Provenance:

Private Collection, Wellington Purchased directly from the artist 1977

Auckland born Binney grew up in Parnell where he took art classes with John Weeks. From 1958 - 1961 he was a student at Elam School of Fine Arts. He later becoming Head of Painting at Elam, teaching there for twenty four years until retirement in 1998. Binney is one of New Zealand's leading contemporary artists. He was awarded an OBE for services to the arts in 1995.

Binney describes himself as a figurative painter concerned with the psychic metaphor of the environment. Works frequently feature the west coasts of Northland and Auckland. Native birds, sea, sky and landforms reflect the artist's connection, respect and innate understanding of environment.

Whilst not a bird painting, Aspect of Erangi is a major work. The unmistakable Binney land and sea yields to a defined horizon line, above which a fabulous cloud formation mirrors the outstretched wings of wild gulls.