John Edgar 1950-2021

One of New Zealand's self-taught artists, John Edgar has always retained strong links with, and a passion for the environment, his thoughts reflecting what we do with it and the damage we cause it.   Working in stone for twenty years and more, John is a master of his craft, his technique, and abilities outstanding. Spanning a career of over fifty years, John Edgar died on 3 April 2021.  A great loss for the Arts and a man who will be missed by many.

With a quiet elegance John Edgar's work sits solemnly waiting to be warmed by human contact; just as the stone Edgar works in waits in locations all over the world to be transformed by the artist.

John Edgar traveled annually on prospecting tours, selecting the best specimens he can find in India, Scotland and locally. He regularly works with Coromandel granite and common New Zealand greywacke river stones, and in recent years he has used Indian limestone. Edgar's works contrast stones by inserting crosses and lines, mimicking mathematical symbols, but also working the contrasting stone down to differing levels. The degree of accuracy needed to achieve this is minute and the margin for error is negligible.

In 2009 he became an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for services to art, in particular sculpture.  In the same year Edgar mounted a major exhibition Ballast in Edinburgh, with works made from Scottish-sourced stone.

Key stages in his career have been covered with nationally touring exhibitions Calculus 2002-2004, Lie of the Land 1998-1999, Cross Country 1996 and Making Amends 1993-1995.  In 2012, his sculpture Lie of the Land was installed in the Savill Garden, the New Zealand Garden at Windsor, United Kingdom.  

His public sculptures in Auckland are in the Auckland Domain, Queen Street and Waitakere City Civic Centre.  Edgar was actively involved in conservation and environmental projects and was the President of the Waitakere Ranges Protection Society for thirteen years. He was also on the Trust Board of the Corbans Estate Arts Centre. 

"For thirty years I have been trying to make good sense in my art.  I have attempted to imbue my work with both the essence of the mountain, the river and the vast array of knowledge that is available to us in the 21st century.  It's a difficult task to teach a stone to talk.  But if you listen carefully you might just catch a word or two."  - John Edgar, 2006