New Zealand Odyssey: The Little Red School Bus

'New Zealand Odyssey', published in 1989 by Heinemann, was authored by me, Don Donovan (who did the text and illustrations) and Euan Sarginson, who did the photography and design. In this series of blog posts, I will publish some of my drawings.

This illustration establishes a point in New Zealand's history when some school buses were still run by the Department of Education (which is now a Ministry). I drew this little red Bedford in 1987, at Allendale, when it carried children to school in the Lyttelton harbour area. It may bring tears to some eyes because it was quintessentially rural New Zealand.

© DON DONOVAN

donovan@ihug.co.nz

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New Zealand Odyssey: School Buses, Hikurangi

'New Zealand Odyssey', published in 1989 by Heinemann, was authored by Don Donovan (who did the text and illustrations) and Euan Sarginson, who did the photography and design. In this series of blog posts, I will publish some of my drawings.

While I painted these particular school buses at Hikurangi, north of Whangarei in Northland, they could have come from just about anywhere in New Zealand. Twice a day, our country roads are populated by motley fleets of student-laden coaches, mostly drawn from local contracting companies. Some of them are smart, some smoke like tramp steamers. These three old ladies had an elephantine look about them; I got the impression that they might be having a slanderous conversation!

Hikurangi was a coal mining town until 1971, it also had quite a substantial dairy factory serving the surrounding cattle farmers. Its intriguing area of limestone outcrops still distinguishes an otherwise modest town long ago by-passed by the main highway to the north.

© DON DONOVAN
donovan@ihug.co.nz