Inspiration Strikes Again

They say lightning never strikes twice.  But inspiration does – at least in artist Rae van’t Hof’s case. While revisiting some early works, Rae was drawn to a painting she had produced in the 1970s. It had been inspired by a black and white photograph of boat sheds in a Scandinavian music magazine. The painting’s rediscovery prompted her to paint this new version of the subject in 2012 and exhibit it in New Plymouth's Real TArt Gallery. Boat Sheds (II) highlights Rae’s ongoing interest in composition and simplicity of form. The structures crowd against the picture plane, creating a compellingly shallow depth of field. The rooflines of the sheds mirror each other in triplicate. The blue shed almost looks like an ice-covered Mount Taranaki towering behind the smaller brown buildings. Not only does the original version of Boat Sheds now exist at Puke Ariki in digital form, but it was also exhibited in Taranaki Museum when it was originally painted. Therefore, it seemed fitting to acquire Rae’s new painting for Puke Ariki’s Heritage Collection. Thus, by chance, her boat sheds have come full circle.