Past Presents highlights the depth and diversity of Te Papa's art collections through a twin focus on the history of those collections and the history of New Zealand art over the past 150 years. The selection of artworks displayed ranges from recognisable favourites to surprising lesser-known pieces. Both local and international works are included.

The exhibition has five main parts. These trace both the changing trends in our collection policy and the changing face of New Zealand art over the same period. It also follows changes in collection interests, from a time New Zealand connected strongly with a British and European tradition to a twentieth century aesthetic focus centred on the Pacific region.

Rembrandt van RIJN, Self-Portrait drawing at a Window, 1648.

'Past Masters', the pre-1900 section of the exhibition, seeks to encapsulate the period before the opening of the National Art Gallery by representing the sense of 'art history' favoured by early colonial society. The ways in which the art of European old masters found its way into New Zealand collections are also explored and illustrated by the contributions of two private collectors: Bishop Monrad and Sir John Ilott. Their donated collections of prints include works by such artists as Dürer, Rembrandt, Manet, Hogarth, and Mantegna.

'New Century' covers art from the early twentieth century through to the 1930s. Historically, this period was defined by our strong relationship with Britain, and this close interaction is reflected in the collecting priorities of the time. One of the themes explored is that of the expatriate artist for whom travel to Europe was a crucial stage of their development.

'Home Ground' features New Zealand modernism (1940s and 1950s) and is a section specifically concerned with local art practice, and features some of the best known names in New Zealand art, such as Rita Angus, Colin McCahon, and Gordon Walters. However, they are often represented in the exhibition by unexpected or lesser-known works. Examples of international modernism were being acquired for the national collections during this period and representing this is a dazzling collection of British futurist prints gifted to the National Art Gallery.

Frank WEITZEL, Abstract Design No. 2, c. 1930.

'Pacific Boundaries' covers the period 1960-1990, when the national collections turned their focus away from the United Kingdom and toward the USA and the Pacific. This section represents a varied selection of media and approaches from a late assemblage by Marcel Duchamp to a Larry Rivers' abstract painting, to tivaevae. The collecting of contemporary New Zealand art was now a priority for national institutions, and artists were putting considerable energy into defining a local identity. The selection of New Zealand works in this section reflects the richness of one of the most productive periods in New Zealand art practice.

'Collecting the Contemporary' features a selection of recent art acquisitions not previously exhibited by Te Papa and serves as a snapshot of current collection interests.