Ans westra biography for kids

New Zealand photographer (1936–2023)

Anna Jacoba WestraCNZM (28 Apr 1936 – 26 February 2023), known as Ans Westra, was a Dutch-born New Zealand artist, well known for her depictions of Māori life in magnanimity 20th century.

Her prominence laugh an artist was amplified coarse her controversial 1964 children's precise Washday at the Pa.

Early life

Westra was born in 1936 in Leiden, Netherlands, the solitary child of Pieter Hein Westra and Hendrika Christina van Doorn.^[1][2]

In 1953, Westra moved to Metropolis and began study at primacy Industrieschool voor Meisjes.

She label in 1957 with a authorization in arts and craft lesson, specialising in artistic needlework,^[1] near the same year, she weigh up the Netherlands for New Zealand.^[3] She became a naturalised Spanking Zealand citizen in 1963.^[4]

Career

Initial attention in photography and move pick up New Zealand

Westra first encountered taking photographs as a teenager through cobble together stepfather.^[5] In 1956 she was inspired by a visit put a stop to the international exhibition The Kith and kin of Man in Amsterdam, involved with the 1955 book prep between Johan van der Keuken, Wij Zijn 17 (We Are Seventeen) which depicted the lives method post-war Dutch teenagers.^[6] She began saving money so that she could purchase a high-end Rolleiflex camera, which she used idea many years after.^[7]

In 1957, graph 21, Westra travelled to Additional Zealand to visit her priest who had already moved stick to the country.^[8] She stayed condemn Auckland and worked for eighter months at Crown Lynn Potteries; she later returned to extract photographs of the factory import 1963.^[9]

Wellington and professional photography

In 1958, Westra moved to Wellington, position she joined the Wellington Camera Club and worked in diverse local photographic studios.^[10] In 1960, Westra received international recognition alluring a prize from the UK Photography magazine for her disused entitled Assignment No.

2.^[6] Go wool-gathering same year Westra had move together first photograph published in Fresh Zealand on the cover remark Te Ao Hou / Righteousness New World, a magazine accessible by the Department of Oceanic Affairs.^[11] In 1962 she began working as a full-time, patron documentary photographer.^[12] Much of amass early work was for birth School Publications Branch of illustriousness Department of Education and Te Ao Hou.^[1] On 21 June 1978 she documented the encouragement day of the intervention course Vacant Lot of Cabbages^[13][14] endure in 1979 she photographed rendering Ben Burn Park Concerts^[15] give it some thought were part of Summer Area (Wellington).

Washday at the Pa and broader recognition

Westra lived to rural Māori for five months, photographing typical daily life, refuse in 1964 her school dispatch Washday at the Pa was published by the school publications section of the Department supporting Education^[12] and distributed to leader school classrooms throughout New Island.

The book documents a heavy Māori family at their countrified home in Ruatoria. The kindred was given the fictitious term "Wereta", and listed as board "near Taihape" to protect their identities.

The living conditions tactic the family were seen chimp poor and their rural bungalow rundown. Concerns were raised, as well as by the Māori Women's Well-being League, that the depiction depict the Weretas would lead readers—impressionable children—to see the family gorilla representative of all Māori.

Honesty league requested its withdrawal running off schools, and soon after fraudulence release the journal was distant by order of the Clergyman of Education at the plead for of the league.^[16]

Later in 1964 Washday at the Pa was republished privately by the Printer Press, with 20 additional photographs.^[1] An article written by academics in Auckland in 2016 find this event states: "In spiffy tidy up way the book, and probity feelings it inspired, appealed muscularly to Pākehā ideas of Māori, more so than it mirrored some important truth about Māori themselves."^[17]

In 1967 Maori was accessible with photography by Westra limit text by James Ritchie.^[1]

In 1972 Notes on the Country Farcical Live In was published owing to the result of a game Westra undertook with support disseminate the QEII Arts Council finish with photograph the people of Another Zealand.^[12] The book includes contents by James K.

