Skip to content
Te Papa Store
(0) Cart
Te Papa Store
Search
Log in
Cart (0) Cart
  • ART | TOIToggle menu
    • NZ ART PRINTS | Mātātuhi Aotearoa
    • DECORATIVE ART | Toi Whakarākei
    • MUSEUM COLLECTION PRINTS | Mātātuhi mai i kohinga o Te Papa
    • TE PAPA FINE ART PRINTS | Ngā Tānga Rauangi a Te Papa
  • NZ DESIGNED | TAUIRA MAI AOTEAROAToggle menu
    • ARTISAN HOMEWARE | Taputapu Toi
    • CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES | He pūeru, he whakapaipai Toggle menu
      • Jewellery
      • Tote Bags
      • Accessories
    • ORNAMENTS & COLLECTABLES
  • KIDS | TAMARIKIToggle menu
    • NZ KIDS BOOKS | Pukapuka tamariki Aotearoa
    • NZ TOYS | Taonga tākaro Aotearoa
  • BOOKS | PUKAPUKAToggle menu
    • NZ BOOKS | Pukapuka Aotearoa
    • NZ KIDS BOOKS | Pukapuka tamariki Aotearoa
    • TE PAPA PRESS | Tā Te Papa
  • GIFTS | TAONGA HOKOToggle menu
    • NZ CORPORATE GIFTS | He taonga hoko mai i Aotearoa
    • UNIQUE GIFT IDEAS | He taonga hoko motuhake
    • GIFTS FOR KIDS | He taonga hoko mā ngā tamariki
  • TAONGA
  • GALLIPOLI GIFTS | NGĀ TAPUWAE
  • WHOLESALE | HE RARAWE
  • Log in

Johannes Keulemans, 'Three Huia (Heteralocha acutirostris)', circa 1900 - Print

$79.00
Minus Plus

is backordered. We will ship it separately in 10 to 15 days.

The name of Sir Walter Lawry Buller is synonymous with A history of the birds of New Zealand, but the artist who produced its famous illustrations is less well known. Johannes Gerardus Keulemans was born in the Netherlands in 1842, and in 1869 he settled in London, where he became a highly popular illustrator of natural history publications.

Buller first published A history of the birds of New Zealand in 1873, having secured Keulemans, who was already establishing a name for himself, to do the illustrations. Keulemans never visited New Zealand, but drew from stuffed birds and specimens provided by Buller. For each illustration he first produced a drawing for Buller’s inspection, then a coloured painting, which served as the basis for the lithograph.

This remarkable painting was never published in any of Buller’s books. It may have been exhibited in the Fine Art Court of the New Zealand International Exhibition, 1906–07, as part of a display of the original watercolour studies for Buller’s book. This would have been a rare context for Keulemans’ work, which was highly valued for its scientific accuracy but not, until the later twentieth century, for its artistic qualities.

Keulemans was conscious of the paradox posed by his profession. He considered that most birds were not suitable to be printed in colour, as ‘you cannot draw them true to life and at the same time perfectly in harmony with the rules of the art of painting’.1 Nonetheless, this watercolour, which depicts one male and two female huia (the latter distinguished by their longer, curved bills), demonstrates his ability to blend scientific description with a lyrical touch. The pair are joined by a snowy white female huia, an extremely rare albino. These were known as huia-ariki by Māori.

The huia (Heteralocha acutirostris) was highly prized by Māori and Pākehā. Its white-tipped tail feathers were worn by Māori chiefs as status symbols, and the birds’ unique beauty and unusual features made them attractive to European collectors. In 1892 the government set aside two islands as public reserves for the conservation of the indigenous fauna and flora, and extended the provisions of the Wild Birds Protection Act to the huia, but this was not enough to save them. The last sighting of a huia in its natural environment was in 1907.



Please note that processing time for Museum Collection Prints/Mātātuhi mai i kohinga o Te Papa is 5 to 10 business days

Reproduction prints are as close as possible to the paper sizes available without compromising the aspect ratios of the original artworks


Share
  • Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Pinterest Pin the main image
Share
  • Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Pinterest Pin the main image
Our Museum
Shipping
Vouchers
Contact Us
  • Search
  • Email us
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
© 2021 TePapaStore. Powered by Shopify
American Express Apple Pay Google Pay Mastercard PayPal Shop Pay Visa