cotton, Ralph Hotere, and Bill Hammond.
You can find a full list of past exhibitions on City Gallery's website.
