The curation of a legendary career

The work of esteemed contemporary Māori sculptor, the late Fred Graham, is being showcased in Toi Whakaata / Reflections, an exhibition coming to Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū in late May.

A touring exhibition provides a rare opportunity for Ōtautahi to see wood, stone and steel sculpture works made by a legend of Aotearoa New Zealand art.

Called Toi Whakaata / Reflections, the exhibition celebrates the life’s work of esteemed contemporary Māori sculptor Fred Graham (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Tainui), who sadly passed away on 9 May this year.

Fred was celebrated at the opening of the show in June last year when it was first presented by Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery, where the exhibition was developed. A pioneer of the contemporary Māori art movement in the 1960s and 70s, Fred – together with several other artist-educators, including Sir Cliff Whiting and Ralph Hotere – explored how traditional Māori art could be contemporised by drawing from European modernist styles. Fred’s large-scale public commission sculptures can be found nationwide.

The exhibition features works made between 1965 and 2013, showcasing eight relief works, or wall-based carvings, and five freestanding sculptures.For the Ōtautahi show, an additional stainless steel sculpture from the Art Institute art collection, Rangi me Papi, will be featured.

Commenting on his father’s legacy, Brett Graham said: “Māori contemporary artists made visible an indigenous landscape that was buried under layers of colonial infrastructure and buildings, and seldom acknowledged. For all of his works, this is the first port of call, acknowledging this depth of history.”

Toi Whakaata / Reflections opens at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū on 31 May, with an introductory talk at 11am, showing until 5 October 2025. www.christchurchartgallery.org.nz