Moana in the archives

In 2024, to capture the "beauty, variety and importance of the estuaries, beaches, harbours, and sea, that make up Tauranga Moana", curator Ellie Smith brought together artworks from local contemporary artists, as well as three public collections. These were:  the Tauranga Art Gallery Collection, Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries (Archive), and the Civic Art Collections. The exhibition was/is held in the temporary exhibition space on Devonport Road between February 17 and June 3. It was/is titled "Tauranga Moana Waterscapes: 1800s - Present".

Here are the eight small works that Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries contributed from our archives.

Two small watercolours from Emma Vogan. 

Emma moved to Tauranga aboard the Lady Jocelyn, in 1881 as a seventeen-year-old.  

View from Bon Repos garden (1884)

Tauranga City Libraries Art 21-014
On reverse, "Matapihi Welcome Bay, Kōpukairoa, Maungatapu. View from corner 5th Ave & Devonport Road lots 133 - 135. Lionel Adams remembers the gum tree - at high water mark. The Adams house, Taupororo was on opposite corner"

Beach at Waikareao estuary (1892)

Tauranga City Libraries Art 21-021

You can see more of Emma's work in the Emma Vogan Collection here. 

Four small watercolours from Ethel Louisa Macmillan.

Ethel's watercolours date from a later period than Emma Vogans, around 1920 to 1949. She was born in India, raised in England, and immigrated to Katikati in her late twenties. She later moved with her husband into Tauranga and they were both very active in the community. Her husband, the Hon. Charles Edward Macmillan later became Mayor and MP for Tauranga. Their daughter Ethel Urania Macmillan donated a large sum of money to the Tauranga Art Gallery. 

View from Macmillans farm, Pāpāmoa

Tauranga City Libraries Ams 80/11/14
Handwritten on rear "View from Papamoa farm (Macmillans) towards Mount Maunganui."

View from Macmillans farm

Tauranga City Libraries Ams 80/11/16
Handwritten on rear "View from G. E. Macmillan farm in Tauranga."

Moturiki and Motuotau, Mount Maunganui

Tauranga City Libraries Ams 80/11/36
Handwritten on rear "Moturiki & Motuotau Mt Maunganui by Ethel Macmillan."

Looking over the Mission cemetery towards Mauao

Tauranga City Libraries Ams 80/11/36
Handwritten on rear "Looking over the Mission cemetery towards Mauao by Ethel Macmillan."

There are over 50 paintings in the Ethel Macmillan watercolours on Pae Korokī visible here. 

The last two works lent to the Art Gallery are from an unknown soldier during the colonial invasion. He was present at pivotal moments including the siege of Maketū, the battle of Pukehinahina and the massacre at Te Ranga in the 1860s.

Entrance to Tauranga harbour

Tauranga City Libraries Art 21-032
"The Mount - Tauranga Maunganui Heads." Original handwriting on rear "Entrance to Tauranga Harbour."

Te Papa, Tauranga

Tauranga City Libraries Art 21-033
"C.L. Greers house, Tauranga Hospital, H.M.S. ship Herrier, C.L. Harrington house." 

All fifteen of the works can be viewed on Pae Korokī here. 

As an archivist, it is lovely to see our humble pieces out from their safe acid-free boxes in the climate-controlled archive, and for a short period of time, 'in the wild' so to speak.  "Tauranga Moana Waterscapes: 1800s - Present," curated by Ellie Smith, bridges past and present through art, showcasing the natural and historical beauty of our Moana. Emma Vogan's and Ethel Louisa Macmillan's watercolours as well as those of an unknown soldier sit humbly alongside larger (and more capable) pieces but they nevertheless add a little gravitas and highlight the importance of preserving our heritage.