Legacy: The Norrie Collection and Other Portraits from Government House

The king whom English historian David Starkey described as the man who “invented England” ascended the throne 500 years ago on April 22 1509. “Henry was a real king although in many ways he was also a kind of English Stalin” Starkey says. Given his rumbustious behaviour and his tendency to execute wives and public servants, today’s monarchy, according to Starkey, is a faint shadow in comparison.

Exactly five hundred years to the day, Henry’s portrait is centre stage in an exhibition of royal portraits opening (April 22/23rd) at the New Zealand Portrait Gallery.

The Henry VIII oil is attributed After Hans Holbein, who was appointed the King’s Painter in 1536. The following year he completed a characteristic image of the King and the portrait in this exhibition is thought to be a later ‘concoction’ from Holbein’s various images of the monarch.

The royal portraits in this exhibition were gifted to Government House in Wellington in 1957 by Sir Willoughby Norrie, Governor General of New Zealand from 1952-57. As well as this gift of 12 royal portraits he also donated other significant works to the Auckland Art Gallery and to private institutions. The royal portraits have been displayed on the walls of Government House and have only once before been seen in public at an Auckland exhibition in 1955. This new Portrait Gallery exhibition gathers together the royal portraits as well as other donated works from the Norrie collection, giving them a publicly accessible home during the current closure of Wellington’s Government House for renovation.

“While New Zealand has moved towards greater independence and our own identity, these portraits remind us of the active role portraiture played in governance and citizenship”, gallery Director Avenal McKinnon said. “They also provide a certainty of vision in an age now dominated by photographic and video images, when one impression is constantly qualified by another”.

As a strong follower of tradition and ritual Sir Willoughby (later Lord) Norrie’s commitment to provide a sequence of painted portraits of British royalty for Government House was reinforced by his holding office here during the coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and much of his collection dates from purchases in London around that time.

Portraits in this exhibition include those of Queen Elizabeth I, Mary Tudor, Henrietta Maria and Queen Victoria, King Charles I and a portrait of his three eldest children from the studio of van Dyck, Oliver Cromwell, King James II, and many others from significant Schools of the time. Contemporary work is represented by drawings by Christchurch artist William Dunning, and a caricature of past Governors-General by Murray Webb. The exhibition is curated by Dr Erin Griffey from the School of Art History at Auckland University.

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Legacy: The Norrie Collection and Portraits from Government House
NZ Portrait Gallery Shed 11,
Wellington Waterfront
23 April 2009 to 23 August 2009
10.30am - 4.30pm Free Admission

for interviews or information:
Elizabeth Alley NZ Portrait Gallery Communications: 04 970 8341 / 021 067 7049
or
Avenal McKinnon 472 8874

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(New Zealand 064) ((0)4) 970 8341