Offered:

two weekday evening talks followed by a day-long train excursion to the Auckland Art Gallery and talk on Modern Art

  • • When: includes two 7:00-8:30pm talks on Tuesday 9th and Thursday 11th September 2025 in Hamilton, followed by an all-day train excursion on Saturday 13 September 2025.

  • • Travel to and from Auckland on the Te Huia train from Frankton Railway Station to the Strand!

  • • Includes a guided tour of the new Pathways to Modernity exhibition at the Auckland Art Gallery.

Transportation

We'll take the Te Huia rail service on Saturday 13 September 2025 roundtrip from Frankton Station and the Strand in downtown Auckland.

• Bee Card fares ($24.06 each way) are a much cheaper option than paying the full fare ($40 each way). If you don't have a Bee Card, you can purchased one on the train upon departure onboard at the cafe, and top up with credit to pay for your fare. Alternatively, Bee Cards can be ordered on-line at beecard.co.nz and sent directly to your home in advance of our trip.

• Free fares are only available for Bee Card holders during off-peak hours and weekends as long as they also have a SuperGold Card (for those 65 years and older).

• SuperGold Cardholders can access free travel on this trip with their SuperGold concession loaded onto your Bee Card.

• If you're over 65 years of age you can apply for your SuperGold Card at www.supergold.govt.nz

• To load your SuperGold concession on to your registered Bee Card:

• Visit beecard.co.nz and add your SuperGold concession online

• Ring 0800 205 305

• Visit the BUSIT counter at the Hamilton Transport Centre or any of our Bee Card retailers around the region.

• Please meet on the platform at the Frankton Railway Station at 7:20am on Saturday 13 September 2025.

• The Saturday morning train departs Frankton Station at 7:35am and arrives at the Strand in Auckland at 10:03am.

• It's an approximately 25 min walk from the Strand to the Auckland Art Gallery. You can walk if you'd like or decide to take an Uber or similar from the Strand to the Art Gallery.

• There are two return trips on Saturday afternoon 13 September 2025:

• the first departing the Strand at 3:05pm and arriving back at Frankton Station at 5:36pm

• The second departure leaves the Strand at 5:30pm and arrives back at Frankton Station at 7:52pm.

• You can decide which train to return on.

Description:

Two talks on Modern Art in Hamilton (Tue 9th & Thu 11th September), followed by a day trip on the Te Huia train to the Auckland Art Gallery on Saturday 13 September 2025

  • • Auckland City Art Gallery has engaged with contemporary art in a new exhibition entitled “The Robertson Gift: Paths through Modernity.“

  • • This short course begins with two in-person talks on Modern Art on Tuesday 9th September and Thursday 11th September. The Hamilton location depends on how many enrolled participants, and will be decided a few weeks before the excursion.

  • • On loan from the Toledo Museum of Art is one of the best examples of modern art ever to put foot in the Auckland Gallery. 57 works by 53 artists. You'll see Monet, Degas, van Gogh, Cezanne, Picasso, Beckmann, Mondrian, Leger, Hofmann, Reinhardt, Diebenkorn and many others. They are absolute gems. This is a show not to be missed and Peter Dornauf with Norman Franke will be your guides to help take you round this feast of modern art, elucidating and commenting on the works on show.

  • • Following is the plan on the day of the Excursion (Saturday 13th September 2025):

  • • Upon arrival at the Strand, we may decide to walk the 20-30 mins to the Art Gallery, take public transport, or catch an Uber or two.

  • • Lunch: on your own. There's a Café inside the Art Gallery, or you can go to any of the many restaurants and eateries in the vicinity of the Art Gallery or on Queen Street.

  • • The morning session (approximately 10:30am-1:00pm) will include the guided tour, followed by lunch on your own. If you'd like, participants can choose to explore further artwork in the AAG's permanent collectionon their own. or can have some free time to explore other parts of the museum, Albert Park and the near-by shops such as Smith & Caughey's or Unity Books.

  • • Rememebr that you'll need to be back at the Strand for either the 3:05pm departure or the 5:30pm departure. You can chose which train to take.

Meet our two instructors and docents:

History, Literature & Philosophy Instructor Peter Dornauf, MA Dip Tchg

Peter Dornauf has taught in secondary schools, Wintec and Waikato University collectively for over 25 years. He is a well know Waikato artist, art critic and a writer of poetry, fiction and non-fiction. His book “Days of Our Deaths” serves as the basis for one of Peter’s other popular EarthDiverse courses, “A Cultural History of Death.” Peter also teaches our “The Spiritual in Modern Art” course and continues to develop additional EarthDiverse courses for future Terms.

German Instructor Dr Norman Franke , MA Hamburg, PhD Humboldt, Berlin

Dr Norman Franke is a New Zealand based scholar, poet and filmmaker. He has taught German as a second language for more than three decades to a wide range of learners, from refugees to academics. Norman has published widely about 18th-century literature as well as German-speaking exile literature (Albert Einstein, Else Lasker-Schüler, Karl Wolfskehl) and eco-poetics. Norman’s poetry has been broadcast on radio and published in anthologies in Austria, Germany, New Zealand, Switzerland, the UK and the USA. Norman also teaches other courses for EarthDiverse, including our new course on Sacred Poetry, and courses in Art, Literature and Philosophy.

Location:

The two evening talks will take place in Hamilton (location to be finalised), and on the day of the Excusion, we'll take the Te Huia train to Auckland.

Te Huia departs from the Frankton Railway Station at 7:35am. Please arrive by 7:25am in order to park and reach the platform in time for the trains departure.
Click here for directions to the Frankton Railway Station

Pricing options:

• Bring a friend or partner and save!

• Price includes the guided tour of the Auckland Art Gallery.

• Price does not include train transportation or lunch, however, with a SuperGold Card, and a Bee Card (for local public transport, including Te Huia, there is no cost for the train during weekends and other off-peak times.

• All prices include GST.

• If you are registering for two people, please email us the name of the second person or in the Notes or Options text box at checkout.

• Please email us if you'd like to come with a party of 3 or more.

Prerequisites:

A keen desire to enjoy yourself on this day outing and to appreciate Art!

  • There are no prerequisites for this excursion. This trip is family friendly.