Past Exhibitions

Ray Ching

Dawn Chorus

2 May - 27 May 2015

Exhibition Works

Kokako, He's Here! He's Here! (36-37)
Kokako, He's Here! He's Here! (36-37) (2014)
News Travelled Quickly (34-35)
News Travelled Quickly (34-35) (2014)
You Should've Thought of That (166-167)
You Should've Thought of That (166-167) (2014)
Rhymes for the Children (178-179)
Rhymes for the Children (178-179) (2014)
Gulls Inland (140-141)
Gulls Inland (140-141) (2014)
Are We There Yet? (150-151)
Are We There Yet? (150-151) (2014)
Saddleback Announcement (175)
Saddleback Announcement (175) (2014)
Uninvited Arrivals (154-155)
Uninvited Arrivals (154-155) (2014)
A Choir of Bellbirds (182-183)
A Choir of Bellbirds (182-183) (2014)
Whio in a Hurry (134-135)
Whio in a Hurry (134-135) (2014)
A Young Wahine Keeps Order (184-185)
A Young Wahine Keeps Order (184-185) (2014)
Ko Tenei te Manuwhiri! Nau Mai! (176-177)
Ko Tenei te Manuwhiri! Nau Mai! (176-177) (2014)
Skylark Over Rueben Avenue (50-51)
Skylark Over Rueben Avenue (50-51) (2014)
Cheet, te-te-te-te-te-te- (152-153)
Cheet, te-te-te-te-te-te- (152-153) (2014)
Swallow, He's Here! He's Here! (40-41)
Swallow, He's Here! He's Here! (40-41) (2014)
Birds of Curious Description (117)
Birds of Curious Description (117) (2014)
Young Eyes (157)
Young Eyes (157) (2014)

Exhibition Text

Widely considered one of the foremost wildlife painters of the twentieth century, Ray Ching began an exploration of the classic Aesopian fables, re-told and transplanted to the Antipodes in the acclaimed series of forty-seven original oil paintings entitled Aesop’s Kiwi Fables.

In Dawn Chorus he extends this, proposing that (after his death) Aesop, the Fabled Teller of Fables, may have travelled (accompanied by an albatross) to New Zealand, where, upon arrival he was greeted by the all the birds of the land and honoured with a great concert, the Dawn Chorus.

The Dawn Chorus is thus an antipodean fantasy where Ching’s commanding photorealist depictions of birds incorporating text and the spiritual presence of Aesop combine to become startling in achievement, masterful and wondrous.

exhibition catalogue