Vonnie Sterritt says Julia Wallace Retirement Village has been very accommodating, allowing her to continue as an artist.
Vonnie Sterritt says Julia Wallace Retirement Village has been very accommodating, allowing her to continue as an artist.
Palmerston North residents might have noticed Vonnie Sterritt’s distinctive house and studio on Main St East sold earlier this year.
Thankfully for art lovers she has not moved far and is now encouraging others at her new home at Julia Wallace Retirement Village not to underestimate their talent.
Sterritt, 70,has Parkinson’s disease, and shifted in June.
Her endless fascination with New Zealand artistic settings is matched by her love of helping other artists develop their talents.
She has spent a lifetime contemplating landscapes, many of which she has translated on to canvas and watercolour paper.
In recent years, she has helped organise a series of Manawatū Art Expos in Palmerston North. “It’s a huge cultural event for our city.”
She is happy to live in a Ryman Healthcare village, and her family have strong links to the retirement village operator. Her sister Heather Barnett works in the Christchurch Ryman office, and her father Bill, a World War II veteran, lived in Rangiora-based Charles Upham Retirement Village until he died.
One of Vonnie Sterritt's paintings. "I paint this region, locale and all the surrounds, with a certain style and a commitment."
Sterritt’s father, a traffic officer for Central Otago and the West Coast, photographed landscapes. Then her mother would hand-colour, in oil, the printed black and white exposures. The resulting works would be exhibited in the South Island, including in Christchurch photography salons.
Sterritt’s earliest recollection of artistic talent was when as a 9-year-old she received a commendation for her work portraying a stag in a New Zealand health stamp design competition.
She attended the Ilam School of Fine Arts at the University of Canterbury and was the beneficiary of an amazing set of tutors including Bill Sutton, Rudolph Gopas and Doris Lusk.
She was the head of art at Awatapu College in Palmerston North and was later seconded to Massey University as an art adviser. She assessed students’ portfolios and assisted other art teachers in understanding the art curriculum.
Sterritt uses the atrium at Julia Wallace to paint and talk about technique. She says the village community has been welcoming and accommodating.
“They had no idea what a messy painter I was,” she jokes.
While Parkinson’s was part of her decision to move, it has not defined her nor inhibited her work.
“The Parkinson’s is in my right side and I’m left-handed. If there is anything fortuitous in this disease I think I’ve managed to avoid the worst ... I do notice when I’m painting the tremor is much less in my right-hand side … an excellent reason never to give up!”
