Ans Westra. A Life in Photography by Paul Moon
Massey University Press, Auckland 2024 MARY MACPHERSON For nearly 70 years, Ans Westra photographed the life of Aotearoa New Zealand and its people, taking an estimated 325,000 images. In his insightful biography, Dr Paul Moon makes the case for the contribution Westra's work has made to our sense of identity: 'Collectively, these are the closest the country has to a national photo album', he says. A large quantity of her images is publicly accessible, particularly through the National Library, meaning that her vision of New Zealand identity will be long-lasting. Small wonder we are curious about the single-minded maker of the photographs; the person, the vision she had of her image-making, and the social and cultural settings in which she worked.
Westra died during the writing of this biography but Moon explains he drew on a 'wealth of material including interview transcripts' and he stitches together a nuanced, comprehensive picture showing her significant strengths and limitations, the times she lived in, as well as her own view of her life and work.
Although Westra's photographic career continued until her death in 2023 at age 86, and her subjects and publications were varied, her prominence booklet by the then Minister of Education, after resonant criticism from organisations like the Māori Women's Welfare League 'arguing that it portrayed a negative, dated and stereotypical view of Māori'.
