press kit
The art collection at Rosewood Kauri Cliffs is a mindful tribute to New Zealand’s art talents, with some of the country’s best represented within the main lodge and the adjacent Owner’s Cottage. With each piece selected by lodge founders Julian and Josie Robertson and carefully sighted within warm and inviting roomscapes, the result feels more like personal collection than museum, though several works would be contenders for such a home.
Set amidst the natural Northland beauty of New Zealand’s Bay of Islands, Rosewood Kauri Cliffs could rest on its natural attributes alone. When combined with the man-made creations of architecture, art and design, the truly spectacular results.
Local Treasures: New Zealand Artists
Rosewood Kauri Cliffs showcases a diverse selection of work by prominent New Zealand artists throughout the lodge. The first work guests see upon entering the front doors is the large landscape to the left of the spacious and wide foyer by Stanley Palmer (b. 1936) It’s a striking painting of tall palms, set against a vast and hazy blue sky whose long and low horizon line meets the undulating land below. It is almost surreal in feel, a romanticised landscape that captivates and delights the viewer. The Auckland based painter and printmaker is well known for his depictions of a rugged New Zealand landscape. This work is perhaps a bit more atypical of his oft depicted coastlines and offshore islands such as the spectacular Cavalli Islands, lying just beyond the lodge.
A second work by Stanley Palmer graces the walls of the lodge’s Owner’s Cottage, this a perfectly calm view of two Cavalli Islands, serenely set withing the blue waters and hazy vistas. From oceans and skies, brush to beach, to valleys, pastures, rock formations, and islands, Palmer’s oeuvre graciously encompasses New Zealand, constructing a personal vision of specific locations he loves. This sense of space and place is skilfully documented in Palmer’s work.
A pleasing, traditional landscape in the dining room is by British-born New Zealand artist David J. Payne (1880-1959). Trained as a painter, etcher, and lithographer, Payne arrived in New Zealand in 1906. Titled Pohutakawas & the South West Wind, the oil on canvas (1916) is quintessentially New Zealand in is depiction of bending native trees and an untamed land, its deep perspective drawing the viewer into the landscape and provokes a sense of wonder and rugged, natural beauty.
Another favourite New Zealand landscape painter represented by several works throughout the property is Peter Beadle (1933-2021), known for his distinct and evocative depictions of rugged landscapes. While based in South Island Central Otago, these two Peter Beadle paintings are North Island depictions. One of which is a scene from the 14th tee on the Kauri Cliffs Golf Course, looking down from the cliffs to the sea below, depicting Josie Robertson’s favourite view, and serving as a window into the lodge’s stunning surrounds, inviting guests to further connect with the beautiful environment they are amidst.
A second work by Beadle is of the dramatic cliffs of Cape Kidnappers, with the unusual rock formations jutting out from the Sea, and often referred to as “the tooth”.
The Kauri Cliffs Two Bedroom Villa is an inviting setting for yet more New Zealand art. An oil painting of a man on a beach with flax ketes by Russell Hollings (b1948) is both restful and melancholy, harkening back to carefree days spent at the beach. Known primarily as still-life and landscape painter, Russell Hollings works from observation and experience, with plein-air painting his first love. Hollings like to paint his subject in one sitting, capturing the elusive light of the moment. His portrayals of New Zealand landscapes reflect the subtle aspects of mood and atmosphere, while his sense of line and perspective is considered, his palette is distinctive and his subjects unique.
Also in the Two Bedroom Villa hallway is a large canvas painting, a landscape scene by Hawke’s Bay artist and family friend, Jo (Fisher) Speedy. Wellington-born artist Jo Speedy lives and works in Te Awanga, just down the road from sister lodge Rosewood Cape Kidnappers’ gates. Her ethereal landscapes are both fluid and distinct, capturing in oil the beauty of Hawke’s Bay and beyond.
A personal touch in the Villa is perhaps not the most monetarily valuable work in the collection, however it is a special piece. It’s a circular wall plaque made entirely of shells, foraged, and collected on the property’s Pink Beach and artistically formatted by lodge founder Josie Robertson. A trained artist, Josie’s creative talents are evident in this work, just as they are throughout the entire lodge.
International Art in the Spa at Rosewood Kauri Cliffs
Adding a touch of unexpected, and surreal, international flair to a spa set amidst a totara forest in Northland New Zealand is, an original work by Spanish artist Miro (1893 – 1993). The bright, almost whimsical work on paper bears all the hallmarks of the Spanish great’s work, the imagery both playful and colourful and childlike, encased behind glass in a gilt frame.
The collection that unfolds throughout the property, from the main lodge to the guest suites and villas to the spa, represent a thoughtful and personal taste of the Robertsons. Many of the New Zealand works, including landscapes and botanicals, as well as wood blocks and indigenous works, were personally selected by Julian and Josie Robertson, and often purchased from artists who then became friends, as was the case with Peter Beadle. Sophisticated, stylish, clever, and creative, Rosewood Kauri Cliffs blends these characteristics seamlessly in an unforgettable New Zealand hideaway setting.
