PROVENANCE
Ex Artist's Estate Collection Private Collection, Auckland

EXHIBITED
Illingworth: An Exhibition of Recent Work', Barry Lett Galleries, Auckland, 1-12 November 1965

As Adam and Eve intends to shock - both through its comically explicit nudity and its simplified style which breaks landscape and human forms down into interchangeable shapes and patterns. Illingworth claimed that 'only lovers' would face this painting. He meant those able to enjoy the pleasures of the flesh and of modern art without hang-ups. He presents us with his alternative ideal for Aotearoa New Zealand - agrarian, utopian and Illingworth believed that an ability to experience the true majesty of the natural order set him apart. His stylised treatment of the landscape is often called 'mythic' or 'poetic'. It moves beyond 'what we all can see', revealing deeper truths that most are blind to. Both paintings are essentially about seeing. They encourage us to glimpse the wonders of nature, see through the trappings of materialist culture and conservative morality, and look to art and Māori for inspiration. Both stare back at us. They address us as lovers, or chastise us as traitors to our true selves.

Aaron Lister New Zealand Art at Te Papa Reproduced courtesy of Aaron Lister and Te Papa