08/06/2026
OPENING TOMORROW 5.30pm ~ All welcome
JULIA HOLDERNESS
Botanical Correspondents: Crossing Time with Emily Cu***ng Harris
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9 – 27 JUNE
Julia Holderness presents her solo exhibition, developed for Rokowhiria Ashburton Art Gallery and exhibited earlier this year, as part of her Zonta Ashburton Women’s Art Awards 2025, Premier Award.
In Botanical Correspondents, Julia’s research considers and responds to the work of Emily Harris, one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s first professional woman artists.
Emily Cu***ng Harris (1837-1925) is best-known for painting the indigenous flora of Aotearoa, producing hundreds of artworks in her studio in Whakatū Nelson. One hundred years after her death, her remarkable paintings continue to invite audiences to contemplate the beauty of the natural world. Holderness responds creatively to her life, work and artistic practices.
The central component of the exhibition – a trio of installations – traces Holderness’ working and the passage of time across the project – gathering, layering, and reconfiguring fragments of Emily’s imagery alongside her own. Bush, Studio and Exhibitions act as response and continuation, tracing a dialogue with Emily’s botanical world and the multiplicity she employed in depicting plants and nature.
Exhibition developed with support from Rokowhiria Ashburton Art Gallery.
Image: Detail Botanical Correspondents: Crossing time with Julia Holderness and Emily Cu***ng Harris
