GORDON TOVEY (1901-1974)
Mitre Peak / Rahotu (1,683m - 5,522 ft)
New Zealand (South Island)
In Mitre Peak, 1966, oil on canvas, Christchurh Art gallery.
The mountain
Mitre Peak/ Rahotu (1,683m - 5,522 ft) is an iconic mountain in the South Island of New Zealand, located on the shore of Milford Sound. It is one of the most photographed peaks in the country. The distinctive shape of the peak in southern New Zealand gives the mountain its name, after the mitre headwear of Christian bishops. It was named by Captain John Lort Stokes of the HMS Acheron.
Part of the reason for its iconic status is its location. Close to the shore of Milford Sound, in the Fiordland National Park in the southwestern South Island, it is a stunning sight. The mountain rises near vertically from the water of Milford Sound, which technically is a fjord.
The peak is actually a closely grouped set of five peaks, with Mitre Peak not even the tallest one, however from most easily accessible viewpoints, Mitre Peak appears as a single point.
Milford Sound is part of Te Wahipounamu, a World Heritage Site as declared by UNESCO.
The only road access to Milford Sound is via State Highway 94, in itself one of the most scenic roads in New Zealand.
Arthur Gordon Tovey was a notable New Zealand artist, art teacher and administrator, educationalist, and writer. Born in Wellington, he started exhibiting in 1922, and in 1924 he took a job as an artist with the Railways Advertising Branch. This work took him to London, where some of his posters for the Southern Railway Posters won praise. In 1930, following his marriage, he moved back to New Zealand, and two years later he began teaching art at the Dunedin School of Art at King Edward Technical College. He rose to be head of the school in 1937 and became known for innovative programs integrating the visual and performing arts. His students in this period included Colin McCahon and Doris Lusk.
During World War II, he worked on camouflage.
In 1943, he became a full-time art lecturer at Dunedin Training College, where he again introduced educational innovations. In 1946, he was appointed the first supervisor of art and craft for the Wellington Department of Education. He was particularly interested in fostering understanding of, and education in, Maori arts, crafts, music, and mythology, and he wrote two books on these subjects, Art and Craft for the South Pacific (1959) and The arts of the Maori (1961).
He retired in 1966, returning to painting and writing full-time. During this period, he published an epic poem, The Twice Born Seed.
