The Rita Angus Residency in Wellington, New Zealand, is an opportunity for artists to live in the former home of Rita Angus, one of New Zealand’s best-known painters, while creating a body of new work.

About the Residency

The Rita Angus Cottage at 194A Sydney Street West in the Wellington suburb of Thorndon was built in 1877. Rita Angus lived there from 1955 until her death in 1970. The Heritage New Zealand entry for the cottage reads: "Many paintings of the house, the garden, the Bolton Street Cemetery and the buildings of the neighbourhood attest to the great influence this place had on the life of the artist." In 1984, the cottage was purchased by the Thorndon Trust with the intent of providing accommodation for artists visiting Wellington, either for short periods or to work on particular projects. In 2006,

Massey University Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...

’s College of Creative Arts partnered with the Thorndon Trust to launch the inaugural Massey University Rita Angus Visual Arts Residency, enabling both New Zealand and international artists to live at the cottage and develop a body of work. In 2010,

WelTec The Wellington Institute of Technology, also known as WelTec, is a New Zealand polytechnic based in Petone, Lower Hutt. WelTec was formed in 2001 by an amalgamation between the Central Institute of Technology (established in 1960) and the Hutt V ...

partnered with the Thorndon Trust to resurrect the residency, with support from Creative New Zealand. The residency guidelines required artists to submit proposals for a project they would like to complete while living at the cottage, with a brief to "localise the concepts 'technology' and 'culture' in the context of Aotearoa/New Zealand".

Past recipients

*2012 Glen Hayward *2011 Residency shared by Ben Cauchi and Andre Hemer *2010

Wayne Youle Wayne Youle (born 1974 in Titahi Bay, Porirua) is a New Zealand artist of Ngapuhi, Ngati Whakaeke and Ngati Pakeha descent. His bicultural heritage is reflected in his work, addressing issues of identity, race and the commodification of cultu ...

*2008 Ronnie van Hout *1997

Ani O'Neill Ani O'Neill (born 1971) is a New Zealand artist of Cook Island (Ngati Makea, Ngati Te Tika) and Irish descent. She has been described by art historian Karen Stevenson as one of the core members of a group of artists of Pasifika descent who bro ...

*1995

Séraphine Pick Séraphine Pick (born 23 May 1964, in Kawakawa, New Zealand) is a New Zealand painter. Pick has exhibited frequently at New Zealand public art galleries; a major survey of her work was organised and toured by the Christchurch Art Gallery in 2009 ...

and Gary Freemantle *1994 Stephanie Sheehan *1993

Joanna Margaret Paul Joanna Margaret Paul (14 December 1945 – 29 May 2003) was a New Zealand visual artist, poet and film-maker. Early life and education Paul was one of four daughters of pioneering New Zealand publisher Blackwood Paul and artist and writer Ja ...

and Charlotte Fisher *1991 Jane Zusters *1989 Gary Freemantle *1985

Tony Fomison Tony Fomison (12 July 1939 – 7 February 1990) was a notable artist in New Zealand. He was an important post-war visual artist in the country and influenced New Zealand art by incorporating elements of narrative and myth into contemporary a ...

(first residency) Other past residents include Jenny Dolezell, Nicola Jackson, Yvonne Rust, and Michael Tuffery.

References

{{Massey University, state=autocollapse Massey University New Zealand art awards Scholarships in New Zealand