Hilma af Klint: The Secret Paintings

Overview

A record-breaking exhibition is set to open in Wellington this weekend, showcasing a series of mysterious works that have captivated audiences worldwide.

Hilma af Klint: The Secret Paintings opens at City Gallery Wellington on Saturday, December 4, the first time the world-class exhibition has come to Aotearoa after breaking attendance records at the New York's Guggenheim Museum in 2019.

The exhibition features more than 100 paintings from the Swedish artist, including The Ten Largest – a series of brightly coloured paintings towering over three metres tall, through which Klint expressed the four stages of human development.

Other major works from the series Paintings for the Temple will be on show, as well as Klint's early botanical watercolours which have been seen rarely by the public. The exhibition also features more than 30 abstract watercolours from the last decades of her life and a selection of her notebooks.

The exhibition runs from December 4, 2021 until March ⁠27, 2022, and City Gallery Director Elizabeth Caldwell says she's thrilled that New Zealanders have the opportunity to experience this world-class exhibition.

"Hilma af Klint's work has changed the course of art history and what we believed were the beginnings of abstract art," she said in a statement.

"Her work is revolutionary and inspiring, we can't wait for our audiences to view these powerful works up close."

Celeste Fontein