Robin Morrison | A Decade of Days Revisited: {Suite} Ponsonby

Robin Morrison (1944-1993) was a renowned Aotearoa New Zealand photographer best known for his unpretentious portrayal of landscapes, everyday lives and unique architecture. He had the rare gift of being able to connect with people from all walks of life; from iconic figures such as Sir Edmund Hillary, Janet Frame, and Billy T James, to shearing gangs, Anzac Veterans, and those living on the fringes of society. 

 Prior to his untimely death, Morrison gifted his archive to Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland Museum. Amongst other things, he had sorted a number of black and white prints into a folder he titled Decade of Days, which became the starting point for the development of an exhibition - A Decade of Days – Auckland Through Robin Morrison's Eyes - first shown at the Auckland Museum. 

A Decade of Days focussed on Morrison’s urban photography of Auckland in the 1970s and 1980s, originally captured for the New Zealand Listener. Beyond the Auckland Museum, the project included presentations of images at Manukau Institute of Technology and Fresh Gallery Otara to assist with community exploration of the people, places and themes represented in the photographs.

Now, drawing on the curatorial work undertaken by the Auckland Museum team for the 2013 show, this exhibition A Decade of Days Revisited – Robin Morrison has images selected by Morrison’s sons, Jake and Keir, and {Suite} Director David Alsop. This is the first exhibition co-ordinated by them, and marks the start of a concentrated effort to put Robin’s work back into the public spotlight.

We would like to thank Shaun Higgins, Pictorial Curator at the Auckland Museum, for his assistance and knowledge of the Robin Morrison archive. Shaun will provide a rare insight into the early black-and-white photojournalism of Morrison at {Suite} at 945am on Friday 2 May.

Click here to read Peter Simpson's text A Decade of Days Revisited: Robin Morrison.