Una Platts
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{{Infobox person/Wikidata|fetchwikidata=ALL|alma_mater=Auckland University College|birth_date=1908}}
Una Platts (1908 – 6 July 2005) was a New Zealand artist and one of the country's first art historians.{{Cite news|url=https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/15194/portrait-of-una-platts|title=Portrait of Una Platts|work=Auckland Art Gallery|access-date=3 September 2017|language=en}}
Life and career
Platts was born in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1908. Her father was Charles Oakley Platts, a government official; her mother was Flora Galbraith. The family later moved to Auckland where Platts attended the Diocesan School for Girls and Auckland University College from 1926 to 1927. On graduating, she began work as a teacher.{{Cite web|url=http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/msonline//images/manuscripts/inventories/nzms1377inventory.pdf|title=Una Platts Papers|access-date=3 September 2017}}
In the 1950s, Platts worked for the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki curating a series of exhibitions showcasing colonial artists and the early history of Auckland. Her most notable work, Nineteenth century New Zealand artists: a guide and handbook, published in 1980, was the result of 26 years of research and is considered the finest single source of information on early New Zealand artists.{{Cite news |url= https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/8848/portrait-of-una-platts|title=Portrait of Una Platts|work=Auckland Art Gallery |access-date=3 September 2017|language=en}}{{Cite web|url=http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/Heritage/Publications/Art/Platts-19thC/ |title=Nineteenth century New Zealand artists : a guide & handbook |website=christchurchcitylibraries.com |publisher=Christchurch City Libraries |language=en|access-date=3 September 2017}}
Notable New Zealand artists Colin McCahon and Olivia Spencer Bower painted her portrait, and both these artworks plus her own work is held in the collection of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki.{{Cite news|url=https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/15314/self-portrait-of-me|title=Self portrait of me|work=Auckland Art Gallery|access-date=3 September 2017|language=en}}
Platts died in the Auckland region on 6 July 2005.{{cite web|url=https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artist/2810/|title=Una Platts|last=|first=|date=|website=|publisher=Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329075031/https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artist/2810|archive-date=2019-03-29|accessdate=20 January 2019}}
Works
- The Lively Capital: Auckland 1840–1865, Avon Fine Prints, Christchurch, 1971
- {{cite book| title=Nineteenth Century New Zealand Artists: A Guide & Handbook |publisher=Avon Fine Prints |location=Christchurch |year=1980}}{{Cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/nz-painting-history/further-information |title=History of New Zealand painting: Further information |website=NZHistory |language=en|access-date=3 September 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-PlaNine.html|title=Nineteenth Century New Zealand Artists: A Guide & Handbook {{!}} NZETC|website=nzetc.victoria.ac.nz|access-date=2020-01-01}}
References
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Category:University of Auckland alumni
Category:People from Wellington City
Category:20th-century New Zealand artists
Category:New Zealand art historians
Category:New Zealand women artists
Category:20th-century New Zealand historians
Category:20th-century New Zealand women writers
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