Historic prints on display at Akaroa Museum
A new temporary exhibition opened at Akaroa Museum over Easter: The view from Paris: Charles Meryon’s Pacific etchings.
As a young naval cadet officer, Charles Meryon (1821-1868) was stationed at Akaroa with the French corvette Rhin from 1843-1846. During that time, he made a wide variety of drawings: landscapes, portraits and natural history studies. More sketches were made when the Rhin visited the French Catholic mission stations that were dotted around the Pacific.
When he returned to France, Meryon became an etcher and was recognised as one of the masters of the medium. His work is represented in art collections around the world.
In the 1860s Meryon used Akaroa and other Pacific drawings to create a series of prints, ‘Voyage à la Nouvelle Zélande’ - A Voyage to New Zealand. This exhibition showcases five original prints from that Pacific series and continues through to October 2022.