Gil Hanly: her work has taken her close to tragedy.
Feature
All in a good cause
by Maggie Barry
Gil Hanly has photographed all of New Zealand’s significant protests in the past 25 years – and was also on hand to record the aftermath of the Rainbow Warrior bombing.
It’s as close to grumpy as I’ve seen Gil Hanly in the 15 years or so that I’ve known her. New Zealand’s most sought-after garden photographer is usually working on several projects at once, but a broken wrist has forced her to “put off a few jobs”, including an assignment in Kerikeri and the finalising of details for her next book – The Artful Gardener with writer Rose Thody.
The injury that’s holding her back is a result of her ongoing determination to live more sustainably. Having turned out the kitchen lights to save power, she tripped over in the dark and her left wrist paid the price.
It’s the first time Hanly has ever come to any physical harm in pursuit of a cause, but her work has taken her close to tragedy, most memorably when she photographed the final days of the Rainbow Warrior, bombed by French secret agents on July 10, 1985.
Initially, she recorded the ship’s arrival in Auckland on July 7 for what was to be a peaceful few days provisioning before it sailed on to Moruroa, French Polynesia, to protest against French nuclear testing. She then went on to document the aftermath of the bombing, which claimed the life of Portuguese photographer Fernando Pereira.
“About midnight I was in my darkroom processing the shots I’d taken on the boat that evening; I had the radio on and heard there’d been an explosion downtown. I thought, ‘Oh my God, what’s going on?’, so I jumped in my car and drove there. The wharf was already cordoned off and I could see the crew huddled in blankets. They were still counting people and it wasn’t until the next morning that they said Fernando was dead. It was a terrible shock …
“Greenpeace asked me to document what was happening, so I spent the next few weeks filming it all.” She was also on hand to record the ship’s final poignant moments before it was sunk in Matauri Bay, Northland, on December 12, 1987.
Gil and husband Pat Hanly, the renowned painter, were no strangers to peace protests, having become involved in the anti-nuclear movement in London in the early 60s.
In the past 25 years, Gil has photographed all of New Zealand’s significant protests, including anti-nuclear marches, the hikoi to Waitangi, and the Bastion Point and women’s rights protests. The core issues that matter to her are centred on peace, justice and sustainability, and she has always been clear about her role as a protester.
“I’d decided earlier on that I wasn’t going to stand up and speak at meetings, go into politics or be a front-line activist. My best contribution would be to document events and make the photos available. It seemed to be more useful to do something I was good at, and have a skill at, rather than being a protester and being beaten up.
“I’m not a word person, and I think that’s partly why I enjoy being behind the camera rather than fronting. My Nuclear Free: Protest Photography exhibition at the Auckland War Memorial Museum was a retrospective of the past 20 years of being nuclear-free, and it was my way of celebrating faith in collective energy to achieve change.” The exhibition, which closed in May, ran for six months.
In the early 50s, Gil Taverner met Pat Hanly at Ilam School of Fine Arts in Christchurch where they were both studying to be painters.
“I think I was running away from home. I was a Depression baby and I grew up in the Rangitikei, which was very conservative. I didn’t want to hang around home and marry the local farmer, I wanted to be an artist, but I knew enough about painting to know that I was never going to be hugely brilliant. I wasn’t bad, I was just very competent.
“So I stopped painting and decided that I’d work and earn some money to travel overseas. I think that most women multitask, and I’m interested in plants, gardens, cooking, books, all sorts of things. I didn’t want to be doing just one thing, whereas Pat only ever wanted to paint. He was committed to being a painter and I wasn’t particularly committed to it. Anyway, I’m not sure our relationship would have survived if I’d carried on.”
Gil left for London in 1957 and Pat arrived a few months later. They worked at a variety of jobs, including set designing, while Pat started to make his name as a painter.
“We got married in London when I became pregnant. We decided it might be a good idea for the child. It was also easier travelling in Europe. It was very low-key and we did it all ourselves. We made the wedding cake, and my friend Phyllis made the dress. We did the whole bit with the church, and had a big party with all our friends. I think at the time it was a good thing to do.”
After five years, they returned to New Zealand, settling in Auckland. Ben was a toddler and Gil was pregnant with Tamsin.
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