NZ On Screen: Visual Arts

To celebrate The Big Idea's visual art focus this month, NZ On Screen has selected ten clips from across our history of visual arts on screen. Painters, sculptors, photographers, public parks and controversial Te Papa exhibits all feature.

NZ On Screen has much more visual art on its site, and next month will be launching a new Art Collection curated by a special guest. Keep an eye out...

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Backch@t: Virgin in a Condom

Fronted by media personality Bill Ralston, this excerpt from the first episode comes out guns blazing with a debate by panelists about Tania Kovats's controversial artwork Virgin in a Condom, the sculpture that caused national upset when it was exhibited at Te Papa in 1998.

Pacific Ikon: Pat Hanly

Stewart Main talks to artist Pat Hanly (1932-2004) about his life as painter and activist. Interviewed at his Mt Eden home, Hanly discusses his painting career and political and personal inspirations.

Land of My Ancestors: Darcy Nicholas

This documentary looks at Maori painter/sculptor Darcy Nicholas. Nicholas grew up in the Taranaki, among extended whanau. “We didn’t have much money, but we had a lot of aroha and a lot of land to play in”.

A Cat Among The Pigeons

This doco about Wellington’s Pigeon Park follows the passionate, stroppy Shona Rapira Davies, as she fights cost overruns, landscape architects and passersby, and for her vision (which involved handcrafting Te Aro park's 20,000+ ceramic tiles).

The Living Room: Shigeyuki Kihara

The Living Room profiles transgender artist of Japanese and Samoan descent, whose t-shirts were bought by Te Papa.

Kaleidoscope: Attitudes Towards Landscape

A four-part mini-series looking at New Zealand's landscape art from the arrival of Pakeha to the 1980s.

Sense of Place: Robin Morrison, Photographer

Part biography, part travelogue, and filmed shortly before the photographer's death, the film goes on the road with Morrison to revisit some of his best-loved locations. Stunningly shot by Stuart Dryburgh.

Godzone Sheep

Not strictly an arts documentary, it does, however, feature a rare on-screen interview with Michael Parekowhai, this year’s New Zealand Venice Biennale artist. (Dick Frizzell and Chris Knox also talk about art’s relationship to sheep…)

Intent to Construct: Paul Dibble

Pacific Monarch by New Zealand sculptor Paul Dibble was installed in front of the Manawatu Art Gallery, Palmerston North, in 1995. This film documents the production of this large scale bronze sculpture, and in doing so reveals something of its maker.

Kete Aronui: Fiona Pardington

Episode four, series four of this Maori artists’ profile series, tracks eminent photographer Fiona Pardington. In this extract Pardington works with her brother Neil, and discusses her life path.

Video - Land of My Ancestors: Darcy Nicholas