Saturday, 7 February 2026

Capturing the architectural evolution

    1. Life & Style
    2. Magazine

    House in Humber Street, Oamaru, 1983, by Colin Wheeler.
    House in Humber Street, Oamaru, 1983, by Colin Wheeler.
    Colin Wheeler’s work gave time a permanence, Anna McLean writes.

    Colin Wheeler was one of the most loved artists in Oamaru and te rohe o Waitaki.

    He documented the architectural evolution of the area, as well as scenes that remained unchanged through the years, often exploring their underlooked qualities.

    In looking at Wheeler’s House in Humber Street, Oamaru (1983), one of his many iconic paintings housed in the Forrester Gallery’s collection, we are reminded to take a moment to celebrate our unique built environment. While many of the grandiose Victorian facades stretching out across Thames St and into the historic precinct can be intimidating in terms of their innate beauty and dramatic scale, the view from Humber St is much more humble.

    Humble too was the way Wheeler documented the buildings throughout the area. Celebrating the mundane aspects of everyday life in a regional town, while highlighting the many architectural successes that lie within our Ōamaru stone structures, was a strong ability attributed to Wheeler.

    House in Humber Street, Oamaru, is a timely realisation that this very setting painted by Wheeler in 1983 no longer exists outside of memories and oil on canvas. The house depicted here was removed, and the rear of Forrester Gallery’s exterior has been completely transformed, with the ongoing construction of the gallery’s extension nearing completion.

    The large black signwriting along the upper edge reflects the gallery’s previous life as the Bank of New South Wales, from 1884 until 1979.

    The way that Colin Wheeler visually recorded local architecture provided documentation that shifted an almost ephemeral point in time into a permanent state of existence.

    Wheeler taught locally at Waitaki Boys’ High School until 1969, when he began sketching and painting local scenes full-time. He studied at the Canterbury School of Art and the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts in London. He was completely committed to his craft, spending more than 50 years painting and sketching in the district.

    He was generous with his time and with his work, donating hundreds of his paintings and drawings to the gallery’s permanent collection.

    He is the epitome of community spirit and passion. His consistency and dedication in work and life were second to none.

    Anna McLean is curator visual arts at Forrester Gallery, Oamaru.