Tuesday, November 11, 2008


THE PAINTED GARDEN IN NEW ZEALAND ART
Christopher Johnstone - Godwit - $75
This title is one to watch out for. To be released in New Zealand this Friday, 14 November, it is being launched in a garden, (of course), the next day, a report of which will appear on the blog later.

Meantime The Bookman has an advance copy for review and although I am only half way through it at this stage I can tell you that art-loving gardeners are in for a treat. It's a visual knockout.

I must say I had no idea that we had such a culture of recording our gardens by way of paintings. Among the artists included are Gretchen Albrecht, Rita Angus, Don Binney, Nigel Brown, Jane Evans, Claudia Pond Eyley (my favourite so far), Patrick Hanly, Rata Lovell-Smith, Karl Maughan (cover & others), Peter Siddell, Nancy Tichborne, Pamela Wolfe (art left) and a host of others, 100 paintings by nearly 70 artists.
Art historian/curator Christopher Johnstone is well qualified to author such a work and he has done a great job, as have his publishers.
More next week after the launch by which time I will have enjoyably read the rest of this big, handsome volume.

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