Ravenscar House: A Biography

Many exciting new buildings have arisen from the rubble of post-earthquake Christchurch but none, perhaps, is as remarkable as Ravenscar House in the heart of the city's heritage precinct. Ravenscar House: A biography explores the story of this unique, purpose-built house museum as the realisation of a long-held dream and the expression of a heart-warming act of public philanthropy. Christchurch journalist and writer Sally Blundell tells the compelling story of Jim and Susan Wakefield, whose vision was to share with their community the eclectic and impressive collection of art and artefacts that they had endowed to the charitable Ravenscar Trust. After their house on Scarborough Hill was demolished following the Canterbury earthquakes, the couple were determined to commission a new house museum, filled with a wide range of works by leading New Zealand artists such as Frances Hodgkins, Colin McCahon, and Bill Sutton. Designed by renowned architects Patterson Associates, the Wakefields' bold but elegant addition to the city was opened in 2021. Sally Blundell's engaging text is enhanced by family photographs and stunning images of Ravenscar House and the works within its walls.

Author: Sally Blundell
Publisher: Canterbury University Press
Published: 05/23/2022
Pages: 224
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 2.05lbs
Size: 9.84h x 7.56w x 0.94d
ISBN13: 9781988503226
ISBN10: 1988503221
BISAC Categories:
- Biography & Autobiography | General
- Art | Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions | General

About the Author
Sally Blundell, a journalist and writer in Christchurch, has a PhD in English literature from the University of Canterbury. She has been books and culture editor for the New Zealand Listener and was a fiction judge for the 2018 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Her essay contributions include 'Not Listening: Changing Conversations in the Wake of the Mosque Shootings' (Public Knowledge, ed. Emma Johnson, 2019) and 'Reoccupying Christchurch' (Extraordinary Anywhere, ed. Ingrid Horrocks and Cherie Lacey, 2016).