It’s being dubbed New Zealand’s “exhibition of the decade.”
The once secret works of Swedish artist Hilma Af Klint have been taking the art world by storm and now they’re in New Zealand for the first time, on show at Wellington’s City Gallery.
Af Klint was an artist at the turn of the 20th century, producing 1300 works but wasn’t very well known until now.
She felt her work wasn’t recognised by her contemporaries so left instructions for it to be kept a secret and revealed 20 years after her death in 1944.
In the past 20 to 30 years, it’s come to light and is resonating with large audiences.
“Suddenly Hilma Af Klint is one of the most famous artists on the planet and her work is some of the most desired work to see,” said Aaron Lister, senior curator at City Gallery.
He said Af Klint’s work grapples with materialism, conflict and questions the future. “To see an artist from 100 years ago use art to address those same questions in such a powerful and significant way does resonate so strongly for us,” said Lister.
Ten boldly coloured three metre high paintings representing the stages of life are among the highlights at the exhibition. Af Klint made one every four days, working in secret with the canvasses laid out on the floor, said Lister.
The colours are so bright and fresh looking that one might think they are modern works, but they were made in 1907.
Af Klint was also a mystic, who believed spirits told her to make her work for a future audience.
“She received messages and text and instructions from above which she then conveyed through her work,” said Lister.
More than a century on, it’s really resonating. The exhibition attracted record numbers to New York’s Guggenheim museum.
The City Gallery hopes it will be a big summer drawcard.
"I think for New Zealand, it's really, I've been thinking of it as the exhibition of the decade,” said Elizabeth Caldwell, the City Gallery’s director.
She said it’s not just for art buffs. “People will feel completely uplifted even if they are not sure why," said Caldwell.
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