PROVENANCE

Collection of the late Eric & Kathy Hertz

REFERENCE The Last Stand features the prow of a waka (war canoe) lying partly submerged in a swamp within a rainforest clearing. At first glance it's a tranquil scene.

But there's a dynamic quality to the waka, as there is with all these paintings. The warrior-like face carved on the prow has an intent, concentrated energy: there's nothing lost or static about this waka. Is it sinking or emerging from the boggy ground?

The trademark double-edged illusion of Pankhurst's work - the multi-layered source of tension that is so compelling for the viewer - has become a reflection of not just cultural transition but of moral ambiguity. In a defining presentation, he has placed these great Maori figures at the heart of a distinctive, uniquely New Zealand cultural heritage. Dara McNaught

This waka emerging from the deep of the Whirinaki Forest Park outside Rotorua is typical of those used in raiding parties. Maori would sink them to hide their presence, and then bail them out to return home, but did they always return? ALVIN PANKHURST