February 10 - April 12 2026
Showing at Morrinsville Gallery, Waikato
Rack 13A, Rack 13B, Rack 18A, and Rack 18B
Works from The Arts House Trust Collection
Zarahn Southon, Self-Portrait with Brush, 2008. Collection of The Arts House Trust.
Toss Wollaston, Self-Portrait, 1976. Collection of The Arts House Trust.
Rack 13A, Rack 13BA, Rack 18A, and Rack 18B presents artworks from The Arts House Trust Collection, selected directly from the collection storage racks. These racks were chosen to demonstrate the breadth of the collection, the largest private collection in Aotearoa, bringing works out of storage to be viewed anew, in some cases after a considerable period. The presentation includes works by established artists as well as artists at other stages of their careers, who were at the time of acquisition, mid-career or emerging.
Two key self-portraits in the exhibition illustrate the diversity of works on display, highlighting the breadth of artistic approaches, themes, and techniques represented throughout the collection. Toss Woollaston’s Self-Portrait of 1976 was produced later during his long career of 50 plus years (1910 -1988). Self-Portrait is based on a much earlier drawing by Woollaston, of 1942, now in the collection of the Hocken Library. Featuring the artist staring intensely out from under a straw hat, the 1942 drawing is based on Vincent van Gogh’s famous Self-Portrait in a Straw Hat (1887, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York). In 1976, Woollaston was at last self-supporting through his work and had gained reputation and respect after many years of hardship. His winning confidence shines through in this rare self-portrait.
Zarahn Southon (Ngāti Tuwharetoa) created Self-Portrait with Brush (2008) during a period of international training. In 2005, he was recipient of a contemporary Pacific Scholarship to study in the basics of Sight Size in Florence, Italy. Southon travelled onwards to France to study at Studio Escalier and portraiture with Ted Seth Jacobs at BACAA in the U.S.A in 2009. This painting presents his interest in old masters painting with its chiaroscuro tonality, strong contrast in light and shading. Southon appears both from the past and as a contemporary figure in a hoodie. Together, these works present the curatorial intent of the selection, demonstrating how The Arts House Trust Collection spans generations, contexts, and artistic concerns, while inviting renewed engagement with works brought from storage, shared into the public realm