Francis Rei Paul Hamon (17 December 1919 – 16 August 2008) was a New Zealand landscape artist. In 1976, his lithograph ''Jewels of Okarito'' was presented to
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
by the New Zealand Government on the occasion of a state visit.
Hamon was born in 1919 the son of a white mother and a part-Maori father and grew up in
Gisborne, New Zealand
Gisborne is a List of cities in New Zealand, city in northeastern New Zealand and the largest settlement in the Gisborne District (or Gisborne Region). It has a population of Gisborne District Council has its headquarters in the central city.
...
.
Career
Utilizing a self-taught style of
pointillism
Pointillism (, ) is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image.
Georges Seurat and Paul Signac developed the technique in 1886, branching from Impressionism. The term "Pointillism ...
, Hamon's familiarity with the flora and fauna of the bush grew from the time that he worked splitting posts for sheep pens in the forests of the
Urewera
Te Urewera is an area of mostly forested, sparsely populated rugged hill country in the North Island of New Zealand, located inland between the Bay of Plenty and Hawke Bay. Te Urewera is the ''rohe'' (historical home) of Tūhoe, a Māori iwi ...
area.
Hamon was appointed a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
, for services to art, in the
1981 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1981 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countrie ...
. In 2010, a documentary on Hamon premiered, ''Rei Hamon: Man of Nature''.
Personal life
Hamon was the oldest of fourteen children and the father of fourteen more.
[Oman, Richard G]
"Rei Hamon"
''Church News
The ''Church News'' (formerly ''LDS Church News'') is a multi-platform supplement and subdivision of the ''Deseret News'', a Salt Lake City, Utah newspaper owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (informally, the LDS Church). ...
'', 22 September 2021. Retrieved on 9 April 2021. Hamon was a member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
(LDS Church).
See also
*
Chuck Close
Charles Thomas Close (July 5, 1940 – August 19, 2021) was an American painter, visual artist, and photographer who made massive-scale photorealism, photorealist and abstract portraits of himself and others. Close also created photo portraits ...
*
Henri-Edmond Cross
Henri-Edmond Cross (; 20 May 1856 – 16 May 1910), born Henri-Edmond-Joseph Delacroix (), was a French painter and printmaker. He is most acclaimed as a master of Neo-Impressionism and he played an important role in shaping the second phase ...
References
Further reading
* Rei Hamon, Artist of the New Zealand Bush, p. 164.
* Rei Hamon, "Jewels of Okarito," printed by The Thames Star Co., Ltd., Thames, New Zealand.
*
*
External links
James C. ChristensenGreenwich Workshop Biography
1919 births
2008 deaths
New Zealand Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Latter Day Saint artists
New Zealand artists
Ngāi Tāmanuhiri people
New Zealand Latter Day Saints
People from Gisborne, New Zealand
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