MEDIA: New Christchurch inner-city gallery now In Situ / Stuff 22/02/2016
Hannah Watkinson, a post-graduate from the University of Canterbury School Of Fine Arts, has opened a gallery for contemporary New Zealand photography in the inner city. As a designated space for the exhibition of the work of emerging and senior photographers, she states that the gallery will contribute to the “expanding cultural platform of the city”.
For Watkinson, In Situ Photo Project, also reflects her approach to her work as a photographer. “I graduated Bachelor of Fine Arts, majoring in photography, and the idea for the gallery came from the fact that as a student I exhibited as much as I could. In terms of getting a better sense of your work, it is important for a practicing artist to exhibit. For me, it started in my third year, mainly exhibiting in Wellington. There are not too many spaces in Christchurch focusing on emerging artists and an artist’s work looks different in a gallery space. You have to give more careful consideration to the selection of works.”
She says that although the idea of setting up the gallery was a long-term goal, her recent attendance at the University of Canterbury’s Innovators Summer Start-Up programme was an important catalyst for its realisation. Bringing together graduates in workshop with local entrepreneurs, the programme encouraged and advised them how to practically achieve their goals. “I went along to look into the idea of a photography gallery in Christchurch at some time in the future. The Summer Start-Up Programme put me in touch with the right people and gave me the confidence to realise my idea. It was validated by others. Then I heard that Scorpio Books was relocating back to the central city to 120 Hereford Street and wanted something in the space next to them as a gallery.
“I convinced Jo Hewitson at Scorpio Bookshop that the gallery would be a good idea and, in turn, we approached real estate agent Andrew Barclay, who pitched it to the landlords and now it has been supported by Nick and Sue Hunt of Lichfield Holdings, who are providing me with the use of the space.”
The opening exhibition, My Place, was a highlight of the 2003 Christchurch Arts Festival, with approximately 15,000 visitors filling COCA gallery over 19 days. Conceived by Glenn Busch, lecturer in photography at the School of Fine Arts and director of the Place in time documentary project, it featured portraits of Cantabrians photographed in their favourite places, with accompanying texts that detailed the importance of their chosen place in their lives. Watkinson has selected 23 works from the 68 originally exhibited at COCA.
So, 13 years on, will My Place still be capable of sustaining the attention of Christchurch residents? Watkinson is adamant that it will. “Five years on from the earthquakes, it is a fitting time to be considering place. The reality is that we can still empathise with the people in all these photographs. The idea of a place being significant to us is more than just about where or what it is.
“For example, Michael Elsworth was photographed for My Place in Scorpio’s previous bookshop on Hereford Street. He commented in the accompanying text for the photograph that there was no other shop in the city he felt so welcome to be in. That feeling of belonging is more important that the actual site or place. Glenn’s Place in time projects have always been in the back of my mind with the gallery space. It is an incredible archive and document of Christchurch.”
My Place will run until near the end of March and will be followed by a group exhibition, Contested Spaces, which brings together emerging and well-established photographers. It will include work by Mark Adams, David Cook, Tim Veling, Mitchell Bright and Ellie Waters. Watkinson notes that in curating Contested Spaces early in the year, her intention is to ensure that the gallery’s objectives and ambitions are evident.
“I am also running an accompanying education programme with schools. Opening in May is Herstory, a postgraduate project by Chrissy Irvine. It features portraits of women working in male-dominated industries in Christchurch. There are a number of Christchurch’s girls’ schools keen to be involved in the workshops we are running in the gallery.
“In Situ Photo Project is not operating as a dealer gallery. We are setting up a charitable trust. I thought about a dealer gallery of photography and a lot of people I know have tried to convince me of its merits, but I liked the mission statement of the artist-run space Enjoy Gallery in Wellington – ‘liberated from commercial constraints in order to provide both emerging and established practitioners with opportunities to develop innovative work’.
“Walk through the recently reopened Christchurch Art Gallery and there are very few photographs on display. At this point in time in the city any contributing factor encompassing the arts is valuable, but for me, to be working with photography as a serious art form is a priority. New Zealand is still lacking in the kind of exposure and serious attention that photography gets internationally.”
My Place, a Place in Time documentary project, The BNZ Centre, 120 Hereford Street, next to Scorpio Bookshop, until March 26. Open daily, 10am to 4pm.
– Stuff / Warren Feeney