More than 60 works by the enigmatic artist are featured in the exhibition "Joe L’Estrange Painter", drawn from the Hocken’s permanent collection and private collections across New Zealand.
Hocken pictorial collections head curator Robyn Notman describes L’Estrange as "something of an enigma within the wider art world".
"While her art is well-known to many private collectors in Otepoti Dunedin and elsewhere in this country, as well as in Australia and Japan, her work has not been included in public gallery exhibitions since 1993.
"This is in part because she is an extremely private person, but also because throughout her career she has rigorously pursued an individualistic practice, concentrating on what interests her as an artist," she said.
The exhibition at Hocken provides audiences with a unique opportunity to see many of L’Estrange’s artworks in one place.
It spans the breadth of her career, from the 1980s, shortly after she graduated from Otago Polytechnic School of Art, through to works completed during the 2020 lockdown and into 2021.
Her subject matter focuses on portraiture, landscape and still life, with a rich dose of flower and garden studies and paintings of cats.
In another first for L’Estrange, the Hocken is also producing the first major publication about her art.
"Joe L’Estrange Painter" will continue until February 18 at the Hocken Gallery, 90 Anzac Ave.
