"I'm interested in what artists collect and how personal histories can interact with natural histories, cultural histories and wider social histories. Shows of this sort are not something we often see in art institutions in this country."
Outside the professional and public world of galleries and museums, O'Connor says artists are like whānau, with a network that is rich and not widely known about.
"Friendships between artists can be inspirational; we share each others' studios and give each other shelter when needed; it's like a subculture. We all give each other stuff, and exchange artworks. Artists' collections are very interesting; they are often found objects, which give you an interesting insight into the artist's work. I'm exploring this while I'm here."
O'Connor has brought some "relics" with him; gifts from fellow artists whom he will honour, such as a stack of 10 mountain-tea-bowls, all fused together, from the Hein dynasty (10th century), gifted to him by the master, avant-garde Japanese ceramicist Koie Ryoji. O'Connor stayed for a week with Ryoji at Tokoname, a historic ceramic site in Japan, during a residency in 1982.
Ryoji gave O'Connor some 10th-century bowls, which were still attached to the hand-sized lump of clay they had been stacked on during the Angama wood firing and imprinted with a thumbprint of the man who made them 1200 years ago. Another gift from Ryoji of nine sushi plates is on permanent display in the Asian hall of Auckland Museum.
O'Connor's homage to Ryoji will be entitled "The Two Lost Fingers of Koie Ryoji", and will include joinery by local specialist timber firm MacBlack. The backstory, which O'Connor will write to accompany the work, tells how Ryoji took O'Connor to visit a local pipe-making factory.
"Ryoji said 'this is where I worked when I was 15. I came here to learn about clay and I lost two fingers in a pugmill' (a big mill for mixing clay). Then he said something I will never forget: 'my life's work in clay (he died August 6, 2020, at 82) is searching for those two lost fingers'."
O'Connor's sculpture is about the two lost fingers of Koie Ryoji.
"He is one of the great artists of the 20th century, but because he was avant-garde, he wasn't embraced by the New Zealand studio pottery movement in the 1960s and 70s, when traditional potters like Shoji Hamada were."
During his time in Whanganui, O'Connor will develop artworks about artists and experiences that have both personal meanings and connections with wider social contexts and history. This will include encounters with the artist community and experiences of Whanganui, expressions in writing and possibly other media, which O'Connor frequently employs in his artworks.
O'Connor had a long-term connection with Whanganui potter, the late Ross Mitchell-Anyon.
"I was a good friend of Ross. He had a place on Waiheke Island for the last 35 years and he brought students to my place from time to time when he was teaching. I was looking forward to maybe doing some work at his place; however, since his death that won't happen. I'm thinking about his legacy and how to factor that into my work."
