Ans Westra, CNZM (1936 - 2023) was one of New Zealand's most significant photographers from the second half of the 20th Century. Born in Leiden, Netherlands, she migrated to New Zealand in 1957 as part of an assisted passage scheme. After living in Auckland for a year, she moved to Wellington were her interest in photography soon became a passion. She joined the Wellington Camera Club and worked as an assistant in various professional studios before becoming a freelance photographer. She soon developed a particular interest in documenting contemporary Māori life which until then had largely been ignored by most other photographers. Her work was first published in New Zealand within in the Department of Māori Affairs quarterly magazine Te Ao Hou / The New World but she came into national prominence following the controversial publication of the 1964 Department of Education school bulletin Washday at the Pa. Westra documented much of the country on numerous travels but paid special attention to her adopted city, Wellington. This collection of her work owned by Wellington City Libraries was selected by the former Local History Librarian Hilda McDonnell who had been tasked with establishing a photograph collection in the late 1970s. A broad selection of over 350 images showing different aspects of Wellington life were chosen from contact sheets. These were hand-printed by Ans in her own darkroom and then purchased by the central library for their collection.
Wellington City Libraries wish to express our sadness at the news of Ans Westra's passing in February 2023. We are eternally grateful to Ans Westra, her family and her agent {Suite} gallery for granting us permission to digitise our collection of her work on this platform in 2022.
Please note the copyright of all the photographs in this collection continues to be held by the estate of Ans Westra. Please forward all requests for copies, permission use and reproduction to Ans Westra's agent, {Suite} gallery by emailing westra@suite.co.nz or phone +64 4 976 7663 during normal business hours. Please quote the original negative reference number (when given) if making enquiries. Please visit the {Suite} website for further information.
