Just Looking

An avid collector of works of art, and long fascinated by how artists see the world, Peter Bland has drawn together poems for his 85th birthday that hes written over the years about paintings and the visual image. Never the name-dropper or cultural snob, Bland lines up art by a child alongside art by Brueghel or Gauguin, and then takes the reader into the story of the painter or the painting, both shining new light and deepening the mystery.

Peter was born in Yorkshire in 1934 and emigrated to New Zealand twenty years later, for many years dividing his time between the two countries. He was associated with the Wellington group of poets which included James K Baxter and Louis Johnson, and is now a much-loved part of the Auckland poetry scene. Bland has written plays, poems, childrens books and a memoir, and is the recipient of numerous awards for his poetry including the Prime Ministers Award for Literary Excellence.

Featured in the 15 April 2019 New Zealand newsletter.
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