Teaching aids 2 (July), 1975 by Colin McCahon ::

Details

Date

1975

Media category

Painting

Materials used

acrylic on paper, 10 panels

Dimensions

10 panels: each sheet 109.2 x 72.8 cm

Signature & date

Signed and dated l.l. no.1, white paint "... C. McC JULY 75".
Signed and dated l.r. no.2, white paint "C. McC JULY 75".
Signed and dated l.r. no.3, white paint "C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.c. no.4, white paint "... C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.r. no.5, white paint "C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.c. no.6, white paint "... C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.c. no.7, white paint "C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.l. no.8, white paint "... C. McC July 75".
Signed and dated l.c. no.9, white paint "C. McC JULY 75".
Signed and dated l.r. no.10, white paint "C. McC July 75".

Credit

Art Gallery of New South Wales Foundation Purchase 2014

Location

Not on display

Accession number

614.2014.a-j

Copyright

Reproduction requests

Artist information

Colin McCahon

Works in the collection

2

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About

Colin McCahon was New Zealand’s greatest modern painter. He is also one of the most radical and challenging painters to emerge from Australasia in the 20th century.

Faith, doubt and the power of art were McCahon’s constant concerns. Beginning in the 1940s with religious scenes set in the New Zealand landscape, McCahon evolved an increasingly distinctive visual language for the life and trials of the spirit. In 'Teaching aids 2 (July)', this spiritual sign language is at its most stark and mysterious.

As the title suggests, this is a painting about art’s power as a guide – an aid to understanding matters of life and death. On a series of what look like humble school blackboards, a lesson plays out. Numbers accumulate up to 14, evoking the Christian stations of the cross, while the white lines, floating in the blackness, become luminous crucifixions.

Exhibition history

Shown in 9 exhibitions

Colin McCahon - New Paintings 1975, Barry Lett Galleries, Auckland, 18 Aug 1975–29 Aug 1975
An Exhibition of Paintings by Colin McCahon, Ray Hughes Gallery, Brisbane, Brisbane, 29 Nov 1975–24 Dec 1975
McCahon's "necessary protection", Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Zealand, 01 Sep 1977–25 Sep 1977

McCahon's "necessary protection", National Art Gallery, Wellington, Wellington, 22 Feb 1978–19 Mar 1978

McCahon's "necessary protection", Auckland City Art Gallery, Auckland, 07 Jun 1978–02 Jul 1978
Teaching aids: Colin McCahon, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki, Auckland, 01 Oct 1995–Jan 1996
Toi toi toi: drei kunstlergenerationen aus Neuseeland = three generations of artists from New Zealand, Fridericianum, Kassel, 23 Jan 1999–05 Apr 1999

Toi toi toi: drei kunstlergenerationen aus Neuseeland = three generations of artists from New Zealand, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki, Auckland, 21 May 1999–08 Aug 1999
Colin McCahon: A Question of Faith, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 30 Aug 2002–10 Nov 2002

Colin McCahon: A Question of Faith, City Gallery Wellington, Wellington, 08 Dec 2002–09 Mar 2003

Colin McCahon: A Question of Faith, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki, Auckland, 29 Mar 2003–15 Jun 2003

Colin McCahon: A Question of Faith, NGV: International, Melbourne, 04 Jul 2003–07 Sep 2003

Colin McCahon: A Question of Faith, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 15 Nov 2003–18 Jan 2004
Signs and symbols to live by, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 16 Jun 2016–19 Mar 2017
Some mysterious process, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 01 Jun 2020–13 Sep 2020
20th-Century galleries Rehang (Lower Level 1), Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 20 Aug 2022–2023

Bibliography

Referenced in 6 publications

Mary Barr, Headlands: thinking through New Zealand art, Sydney, 1992, 55, 56. not illustrated
Marja Bloem, Colin McCahon: a question of faith, Amsterdam, 2002, 239, 260. not illustrated
Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, McCahon's "necessary protection": the catalogue of a travelling exhibition of paintings from Colin McCahon's various series from 1971 to 1976, New Plymouth, 1977, 8, 9, 10. fig 17
Alexa Johnston (Curator), Teaching aids: the Colin McCahon Room, Auckland, 1995, (illus.).
Justin Paton, Look, 'Kiwi Karma', pg.22-6, Sydney, Mar 2016, 22-3 (illus.), 24.
The Colin McCahon Research and Publication Trust, The Colin McCahon online catalogue, Auckland, (colour illus.). cm001514

Teaching aids 2 (July)