Rupert Connell

Studio portrait of Sylvia Ashton-Warner, taken c. Dec 1958
Silver gelatin print in folder by Rupert Connell, Tauranga
Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington Ref: PAColl-2522-7-01-01

This striking portrait of the idiosyncratic author and educational pioneer Sylvia Ashton-Warner (1908-1984) was taken at the Tauranga studio of Rupert Connell around December 1958, shortly after her first novel Spinster was published to critical acclaim and became a runaway bestseller. By this time Connell had already been in Tauranga for two decades, and was within a couple of years of retirement.

Century Grand field camera used by the Connell studio, Eltham
Collection of Puke Ariki museum, New Plymouth. Ref. PA2015.052

Rupert Douglas “Pip” Connell was born in 1907 at Eltham, South Taranaki, one of six children of photographer Nigel Douglas Connell (1874-1951). He attended school in Stratford and, after an early apprenticeship as an electrician for the Union Steamship Company on its Pacific routes in the mid-1920s, he probably learned the photographic trade in his father’s studio in Eltham. He continued working there after his marriage to Lois Mary Mclean in 1935, until at least 1938.

Pip and Lois Connell, by unidentified photographer
Courtesy of Connell Family Heritage

By July 1939 Pip and Lois had moved to Tauranga, where they moved into a home in 11th Avenue. In his first Bay of Plenty Times advertisement, Connell announced the display of examples of his photographic work in the shop window of Bernard Judd, an electrician and radio specialist, located at The Triangle.

Studio portrait of unidentified soldier, Hauraki Regiment, c.early 1940s
Laser copy of silver gelatin print by Rupert Connell, Tauranga
Hauraki Regiment Collection, courtesy of Pae Koroki. Ref. 2012-029

Despite the predicament of the outbreak of war, Connell opened his own studio premises in Devonport Road and found enough business to advertise for an assistant – “a keen, capable girl, 15-16 years, to learn all branches of professional photographing” - in early 1943.

View down Devonport Road, Tauranga, Rupert Connell’s studio at centre, behind S&N Motors
Black-and-white copy print, taken by an unidentified photographer, c1951-52
Courtesy of Tauranga Libraries, Pae Koroki. Ref. 01-500

Turkeys, possibly at the Brain Watkins House in Cameron Road, undated
Silver gelatin print by Rupert Connell, Tauranga
Collection of Brain Watkins House. Ref. BWH2004/0558/2

This undated snapshot of four turkeys, possibly taken in the garden of the Brain Watkins House in Cameron Road, Tauranga, is pretty incongruous given Connell’s normal oeuvre. The clue possibly lies in a series of advertisements which appeared intermittently in the Bay of Plenty Times between 1943 and 1948, typified by the following from 23 January 1948:

“Situations Vacant. Photography. An opportunity awaits suitable girl to learn all branches professional and candid work. Apply – Rupert Connell.”

The fact that he inserted no less than eight separate such advertisements during that period suggests that he was unable to attract the young women to that role for very long.

Advertisement, Rupert Connell, Devonport Rd
Western Bay of Plenty Year Book, 1952-1953, publ. Astra Publicity, Auckland
Image courtesy of John and Julie Green

Otherwise commonly known as outwork, taking on an assistant – here referred to as “the Candid Cameraman,” and presumably a young girl would not need to be paid very much – meant that a photographer could be sent out for general commissions, while Connell himself would not be absented from the more serious, and better paying, studio work encompassing “child studies, portraits, family groups” and bridal portraits.

Studio portrait of Lynette Christian (later Harpham) as a young girl, Tauranga, c1940s
Photo by Rupert Connell, Tauranga
Courtesy of Tauranga City Library, Pe Koroki. Ref. 06-496

Photo wallet, “Studio Photography by Rupert Connell, Tauranga, N.Z.,” c1950s
Image courtesy of John and Julie Green

 
Connell’s studio portraits were generally executed and finished to a very high standard, often softly toned, sometimes double-mounted on card, signed personally in pencil in the lower margin of the mount, and enclosed in a folder or wallet printed on the front with his name in a stylish brown design.

Rupert Connell retired from the photographic business some time between 1958 and 1963 and went to live in Ranginui Street (now Briarley Street, The Avenues). He and his wife Lois had two sons. He was, in the words of his great nephew, a “prodigious fisherman and hunter.” He died in 1977.

References
Alexander Turnbull Library / National Library https://natlib.govt.nz/
Auckland Library Photographers Database http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/photographers/basic_search.htm
Electoral Rolls
Pae Koroki https://paekoroki.tauranga.govt.nz/
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers
Puke Ariki Heritage Collections https://pukeariki.com/research-and-heritage/heritage-collections/
Connell, Tim (2012) Connell Family Heritage https://issuu.com/bigtimeproductions/docs/connellfamilytreebook
Other examples of Connell’s work may be seen in the Tauranga Heritage Collection https://view.taurangaheritagecollection.co.nz/explore