Landscape through creative eyes: Strands spun by Doris Lusk, Charles Brasch, Bill Sutton, Lyell Cresswell and David Griffiths

Abstract

This article explores previously undocumented connections between a group of New Zealand landscape paintings and the resulting poems, music and performance. This unplanned creative sequence, spanning 1964-2008, is the work of significant national cultural figures: Doris Lusk, Charles Brasch, W.A. Sutton, David Griffiths with The Ogen Trio, and Lyell Cresswell with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.  Questions arise around the meaning of creative interpretations of nature and landscape, the interface between different formats, and challenges in confirming the identity of artworks. The watercolours (several held in major institutions) and poems are reproduced, together with other supporting images and documentation.