Vivian Isabella Lynn (née Robertson; 30 November 1931 – 1 December 2018) was a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

artist.

Education

Lynn was born in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

in 1931 and attended

Wellington Girls' College Wellington Girls' College was founded in 1883 in Wellington, New Zealand. At that time it was called Wellington Girls' High School. Wellington Girls' College is a year 9 to 13 state secondary school, located in Thorndon in central Wellington. H ...

from 1945 to 1948. She completed a Diploma of Fine Arts at the

School of Fine Arts The School of Fine Arts or College of Fine Arts is the official name or part of the name of several schools of fine arts, often as an academic part of a larger university. These include: The Americas North America *Alabama School of Fine ...

Canterbury University College The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was f ...

majoring in painting in 1952, and a Diploma of Teaching at Auckland Teachers' Training College in 1954. At art school her lecturers included Rata Lovell-Smith, Bill Sutton and Russell Clark. According to Lynn, the curriculum was focused on the history of Western art, with little attention given to New Zealand or contemporary art, although she did meet artists such as

Colin McCahon Colin John McCahon (; 1August 191927May 1987) was a prominent New Zealand artist whose work over 45 years consisted of various styles, including landscape, figuration, abstraction, and the overlay of painted text. Along with Toss Woollaston and ...

Toss Woollaston Sir Mountford Tosswill "Toss" Woollaston (11 April 1910 – 30 August 1998) was a New Zealand artist. He is regarded as one of the most important New Zealand painters of the 20th century. Life Born in Toko, Taranaki in 1910, Woollaston attended ...

Doris Lusk Doris More Lusk (5 May 1916 – 14 April 1990) was a New Zealand painter, potter, art teacher, and university lecturer. In 1990 she was posthumously awarded the Governor General Art Award in recognition of her artistic career and contributions. ...

and

Rita Angus Rita Angus (12 March 1908 – 25 January 1970), a New Zealand painter, has a reputation - along with Colin McCahon and Toss Woollaston - as one of the leading figures in twentieth-century New Zealand art. She worked primarily in oil and water c ...

and see their work in The Group exhibitions.

Support for the Women's Art Movement

Lynn was one of the first New Zealand artists to address

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

issues in their work, beginning in 1968. She was an active supporter of the women's art movement in New Zealand and in 1983–84 was involved in setting up the Women's Art Archive. Lynn was featured in a special issue of the New Zealand feminist magazine ''

Broadsheet A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long Vertical and horizontal, vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner (format), Berliner and Tabloid (newspaper format), ta ...

'' published in 1983, focused on feminist art. In an interview Lynn discussed how during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

she had seen both her parents working in jobs, raising their children and sharing family chores. She continued:

There was value placed on women’s work because it was politically expedient for it to be so in the early 1940s ... so I had formative years where I was conditioned to expect equality. But social values changed after the War as women were required to be wives and mothers again, rather than members of the paid workforce. A profession and marriage were again presented as mutually exclusive.

Work

Lynn worked across a wide range of media, including collages, drawings, paintings, prints, books, sculptures, photographs and installations. In 1972, Lynn spent a year in the United States, where she developed her interest in printmaking; throughout the 1970s she worked with this medium, producing works such as ''Book of Forty Images'' (1973–1974) and ''Playground,'', which explore 'the reasons behind women's social and political oppression'. Between 1977 and 1979, Lynn produced a series of works on paper, now held in the

Christchurch Art Gallery The Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, commonly known as the Christchurch Art Gallery, is the public art gallery of the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It has its own substantial art collection and also presents a programme of New ...

, in which she reworked drawings and life studies made at art school, in a comment on 'the sexual politics of the Western art historical tradition'. Lynn is probably best known for her large installation works of the early 1980s. ''Guarden Gates'' (1982) (first shown at the Janne Land Gallery, now in the collection of the

