MOTAT Society’s Excursion to McCahon House

MOTAT Society members met at McCahon House back in February when the sun was still shining, for a guided tour. Our guide Deborah gave a detailed tour of the house, its architecture, how it came to be preserved and the story of Colin McCahon. his paintings and his family while they lived there. The tour ended with the viewing of an excellent short film that summarised the tour but also connected the details of the house with archival footage and images of McCahon paintings.

The house is a window into life in Auckland in the 1950s, as well as the idiosyncratic details of a house lived in and adapted by the artist Colin McCahon. The house is deep in native bush, though it once had extensive views, before considerable bush regrowth that has come up to surround it. The McCahon family lived there for seven years. When it was sold and the family moved into the city, the new owner (a single woman) recognised the significance of the house and kept it largely unchanged. Eventually the opportunity to preserve it as a life record and artefact came about and it was turned into the museum it is today.

A drawing by Colin McCahon of his dream of an artist studio is displayed on the outside wall of the cottage. Today, the large modern building, which houses a renowned artist residence, stands next to and above the small cottage. Designed by architect Pete Bosley, it reaches out into the bush on large stilts, exactly as McCahon imagined it would.

by Makyla Curtis