Mangonui 1955

Rita Angus created this watercolour, Mangonui, most likely in 1955, conjuring a day by the water, with rolling hills in the background and a boat with two figures in the foreground. I can almost feel Rita there, lightly touching the paper with her brush, layering watery blues and greens to capture the scene. What was she thinking as she painted? Did she feel the gentle rocking of the boat, the warmth of the sun? I am struck by the lightness and fluidity of the paint – the way the colours blend and bleed into one another. See how the clouds are suggested with just a few strokes of grey and blue, creating a sense of depth and atmosphere. I think there's a conversation happening between artists across time, we see echoes of Cézanne in her handling of form and colour. It makes me consider the history of painting as a form of embodied expression, always open to multiple interpretations.