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

) is a sculptural installation of seven cyclone-wire mesh gates, woven through with human hair and ribbon. Each piece is titled to reflect cultural stages of a female life: ''Matrix''; ''Daughter of the father''; ''Sacrifice''; ''Processual ground''; ''Differentiation''; ''Rebirth'' and ''Eyes of life, eyes of death''. Lynn said, "In my hair pieces of 1982 I have come closer to the toxic object image I need. I want a toxic image that physically shocks - the conscious levels are split open - not the safe anchorage." Lynn's contribution to the 1982 Wellington sculpture festival F1 Sculpture Project ''Mantle'', was an installation based around a rectangular construction made up of hair collected over several weeks from local hair salons. Another work using hair, ''Stain'', which gives the illusion of a stream of human hair trickling down the cathedral's marble steps, was installed for the 'New Art in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

' project in 1984. Art historian Priscilla Pitts notes that 'Lynn frequently sought equivalents or proxies for the

female body Female body shape or female figure is the cumulative product of a woman's skeletal structure and the quantity and distribution of muscle and fat on the body. There is a wide range of normality of female body shapes. Female figures are typicall ...

, and this led to a particularly inventive use of materials'. In ''Guarden Gates'', in one work, she set up a

frisson Frisson ( , ; French for "shiver"), also known as aesthetic chills or psychogenic shivers is a psychophysiological response to rewarding stimuli (including music, films, stories, and rituals) that often induces a pleasurable or otherwise posi ...

by including a small amount of processed animal tissue as a metaphor for the human body. In ''Lamella/Lamina'' (1983), a sculptural installation of 15 fragile columns, Lynn used architectural drawing paper processed to create texture, the work itself being installed at Anzart in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

in response to threatened rain forest on the

Franklin River The Franklin River is a major perennial river located in the Central Highlands and western regions of Tasmania, Australia. The river is located in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park at the mid northern area of the Tasmanian Wilderne ...

. The artist said that the columns were, amongst other things, 'a metaphor for vulnerability, sensitivity, and how one toughens up as one gets older ... ''Lamella/Lamina'' reflects the layering and interconnectedness, of nature and culture, of skin surface, mind and the political.' ''Gates of the Goddess – a southern crossing attended by the Goddess'' (1986, first shown at the

Govett-Brewster Art Gallery The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery is a contemporary art museum at New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. The gallery receives core funding from the New Plymouth District Council. Govett-Brewster is recognised internationally for contemporary art. H ...

and now in the collection of the

Auckland Art Gallery Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki is the principal public gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. It has the most extensive collection of national and international art in New Zealand and frequently hosts travelling international exhibitions. Set be ...

) consists of three large panels, two of which form a passageway for the viewer and the third being a focal point with the form of the goddess. The work brings together many of Lynn's concerns particularly healing the abject as in the 1982 work ''Mantle''. By recovering destroyed and damaged tapa, drawing attention to the low status (craft) assigned to women's production and by analogy to reproduction Lynn creates a work of simple beauty. Between the late 1980s and 2008, Lynn worked with her own DNA imagery in ''Drawing Connections'' and her interest in the mind and brain with

Rorschach Rorschach may refer to: * Hermann Rorschach, a Swiss psychiatrist ** Rorschach test, his psychological evaluation method involving inkblots * Rorschach (character), a character from the comics ''Watchmen'' * Rorschach (comic book), a 2020 comic * ...

imagery titled ''Your Mental Set'' and ''Mind Field''. In 1997 her large installation, showing nine images of her brain, titled ''Spin: versor versa'' was shown at City Gallery, Wellington. A survey exhibition of Lynn’s work titled ''I, HERE, NOW: Vivian Lynn'', curated by Christina Barton, was held at the

Adam Art Gallery Adam; el, Ἀδάμ, Adám; la, Adam is the name given in Genesis 1-5 to the first human. Beyond its use as the name of the first man, ''adam'' is also used in the Bible as a pronoun, individually as "a human" and in a collective sense as " ...

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

in 2008–09. Lynn's work is held in public collections throughout New Zealand, including

, the

and

. Senior Curator at the

Dowse Art Museum The Dowse Art Museum is a municipal art gallery in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. Opening in 1971 in the Lower Hutt CBD, The Dowse occupies a stand-alone building adjacent to other municipal facilities. The building was completely remodelled in 20 ...

Melanie Oliver had this to say about her:

"Vivian's practice was wide-ranging and spanned many significant developments in art in Aotearoa New Zealand. She forged a unique pathway, posing questions around the nature/culture discourse, ecology, identity, a repressed feminine and dominant masculine culture."

