Story: Mountains

‘Mountains, Cass’

‘Mountains, Cass’

Mountains are a favourite subject of painters in New Zealand. In the 19th century, many artists aimed for a romantic atmosphere, where people were overawed by the scale and magnificence of the scenery. Rita Angus was a modernist painter influenced by Europeans such as Paul Cézanne, and she did not have a romantic attitude to the landscape. In this 1936 watercolour of the mountains in Canterbury, she depicted a musterer’s hut which is dwarfed by the alps behind it.

Courtesy of the Rita Angus Estate

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Christchurch Art Gallery - Te Puna o Waiwhetu
Artwork by Rita Angus

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How to cite this page:

Andy Dennis, 'Mountains - Mountains and New Zealand culture', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/14332/mountains-cass (accessed 7 May 2024)

Story by Andy Dennis, published 24 Sep 2007, updated 1 Feb 2017