Just letting you know that our exhibition Lynley Dodd: A Retrospective has been extended to the 27th of May! We also have a small range of Hairy Maclary books for sale in the shop.
St Anthony’s School Fancy Dressed Animals
April Holiday programme
Next week, if you are stuck for something to do come to the Wanganui District Library at 10am for stories followed by an art activity at the Sarjeant. Students will explore the exhibition by Lynley Dodd and then create their own arty animal using pastel, fabric and glue!
Gallery session starts Monday 16th April to Thursday 19th April at 10.30am and runs for approximately an hour. Appropriate for students aged 5-9.
This programme is free but bookings are essential, to book phone 06) 349 0506.
Lynley Dodd: A Retrospective
If you are a Hairy Maclary fan or prefer one of his many friends visiting us these holidays is a must! There is a good selection of Lynley’s beautiful sketches and paintings that every child will enjoy; you might even find a book or two that you have not read! So come and explore the world of illustrations by one of New Zealands best known authors.
Thought I would share
We had the lovely students from Apiti school come to visit this week. The students were all busy drawimg and a parent asked one student what she was doing her reply was ” I’m Arting!”
I thought it was a super thing to say!!
Sea Week 2012
This Week is Sea Week! Go and find your local beach and celebrate it!
Our theme for this year is Pariate tai aroha /Turning the Tide.
Today we were based at Castlecliff beach, approximately 150 Aranui School and Castlecliff School students came and enjoyed a day full of learning. Students were broken into groups and learnt about the dunes, what lives on the beach, what grows on the dunes, making treasure boxes and cleaning up our beach!
Big thanks to Doc (Department of Conservation), Whanganui Regional Museum, Castlecliff Coast Care, it was a fabulous day for everybody; even the sun came out all day and the wind stayed away!
If you want to make your own treasure box at home or school click on the link make a sea treasure box
Cut along the outside (the black lines) and fold along the dashed lines. Glue on the corner tabs and make your box.
For more Sea Week ideas and resources click on the Sea Week Website: http://www.seaweek.org.nz/
We’d love to see some of your boxes that you have made or any sea week activities that you have participated in!
Mirek Smíšek: 60 Years 60 Pots
This exhibition has many beautiful examples of Smíšek’s work they are wonderfully executed! There is something about these vases and pots that really appeal to me, I haven’t decided if it is the glazes that he has used or the mere size of some of these works.
Just a note that might be of interest to some of you; Smíšek’s was the artist who made the ceramic works for the Lord of the Rings Trilogy!
Anyhow, I think this is a great little exhibition to come and see; it’s on until 1 April, 2012.
For Love of Truth and Beauty
Yesterday the 12th of February 2012 was the centenary of Henry Sarjeant’s death. His will provided for the establishment and maintenance of a Fine Art Gallery for the people of the Borough of Wanganui.
” It is my desire that works of art shall be purchased or acquired on account of their intrinsic value as work of high art only and not because they are specimens of local or colonial art so that the said gallery shall be furnished with works of the highest art in all branches as a means of inspiration for ourselves and those who come after us.”
We celebrated Henry’s generosity with tea and cake with the public of Wanganui and our national/international visitors. It was a beautiful sunny and warm day to remember how lucky we are to have this glorious building and the magnificent art collection that it holds!
Collection images
Thought I would let you know that we have a good selection of artworks from our permanent collection online! Just follow the link to find them or just search for us on facebook.
Fancy Fools Flight
Fancy Fools Flight by the Crystal Chain Gang is a beautiful and fun exhibition by artists Leanne Williams and Jim Dennison. They are glass artists that work collaboratively to create stunning works. There is an amazing chandelier that lights up an exhibition bay; on close inspection you realise that it is made of glass bird parts -wings, feet and tails. In another bay the birds have taken flight, they are spread over the walls like a cloud of pigeons flying through the sky. Looking closely you you find that some of these birds do not have their normal heads, instead a little dollies head has replaced the original.
This exhibition is a great example to explore the medium of cast glass; how the colours of glass mix together in a work and the skill that is needed to create these wonderous little creatures.





