Rare sale of part of Fletcher art collection

In a rare move, 77 paintings from one of the country’s largest private collections of New Zealand art will be for sale at an auction in Auckland next month.

The Fletcher Trust, which bought its first painting 52 years ago in 1962, said it was simply running out of wall space for the Fletcher Collection, a collection of New Zealand art, which began with the purchase of four works of art by English watercolourist, John Barr Clarke Hoyte, who died in 1913.

“Paintings of this quality need to be viewed and appreciated and we simply do not have the wall space to do that,” said the chairman of the Fletcher Trust, Angus Fletcher.

“We lend paintings to the Government Houses in Wellington and Auckland and for numerous other exhibitions and tours and we are getting some exceptionally good responses from those who have seen these works. Part of the trust’s purpose is to foster and encourage an appreciation of art, and specifically New Zealand art. This is one way we can do that,” Mr Fletcher said.

He said the sale was a unique chance for art lovers to acquire some art with a focus on New Zealand.

“This is a one-off sale. It will not be repeated and we are urging those who want to invest in some of the finest New Zealand art available, to be at the auction.

“This offering from the Fletcher Collection represents a wide variety of very good artists. The basis of the collection is that the artists are either born in New Zealand or they are overseas artists painting in New Zealand. Right from the start of the collection 50-odd years ago, we have focused on that connection and we feel we have achieved something which is rather wonderful and unique,” Mr Fletcher said.

Proceeds from the sale will be used to foster the philanthropic aims of the trust which are focused on education and youth development with the aim of supporting programmes which enrich the lives of young New Zealanders and communities.

The 77 works will be sold at an auction at the International Art Centre in Parnell, Auckland, on September 10.

Director Richard Thomson said there had already been a lot of interest in the sale.

“This is something the country has not seen before. This offering represents such a wide range of art that is particularly relevant and important in every aspect of New Zealand life from our very early days of colonial settlement to the present day. We are particularly excited about the sale and I think buyers who want an investment in quality New Zealand art will go home very happy,”  Mr Thomson said.

The Fletcher Collection began in 1962, when Sir James Fletcher II bought the Hoyte watercolours for £300. The four paintings, of rural scenes and the town of Coromandel, were hung in the Fletcher Holdings board room.

It was the start of a corporate collection which has grown to more than 550 works of art valued at many millions of dollars and representing a very diverse range of New Zealand art and artists.

While the initial focus was on colonial art it soon broadened into contemporary art in the late 1960s. Mr Fletcher said the move into contemporary art by a corporate collection at that time was considered very unusual.

Mr Fletcher said the collection played a significant role in giving new impetus and meaning to art investment in New Zealand. He said the trust would continue to foster New Zealand art and emerging New Zealand artists.

The sale next month includes works by Gretchen Albrecht, Patricia France, Milan Mrkusich, Pat Hanly, Rhona Haszard, Ralph Hotere, John Kinder, Raymond McIntyre, Richard Killeen, Evelyn Page, Geoff Thornley, Alfred Sharpe, Michael Smither, Ian Scott, Gordon Walters, Sir Toss Woollaston.