FOCUS | ATHOL MCCREDIE
Celebrating 15 years of D-Photo, we take the opportunity to look back at a
formative time in Aotearoa’s photographic history: the 1970s and the birth
of contemporary photography. Photography historian Athol McCredie
walks us through a time that would change the face of local photography
foreverWORDS | ADRIAN HATWELLBIRTH OF THE NEW
ANS WESTRA, ROCK CONCERT, TE HORO, 1971The history of photography in Aotearoa is not ground that has
been as heavily surveyed as that of other art practices. That said,
there are a number of invaluable books on the subject, and the
name attached to some of the most significant is Athol McCredie.
Currently the curator of photography at the Museum of
New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Athol has approached
photography from almost every angle: as researcher, curator,
collection manager, writer, and photographer. In short, there are
few people more qualified to speak on New Zealand photography
of decades past.
In 2010, Athol produced Brian Brake: Lens on the World, the
definitive edition on our most internationally renowned
photographer. He followed this up with the lauded
New Zealand Photography Collected in 2015, which illuminates
photographic practice from the early 19th century through to
today’s artists. Athol now returns with The New Photography, a
deep dive into a period that would change the trajectory of local
photography — New Zealand’s first generation of contemporary,
or art, photographers.