Introducing Two New Exhibitions At Christchurch Art Gallery Opening In March

Two mould-breaking local artists, past and present, feature in exhibitions opening on Saturday 8 March at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna O Waiwhetū.

The central figure of Dear Shurrie: Francis Shurrock and his contemporaries, Francis Shurrock (1887–1977), was a beloved sculpture lecturer at the University of Canterbury School of Fine Arts from 1924 to 1949, while John Vea (Tonga, Aotearoa New Zealand) – who has made new work for Ini Mini Mani Mou – is a current lecturer in sculpture at the school.

Dear Shurrie: Francis Shurrock and his contemporaries

Francis ‘Shurrie’ Shurrock was a sculptor, teacher and cherished mentor whose art, hospitality and unconventional spirit left an indelible mark on Aotearoa New Zealand’s artistic community, says curator Peter Vangioni. 

“Dear Shurrie: Francis Shurrock and his contemporaries offers an intimate look at his life and legacy, bringing together sculptures, paintings and prints by Shurrock, his contemporaries and those whose work was shaped by his influence.” 

Born in England, Shurrock came to New Zealand in 1924 to take up a role at the School of Fine Arts, which he held for 25 years. 

“Shurrock was a rare combination of intellectual rigor and personal warmth. He fostered an environment of self-expression, convention-bending creativity, and camaraderie that extended beyond the classroom,” Vangioni says. 

“Through photographs and Christmas cards – affectionately addressed ‘Dear Shurrie’ – we get a glimpse of the community Shurrock cultivated with his students alongside his wife, Elizabeth Shurrock.”

Shurrock’s artistic style evolved throughout his career in response to social, technological, and cultural changes, as well as the international art movements that emerged alongside them. 

“Shurrock’s students and associates included notable artists Rita Angus, Leo Bensemann, Chrystabel Aitken, Florence Akins and Jim Allen. Perhaps his biggest influence was through Jim, who also went on to teach and encouraged his students to follow their own creative vision in much the same way that Shurrie did,” Vangioni says.

“Jim, who died in 2023, was also influential for his work in post-object art, and the exhibition features several images of Contact, his ground-breaking sequence of performance and technology-based actions at Auckland Art Gallery in 1974.” 

Several portrait sculptures feature in the exhibition, including bronzes by Shurrock of British / New Zealand artist Christopher Perkins and by Alison Duff of New Zealand writer Frank Sargeson. 

There are also two striking bronze horses, one by Mary Barrett – Leo Bensemann’s wife – and another by Betty Harrison.

Several items from Shurrock’s personal collection will be displayed, such as his handmade kimono-inspired robe and an example from his extensive collection of ukeyo-e Japanese colour woodcut prints. 

“He shared these prints freely with his students and friends, and Leo Bensemann and Rita Angus were especially influenced by them,” Vangioni says.

“At the heart of this exhibition is an unassuming modernist who shaped the careers of generations of New Zealand artists. His art, like his life, blended the traditional with the experimental – never bound by convention and always open to new ideas.”

John Vea: Ini Mini Mani Mou

Working across sculpture, installation, video and performance, John Vea uses a playful sensibility to bring visibility to some of the issues affecting Pacific migrants to Aotearoa, says curator Chloe Cull. 

“These new works, commissioned by the Gallery, invite the audience into an immersive, gamified experience that mimics the layers of bureaucracy many Pacific peoples encounter when navigating Aotearoa New Zealand’s immigration processes.” 

Vea contrasts the idealised ‘dream’ of migrating to Aotearoa with the rigmarole of paperwork required to achieve it.

“As the audience enters the exhibition space, they’ll interact with an arcade-style installation that alludes to these challenges. The Aotearoa New Zealand passport is represented as the ultimate prize, yet always remains just out of reach,” Cull says. 

“Vea makes art that Pacific audiences can relate to, but his work also offers opportunities for others to gain insight into the struggle many people go through to live and work in Aotearoa.

“While he frames the issue in an engaging way, the questions he poses are confronting. Does the dream stack up with reality? Vea’s use of participatory elements throughout Ini Mini Mani Mou enables the audience to connect with the sense of frustration.”

A moving-image work highlights the arbitrary nature of the assessment criteria used by Immigration New Zealand in the selection of migrant applicants. 

“Vea’s art exposes the unfairness of the system and demands more transparency. But we want to do more than just highlight the problem, so one of the public programmes we will be offering during this exhibition is a workshop on visa and residency application processes. People can come and get help if this is something they’re working through personally,” Cull says. 

“We’re excited to open this exhibition and see people respond to the work. It’s thought-provoking and should spark some interesting, and important, discussions.” 

Dear Shurrie: Francis Shurrock and his contemporaries  and John Vea: Ini Mini Mani Mou  open on Saturday 8 March and close on 13 July 2025.

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