PROVENANCE Private Collection, Auckland Important Paintings and Contemporary Art, Webb's Auckland, 09/08/2011, lot 36

Choreograph Screen is a signature work by a towering figure in the history of contemporary New Zealand art. For over forty years Bill Hammond, who passed away earlier this year, made a vital contribution to New Zealand art. These works now pass into the realm of legacy. Hammond is best known for his magical, haunting bird paintings, reflective of the artist's deep and personal engagement with our country's environmental and colonial history.

Choreograph Screen, comprised of four highly decorated panels is both an artwork and an item of luxury furniture.

Here, the hand of the master is instantly recognisable in the rich and complex renderings of its unique subjects. Part-animal, part-human, these creatures preside over a fantastical landscape illuminated by copper toned backdrops and foregrounds. Within the work there is a sense of the modern Gothic accentuated by the drips of running paint typical of Hammond's work. Whilst each panel retains its individual strength and story, the four together create a visual and artistic tour de force.