Sarjeant Happenings: Jade Townsend is the new Tylee Cottage artist-in-residence

Tylee Cottage's new artist-in-residence is multi-disciplinary artist Jade Townsend.

Walking by the Tylee Cottage the other day, sunlight was streaming into wide-open French doors and the desk, piled with books, was placed in prime position to view the goings-on outside.

Gentle music was floating on to the porch where a young whānau were playing with collected beach treasure – pumice and shells. It’s clear the cottage has truly become home for artist-in-residence Jade Townsend.

The depth of meaning in that moment was striking as it’s also a return home to her tūrangawaewae, where she grew up, and a whakapapa that links her all the way up the awa to Rānana and Hiruharama, where her grandparents were born.

“The Tylee Cottage has been part of my consciousness since I was a child, so to be living in the cottage now feels quite cosmic and like it was always on the cards.

“My godmother used to work at the Sarjeant, and my mum and dad would take me to visit her there. Having that gallery normalised for me as a place where I could dream into and learn about artworks, and see my whānau – made it a realistic place to aim for, in terms of showing my own belief systems within that gallery space one day.”

Townsend is a multi-disciplinary artist but a devoted painter at heart. During her childhood, Townsend’s father was also a painter, working as a signwriter in town. She recalls accompanying him on the job.

“He made painting seem like a super cool job. There was something so resourceful and impactful about turning up with a box of paintbrushes and painting a whole entire window and that being his job. I admired his draughtsmanship and how much pride he took with his gift.

“I moved to the UK with my mother when I was 14 and became one of those classic loner kids who spend all their time in the art room or the library at lunchtime and that became my refuge when I was feeling out of place, culturally, at that time.”

From here, Townsend went on to study painting at Manchester Metropolitan University, looking to the popular artists at the time, who were first-generation black British artists. As a student coming to terms with her own cultural dichotomy being both British and Māori – she was inspired by the way they were able to explore their cultural identity as birds of the world.

“They had this freedom of absorbing all this stuff that turned them on – like music, food, their sexuality, fashion – and constructing an identity from it.”

This residency is as much a choice made by a mother thinking about the future of her young Māori sons as it is about building on her art practice. What drives Townsend as an artist, and a mother, is passing on intergenerational taonga via visualised multi-layered conversations and stories.

“Becoming a mother I realised there’s an arena of experiences that I need to somehow communicate so that my children have the tools to navigate some of the challenges I’ve faced.

“I came home to revitalise my connections so that my kids know where they belong and who their support network is.”

As a mokopuna of Te-Ātihaunui-a-pāpārangi and Ngāti Kahungunu, the pull of the awa became amplified during hapūtanga, carrying the next generation of her whakapapa. Being here she has been able to sit at the table with her nana and learn about the candid and ordinary experiences of being raised up the awa.

“It’s the everyday things, that are just passing comments, that aren’t an obvious knowledge exchange moment. Those flippant things that really start to paint this picture, that’s normally quite romantic to me, of this blessed upbringing in nature full of characters – the manu, trees and horses.”

This transfer of history through these personal moments, when translated visually in her work, have a universal way of connecting us all to the histories of this place. There are resonances in these personal anecdotes that thread through the bigger picture and story of Aotearoa.

Quite often the details in these stories lead to theories about how big decisions and historical moments have impacted whānau life generations later, giving insight into how decisions parents make today will affect future generations.

“One of the motivations for coming home was to learn more about the artists who are from Whanganui or who are making, practising and exhibiting in Whanganui now. The local artists’ commitment to their practices is really astounding. I’ve loved looking into different people’s studios and learning about their own hopes for what they’ll see at the Sarjeant.”

Looking ahead to the Sarjeant reopening, Townsend speaks about seeing the arts thriving and how that is directly connected to the cultural health and wellbeing of a place.

“I know it will be a place of inspiration and a place of congregation. I think about young mums having somewhere to meet and enjoy art with their children. Also the kura and kōhanga trips. I’m mainly thinking about the local community and its benefits but of course, it’s going to bring people from all around the world.”

Townsend acknowledges the efforts it takes to host and support an artist-in-residence and offers a mihi to the community wrapped around her at this time.

“I want to say a thank you to the Tinirau whānau and the Townsend whānau. Also thank you to Andrew Clifford, Greg Donson, Jessica Kidd and the entire Sarjeant Gallery team, Nicola Williams, Vanessa Edwards and all my friends who have been hosting me so beautifully.”