Rita Angus Enter a
feeling, not
a gallery.
Choose a mood and the room itself answers — the light cools or warms, the air changes pace, and only the works that carry that feeling step forward from the dark. Everything else recedes into shadow.
Rita Angus
A Pioneering Vision: The Life and Art of Rita Angus Henrietta Catherine Angus, known to the world as Rita Angus, stands as a monumental figure in 20th-century New Zealand art. Born on March 12, 1908, in Hastings, she emerged from a family life marked by frequent relocation due to her father’s carpentry and construction work – a nomadic upbringing that perhaps fostered within her a keen observational eye and an independent spirit. As th
e eldest of seven children, Rita demonstrated artistic talent early on, receiving private lessons that nurtured her burgeoning passion. Her formal education at Palmerston North Girls' High School from 1922 to 1926 further solidified this path, with teachers recognizing and encouraging her innate abilities. This foundation led her to Canterbury College School of Art in Christchurch in 1927, where she immersed herself in traditional trai…