Sara Hughes

In her forthcoming exhibition, Sara Hughes presents a personal and reflective new body of work shaped by ideas of memory, influence, and artistic lineage. Developed over several years, the project emerged as Hughes marked a milestone birthday, prompting a deeper look at how her childhood, family, and long engagement with art have informed her practice.

Having spent formative periods living and working internationally before settling more permanently in Aotearoa New Zealand, Hughes brings a layered perspective to questions of place, identity, and creative inheritance.  At the heart of this exhibition is a series of responses to the work of women artists who have significantly influenced her thinking and making—some encountered from afar, others from the past, and many through sustained admiration over time.

Hughes approaches this selection as a cross-generational conversation, using her own visual language to engage with the enduring influence of artists such as Frances Hodgkins, Mina Arndt, Louise Henderson, Agnes Martin, Jacqueline Fahey, Gretchen Albrecht, Phillipa Blair, Rosalie Gascoigne, Seraphine Pick, and Katharina Grosse. The exhibition brings together new works by Hughes alongside works by these artists, offering a layered reflection on how artistic influence is absorbed, reinterpreted, and carried forward through time.

We would like to extend our thanks to the collections who have loaned works for their generous contributions.