BC147
Easel
Wooden easel
Donated to Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington by Patience Tennent, 1986
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Wellington, New Zealand
Wooden easel, Unknown manufacturer, 20th century.
Possibly purchased by Flora Scales in France. It may have folded down to fit into the artist's suitcase for travelling.
Easel as it is does not have the base bar to hold a canvas as seen in photographs of the artist in 1982 [see Related images].
The accompanying Overview in the catalogue entry for Sun Visor [BC149], Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington, New Zealand reads, "Alongside this sun visor, Te Papa also holds Flora Scales’ artist smock, paint box and easel (GH018017, CA000215). These objects are unusual everyday survivals, offering a fascinating glimpse into the daily work of being an artist. The high-necked smock is marked with paint and oil from brushes wiped across its cotton surface. The palette is coated in fields of dried paint, in colours familiar from Scales’ finished canvasses. The wooden box, bought from a top Paris art supplier, is full of half used tubes of oil paint (cadmium red, burnt sienna, viridian green) and fat brushes."
Photo, installation view, The Women of Pumpkin Cottage, Whirinaki Whare Taonga, Upper Hutt, New Zealand, 2023. Courtesy Whirinaki Whare Taonga.