The Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery at Pukenamu, Queen's Park Whanganui is a regional art museum with a collection of international and New Zealand art. It was closed for 10 years for redevelopment and re-opened on Saturday 9 November 2024.[1][2] In 2024 it was announced as a 2024 NatGeo Best of the World pick.
Founding and building
The Sarjeant was built as the result of a bequest to the city by Henry Sarjeant in 1912. Sarjeant bequeathed the money "for the inspiration of ourselves and those who come after us."[3] A competition was held to select an architect for the project; the winner was Dunedin architect Edmund Anscombe, but it is likely the actual design was completed by a young student in his offices named Donald Hosie.[3] The cruciform, neo-classical style gallery was opened in 1919. Four galleries branch off a central space capped with an oculus in a hemispherical dome.[4]
The building is registered with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (now Heritage New Zealand) as a Category I Historic Place with registration number 167, and has the highest possible listing under the New Zealand Historic Places Trust Act.[5]
The Māori name Te Whare o Rehua, gifted by local iwi in 1995, means House of Inspiration.[6]
Redevelopment Project
In 1999 the Christchurch-based architecture firm Warren and Mahoney won a competition for the redevelopment of the Sarjeant Gallery.[7] This redevelopment included seismic strengthening, restoration and the addition of a north-facing extension which would not be visible from the iconic south-facing facade.[8]
In 2014 the entire Sarjeant collection and gallery shifted to new, temporary premises on Taupo Quay, in central Whanganui while the redevelopment took place.[9] Funds for the redevelopment came from central government, the gallery trust, private and public trusts, corporate sponsorship and the Whanganui Regional Council.[6] Warren and Mahoney co-designed the redevelopment with local iwi artist group Te Kāhui Toi o Tūpoho which consisted of expanding the existing gallery, building a new storage facility and a new wing.[10][11] The new wing was dedicated to local Māori leader Archie Taiaroa and named Te Pātaka o Tā Te Atawhai Archie John Taiaroa.[10][11] The re-opening took place on 9 November 2024.[6][11] Writer Martin Edmond was commissioned to write a history of the gallery Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery: A Whanganui biography.[12][13]
The Sarjeant also has a major collection of the works of Whanganui-born painter Edith Collier,[16] and the most significant collection of works by Joan Grehan, also Whanganui-born.[17] Another prominent Northland artist featured in the gallery's collection is Kathleen Airini Vane, known for her landscapes of New Zealand.[18]
The gallery's first professional director was Gordon H. Brown, who took the role in 1974 and resigned in 1977.[21] Brown implemented a programme of changing exhibitions and made important contemporary acquisitions for the collection.[22] For most of the Sarjeant's contemporary history, the gallery was led by Brown's successor, Bill Milbank, who joined the organisation in 1975 and served as director from 1978 to 2006.[21] The Tylee Cottage Residency programme began during Milbank's tenure,[20] as did the ongoing series of dome installations, which officially began with artist Billy Apple's removal of the sculpture, The Wrestlers in 1979,[23] although there had been earlier installations. Greg Anderson took the role of director next, remaining for 15 years before departing for a role at Auckland Art Gallery in late 2022.[24] Former Te Uru director, Andrew Clifford, was appointed at the end of 2022, taking up the role in March 2023.[25]
Awards
The redeveloped gallery was selected in 2024 by National Geographic as a Top 20 "Best of the World" Cultural site.[10][26]
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