This fascinating look at artists and their intimate partners takes nine
well-known New Zealand couples and explores the many aspects of their
lives--particularly how the presence of an artistic companion or soul
mate impacts the art they produce. Combining the pleasures of gossip
with information about how these artists have conducted their lives,
this illuminates many of the themes found in the artists' paintings,
poems, and films that revolve around their partners and the strains of
producing serious art in a small and isolated country. The couples
include Gil and Pat Hanly, Colin and Anne McCahon, Sylvia and Peter
Siddell, Frances Hodgkins and D. K. Richmond, James K. Baxter and
Jacquie Sturm, Kendrick Smithyman and Mary Stanley, Rudall and Ramai
Hayward, Toss and Edith Woollaston, and Meg and Alister te Ariki
Campbell. All told, nine painters, six poets, two filmmakers, and a
photographer are included.