Lynn was a teacher also and taught for many years at the Wellington Polytechnic School of Design (now

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 ...

Death

Lynn died in Wellington following a long illness on 1 December 2018, the day after her 87th birthday.

Exhibitions

Vivian Lynn's solo exhibitions include: * 1971 ''Vivian Lynn prints and paintings'', New Vision Gallery, Auckland * 1978– ''Taupatauma'', environmental project, Colombo Street, Wellington * 1982 ''A survey 1972–80 and new work'', City Art Gallery, Wellington (now

City Gallery Wellington City Gallery Te Whare Toi is a public art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand. History City Gallery Te Whare Toi began its life as the Wellington City Art Gallery on 23 September 1980 in a former office block located at 65 Victoria Street, now ...

) * 1983 ''Twist'', National Art Gallery, Wellington (now

) * 1986 ''The Goddess gateway: a southern crossing attended by the goddess'', Govett Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth * 1986 ''Vivian Lynn – Caryatid, Installation project 2'', City Art Gallery, Wellington * 1993 ''Vivian Lynn: Guarden gates and related works'', Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa * 1997 ''Spin: versor versari'', City Gallery Wellington * 1999 ''Mantles, maladies, mutations and Prussian blue'', Manawatu Art Gallery, Palmerston North (now

Te Manawa Te Manawa (Māori: ''The Heart'') is a museum, art gallery and science centre in Palmerston North, New Zealand. It is operated by the Te Manawa Museums Trust, a charitable trust incorporated on 20 August 1999. From that date, the Trust assumed r ...

) * 2008 ''I, HERE, NOW Vivian Lynn'',

, Wellington Group exhibitions in which Lynn has participated include: * 1963 ''Contemporary New Zealand Painting 1963'', Auckland City Art Gallery (now

* 1966 ''New Zealand Painting 1966'', Auckland City Art Gallery * '1966 ''Group of seven: painting'',

Dunedin Public Art Gallery The Dunedin Public Art Gallery holds the main public art collection of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. Located in The Octagon in the heart of the city, it is close to the city's public library, Dunedin Town Hall, and other facilities such as t ...

* 1980 Opening exhibition, City Art Gallery, Wellington * 1980 ''Women in communication'', National Art Gallery, Wellington * 1981 ''Me by myself: the self portrait'', National Art Gallery, Wellington * 1983 ''Lamella-lamina, ANZART-in-Hobart'', Hobart, Australia * 1983 ''Lamella-Asherim, 4+1'',

, Lower Hutt * 1984 ''Aspects of recent New Zealand art: anxious images'', Auckland City Art Gallery (and touring) * 1986 ''Content/Context: a survey of recent New Zealand art'', National Art Gallery and Shed 11, Wellington * 1989 ''Community of women'', National Art Gallery, Wellington * 1991 ''Art and organised labour'', Wellington City Art Gallery * 1992 ''The sacred way: 22 Wellington artists explore the spiritual dimension'', Wellington City Art Gallery * 1993 '' Alter image: negotiating feminism and representation in recent New Zealand art 1973–1993'', City Gallery Wellington * 1996 ''Sharp and shiny: fetishism in New Zealand art'', Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth * 2008 ''We are unsuitable for framing'', Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tonagrewa * 2009 ''Role, Play'', Enjoy Public Art Gallery, Wellington * 2018 ''Embodied Knowledge'',

The Dowse Art Museum The Dowse Art Museum is a municipal art gallery in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. Opening in 1971 in the Lower Hutt CBD, The Dowse occupies a stand-alone building adjacent to other municipal facilities. The building was completely remodelled in 2 ...

References

External links

*Vivian Lynn discussed by

Courtney Johnston Courtney Johnston (born ) is a New Zealand museum professional, a national radio correspondent, and the chief executive of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Early life and education Born in about 1979, Johnston grew up on dairy farm ...

on RNZ Audio art
19 December 2018
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynn, Vivian 1931 births 2018 deaths New Zealand installation artists 20th-century New Zealand sculptors 21st-century New Zealand sculptors People from Wellington City People educated at Wellington Girls' College Ilam School of Fine Arts alumni 20th-century New Zealand women artists 21st-century New Zealand women artists