Art and Design remembered over 60 years later

Lines Brothers, Tri-ang tricycle, about 1950, painted steel and rubber tyres

Sparrow Industrial Pictures, Catley House interior, about 1953, black and white photograph. Penman Family Collection.

Lizzie Bisley Curator Modern Art. Photo by Daniel Crichton-Rouse. Te Papa

Justine Olsen, Te Papa Decorative Arts & Design Curator

Anthony Treadwell, Te Awamutu grandstand, 1948, oil on canvas. Purchased 1996. Te Papa (1996-0003-1)

Frances Hodgkins, Arrangement of jugs, 1938, lithograph. Gift of Rex Nan Kivell, 1953. Te Papa (1953-0003-150)

Unknown photographer, Group Architects outside Second House, Auckland, 1950, silver gelatin print. Courtesy of The Architectural Centre. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand (PAColl-0811-12-07-01)

Easy chair, about 1950, softwood and upholstery. Gift of Mrs Teddy Henderson, 1999. Te Papa (GH023087)

Olive Jones, vases, about 1950, ceramic with blue glazes. Te Papa (2020-0002-1, 2020-0002-2, 2020-0002-3)

John Crichton, Safari chair, about 1952, painted steel and canvas sling. Purchased 2020. Te Papa (2020-0001-1)

After the Second World War, New Zealanders understandably struggled to see a brighter future after all the devastation.

So in 1952, Auckland hosted an exhibition with two purposes.   First, it offered art and objects for people to marvel at.   But also they were things to talk about and even buy, as mass-production made once out-of-reach items like modern furniture more affordable.

The 1952 exhibition was called Art and Design - and now that exhibition is the subject of its own exhibition at Te Papa in Wellington.

It includes artwork and furniture owned by print-maker Mervyn Taylor, art by Francis Hodgkins, architecture by Europeans who migrated to New Zealand and even an old tricycle that's clearly had a lot of use!  It also contains an historic newsreel.

EXPERIMENT IN HOUSING. 189 ft. Architectural students build a house at Auckland in an effort to find a cheaper yet attractive style of house construction suited to New Zealand conditions.

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The curators Justine Olsen and Lizzie Bisley show Lynn Freeman around the new show, called Modern Living.

Modern Living: Design in 1950s New Zealand |Te Noho Hou: Te hoahoa i Aotearoa i ngā tau 1950 is now showing at Te Papa in Wellington.