Colonial Constructs: European Images of Maori, 1840-1914 Book

How did early European artists of Australia and New Zealand perceive the Maori? What sort of images of Maori society and culture did they create? What ethnic preconceptions lay behind their depictions? These and other pertinent questions are explored by art historian Leonard Bell in this study of the way Europeans represented Maori in colonial New Zealand. European taste for the exotic created initial demand for images of Australia but these soon lost their novelty value. Numerous artists crossed the Tasman seeking more colourful subjects. They joined resident artists in depicting the far more "exotic" and culturally congenial Maori. Artists such as George French Angas, J.A. Gilfillan, William Strutt and Nicholas Chevalier worked in both Australia and New Zealand. "Colonial Constructs" describes cultural interchange between Europeans and non-Europeans in the 19th century, and the relationship between visual representation and the ideology of colonialism. Bell shows how the great range and variety in pictures of Maori often reveal more about the artists, their society and its attitudes, than about indigenous peoples. This book, illustrated with numerous examples of the artists' works, is an important contribution to our understanding of cross-cultural relations and the role of the artist in shaping cultural perceptions. Leonard Bell is the author of "The Maori in European Art" (1980).Read More