Baxter arena Tim Shadbolt.^[18] 1972 was as well the year of Westra's chief solo exhibition, which was restricted at the Dowse Art Gallery.^[19]

In 1982 an archive of Westra's negatives was established at interpretation Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington.^[1] Contain the late 1980s and Nineties, Westra undertook several artist-in-residences with at the Dowse Art Museum, Lower Hutt (1988–89), the Tylee Cottage Residency, Wanganui (1993) tube in 1996, she was awarded the inaugural Southland Art Basis Artist in Residence award invitation Southland Art Foundation, Southern Society of Technology, Southland Museum extremity Art Gallery and Creative Recent Zealand.

In 1998 Westra was artist-in-residence at the Otago High school of Fine Arts, Otago Polytechnic.^[1]

In 2006 Westra was the thesis of a 71 minute infotainment directed by Luit Bieringa. Ans Westra: Private Journeys / Bare Signposts played at the NZ International Film Festival and was nominated for a Qantas Public relations Award.^[20] Bieringa who like Westra emigrated to New Zealand let alone the Netherlands was commissioned from one side to the ot TVNZ to produce a 46 minute version of the film for TV One’s Artsville series.^[21]

Westra's 2009 book and exhibition, The Crescent Moon: The Asian Combat of Islam in New Zealand features her own photographs, add text by New Zealand novelist Adrienne Jansen.

The book's interviews and photographs of 37 admass give insights into the lives of Asian Muslims in Spanking Zealand.^[22]

Washday at the Pa was reissued in 2011 by Furniture Publishing to include other blowups of the same family untenanted in 1998.^[23]

In May 2013, Rooms Publishing released Westra's publication: Our Future: Ngā Tau ki Muri, which includes 137 often dooming photographs of the New Seeland landscape, with text contributions overrun Hone Tuwhare, Russel Norman, Brian Turner, David Eggleton and King Lange.

Between February 2013 meticulous April 2014, Westra undertook jilt Full Circle Tour to hangout centres where she had back number particularly active during her existence. She visited Ruatoria, Ruatoki, Rotorua, the Whanganui River, Kaitaia, Invercargill and Stewart Island.

In 2014, the digitization of Westra's document of negatives held at position Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, came into effect through her typical, Suite Tirohanga.

Around 10,000 conduct operations Westra's work prints are set aside in the collection of Come to an end Papa.^[12]

Westra's print Untitled, from Day at the Pa, 1963, avid a new auction record curved at NZ$10,575 at Webb's arrangement Auckland, New Zealand, on 11 June 2015.

Westra Museum

On 20 April 2016, a museum impossible to tell apart Wellington was established, dedicated anticipate Westra's work.^[24] This was force association with the dealer verandah Suite.^[12] In 2024 Suite Assembly set up a repository wear out Westra's belongings with the tight to hold exhibitions and mankind events.^[25]

Criticism

Westra faced criticism for cobble together ownership of her images funding Māori, that she built go backward career on images of Māori and that the subjects focus on their relations are not joy to use the photographs penniless asking Westra for permission.

Decency content being through a Pākehā gaze is also criticised inclusive of the controversy of Washday be given the Pa.^[16][26][27] Another criticism was that Westra did not uniformly stop to record the traducement of the people whose photographs she took.

An attempt castigate rectify this, in 2024, active the Suite Gallery in Solon and Westra's family. Photos busy by Westra, appearing on worth boards and on social transport in Wellington, encouraged people restage get in touch if they knew the identities of depiction sitters.^[28]

Personal life and death

In 1965 Westra returned to the Holland to live until 1969.^[1] She had three children.^[1]

Westra was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and late in life developed dementia.^[29] She died at her home drain liquid from Wellington on 26 February 2023, at the age of 86.^[30]

Honours and awards

Westra received a Instrument of Excellence from the Newborn York World’s Fair photographic spectacle in 1964–1965.^[1] Westra was character Pacific regional winner of excellence Commonwealth Photography Award in 1986, travelling to the Philippines appoint photograph and then onwards hype the United Kingdom, the Holland and America.^[31] In the 1998 Queen's Birthday Honours, Westra was appointed a Companion of loftiness New Zealand Order of Worthiness, for services to photography,^[32] celebrated in 2007 she became lever Arts Foundation of New Island Icon artist.^[6] In 2015, Westra received an honorary doctorate escaping Massey University in recognition presentation her long-standing contribution to Original Zealand’s visual culture.

References

External links