Te Papa touring exhibition Rita Angus: New Zealand Modernist brings together works by one of New Zealand’s most iconic 20th-century artists, Rita Angus (1908–1970). She was fundamental to the establishment of a distinctive, modern school of art in New Zealand. Over a period of 40 years, Angus produced a remarkable body of work.
The works on display span Angus’s life and career as an artist, drawing out the themes of pacifism, feminism and nature, which shaped much of her work. The exhibition includes many of Angus’s most important works, including Rutu (1951), Cleopatra (1938), and Central Otago (1953-56/1969).
Developed and presented by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Image: Rita Angus, Detail of Cleopatra, 1938, oil on canvas. Purchased 1998 with New Zealand Lottery Grants Board funds. © Reproduced courtesy of the Estate of Rita Angus. Te Papa (1998-0028-2)