Ravenscar House

Description

Many exciting new buildings have arisen from the rubble of post-earthquake Christchurch but none, perhaps, is as remarkable as Ravenscar House in the heart of the city’s heritage precinct. ‘Ravenscar House: A biography’ explores the story of this unique, purpose-built house museum as the realisation of a long-held dream and the expression of a heart-warming act of public philanthropy. Christchurch journalist and writer Sally Blundell tells the compelling story of Jim and Susan Wakefield, whose vision was to share with their community the eclectic and impressive collection of art and artefacts that they had endowed to the charitable Ravenscar Trust. After their house on Scarborough Hill was demolished following the Canterbury earthquakes, the couple were determined to commission a new house museum, filled with a wide range of works by leading New Zealand artists such as Frances Hodgkins, Colin McCahon and Bill Sutton. Designed by renowned architects Patterson Associates, the Wakefields’ bold but elegant addition to the city was opened in 2021. Sally Blundell’s engaging text is enhanced by family photographs and stunning images of Ravenscar House and the works within its walls. Sally Blundell, a journalist and writer in Christchurch, has a PhD in English literature from the University of Canterbury. She has been books and culture editor for the ‘New Zealand Listener’ and was a fiction judge for the 2018 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Her essay contributions include ‘Not Listening: Changing Conversations in the Wake of the Mosque Shootings’ (‘Public Knowledge’, ed. Emma Johnson, 2019) and ‘Reoccupying Christchurch’ (‘Extraordinary Anywhere’, ed. Ingrid Horrocks and Cherie Lacey, 2016). This book tells the previously untold and little known story of Jim and Susan Wakefield. Their decision to build and gift a purpose built house museum as a public building in Christchurch is a remarkable and heart-warming act of philanthropy at a time when so many cultural assets are reliant on government or institutional funding strategies. In teaming up with Patterson Associates, they ensured the new building would be a bold and beautiful addition to the cultural precinct of the city. Their story is a rare example of determined, personally driven post-earthquake recovery. With photographs of the fortress-like exterior, the ever-changing domestic-scaled garden, the interior rooms of light and shadow, and dynamic and important works of art, the book also makes a stunning gift or presentation, aligning state-of-the-art contemporary architecture with a collection of works from some of New Zealand’s leading artists Foreword; Steve Wakefield, chair Ravenscar Trust Foreword: Anthony Wright, director Canterbury Museum Preface: A biography of a building Chapter One: A coat with silver buttons Chapter Two: Dream of the south Chapter Three: Ravenscar Trust Collection Chapter Four: Search for a new home Chapter Five: The new Ravenscar House Conversation with Andrew Patterson Conclusion: From house to house museum Notes Index

Additional information