Amatuer genealogist and novice artist, Christine Mottram (née Lovett), has always found beauty and inspiration in her environment. From her surroundings, she has coaxed colours of various hues and pedigrees to synchronize and unite in a bright display to celebrate the diverse nature of realism in portraiture and landscape. A resident of the highly creative community in Christchurch, Christine details her journey of realising her passions and chasing her dreams after retirement.
Born in 1941 in the historic Naval town of Harwich, UK, during the height of World War II, after the death of her father, Christine and her mother immigrated to New Zealand in 1950 to escape the aftermath of one of the world’s most horrific wars. On entering Aotearoa, the Lovett family stayed in Pigeon Bay, Banks Peninsula, before relocating and settling in Papanui, a shining example of why Christchurch has been dubbed ‘The Garden City’. The decision to move to New Zealand proved its worth from the beginning, and this fact was soon confirmed when Christine entered Papanui High School, where she was encouraged to explore her budding creativity in art classes taught by renown New Zealand artist John Coley. “An artist’s job is to communicate directly to the audience in a visual representation of ideas that cannot be communicated or explained in any other way”, said John Coley in a RNZ interview.
Christine Mottram
