art show

Home. And happiness.

| Anna Cull

The first month of 2025 has been a strange mix of happy holiday memories of our Christmas in Melbourne (more on that in my next post), of summer colds that we caught just as soon as we arrived home in Christchurch (such a cliché), and of plans for art exhibitions and gigs that make us feel like we are finally (finally!) getting started with this new year.

The first of these events is this weekend at Arvida Park Lane in Christchurch and will feature the work of over fifty artists. Not only will you find paintings and drawings on show in a variety of styles from traditional landscapes, abstract art and contemporary portraiture, but there will also be jewellery, pottery and a variety of sculptural artworks available. The show is a cash and carry event which means that you can take the art you buy home with you straight away.

Arts Canterbury at Arvida Park Lane
1st and 2nd February, 10am-4pm
35 Whiteleigh Avenue, Addington, Christchurch

Then I’ll be singing with my husband as covers duo Pavlova Paradise at Little River Farmers Market on Sunday, February 16th and in Lincoln the following Sunday at the Selwyn District Council’s ‘Month of Sundays’ event.

As much as I really enjoyed our holiday (and I really did), it is very good to be home.


“Trees have long thoughts, long-breathing and restful, just as they have longer lives than ours. They are wiser than we are, as long as we do not listen to them. But when we have learned how to listen to trees, then the brevity and the quickness and the childlike hastiness of our thoughts achieve an incomparable joy. Whoever has learned how to listen to trees no longer wants to be a tree. He wants to be nothing except what he is. That is home. That is happiness.”

Hermann Hesse 

As good as a holiday?

| Anna Cull

It’s been a little quiet in the Art Cave lately. No new paintings, no new songs, not even a haiku. I’ve been spring cleaning (an extremely rare event in this house) and while the dusting and tidying has been strangely satisfying (and quite a nice change of pace given the flurry of painting activity in the first half of the year), it really doesn’t make for very interesting blog posts. But now it’s show time again.

I will be one of more than 70 local contemporary artists exhibiting at this year’s Artarama in Christchurch. Gala Opening Night is this Friday (tickets $25pp) and then it will be open to the public over the weekend (there is a small entrance fee on show days, with proceeds being donated to BrainTree Wellness Centre). Please visit the Artarama Facebook page for more details.

I will eventually return to the easel ~ I have a whole year’s worth of paintings planned which is quite exciting ~ but now that I’ve almost finished the house, I’m pretty sure I can hear the garden calling my name.

ARTARAMA
Gala Opening Night: Friday 11th October, 6pm – 8:30pm
Show Days: Saturday 12th October, 10am – 4pm and Sunday 13th October, 10am – 2pm
Cobham Intermediate School Hall, 294 Ilam Road, Christchurch (NZ)

Pegasus Bay Art Show 2023

six New Zealand landscape paintings of trees and houses by Anna Cull exhibited at Pegasus Bay Art Show 2023
| Anna Cull
landscape paintings by NZ artist Anna Cull
My panel at this year’s Pegasus Bay Art Show

It’s officially the first day of spring here in New Zealand and it’s raining art shows. Following on from a successful exhibition at The Bridge Hub in August, last night we set up for the Pegasus Bay Art Show.

My panel this year includes four brand new paintings. And by “brand new” I mean that I finished painting them over the weekend. When I signed up to take part, I only had two paintings that met the criteria (which included that artworks be less than three years old). Silly me, I thought that three months would be enough time to sort that out… but then I decided to exhibit at The Bridge and paint three new paintings for that show. Time was ticking. Ticking. Ticking.

It was the Pleasant Valley Sundays (the three square landscapes, bottom left) that almost broke me. But I made it. Just. I’ll write more about them and the new treescape painting (top left) and show you some WIPs in my next two posts.

The Pegasus Bay Art Show is open Saturday and Sunday with more than 70 artists taking part this year. And tonight is opening night. Exciting!

Mountains ahead to climb

| Anna Cull

The High Country — acrylic on canvas panel, framed, 2018. SOLD

“It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it’s the pebble in your shoe.” Muhammad Ali

Now framed, ‘The High Country’ will be making its debut at this year’s Pegasus Bay Art Show (Waimakariri, NZ). Artworks from 78 local artists will be exhibited and available for purchase. There will also be an art display by the children of Pegasus Bay School which I am very much looking forward to seeing. The art show runs from 21st – 23rd September.

🏔 Onward and upward. 🏔

Fancy a bit of culture?

| Anna Cull

How about an art show or two? The annual Pegasus Bay Art Show is on this weekend with more than 60 artists exhibiting as a fundraiser for Pegasus Bay School. Opening night is tomorrow, Friday 13th October. Show days are Saturday and Sunday 14th–15th October. I will have a selection of landscapes and abstracts at the exhibition and will be there Friday night and late Sunday afternoon.

I also have a couple of paintings at Darfield Artweek which is on now and runs until Sunday 15th October. Over 300 artworks by local artists are being exhibited at the Darfield Recreation Centre, the Selwyn Gallery, and the Darfield Library. All artworks are available for purchase.

Please click on the posters above for more information about the exhibitions. Both shows are well worth a visit AND it’s a lovely time of year for a drive in the Canterbury countryside.

Opening night

| Anna Cull

Here’s a video of opening night which was put together by the nice folk from the Christchurch Art Show. If you pay close attention, you can see my little corner of the exhibition at the two-minute mark : ) but you’ll have to be quick — blink and you’ll miss it.