Auckland Art Gallery is delighted by Rita Angus biographer Jill Trevelyan's win at last night's Montana NZ Book Awards.

Trevelyan co-curated the blockbuster exhibition Rita Angus: Life & Vision opening at Auckland Art Gallery this Saturday, 1 August.

Her biography about one of our most celebrated artists, Rita Angus: An Artist's Life (Te Papa Press), has won the 2009 Montana Medal for Non-Fiction.

The awards' judging panel: English literature academic Dr Mark Williams, journalist Margo White and novelist Jane Westaway, said the book is one to use and treasure.

"Trevelyan's writing is elegant and lucid and the book's scholarship is exemplary."

Philip Norman, the awards' biography category advisor said Trevelyan's book helps establish Angus's rightful place as a principal figure in the history and development of New Zealand art.

Trevelyan is a Wellington curator and writer. She co-edited the exhibition catalogue Rita Angus: Life & Vision (Te Papa Press, 2008). She also edited Toss Woollaston: A Life in Letters (Te Papa Press, 2004), shortlisted for the 2004 Montana Book Awards, and co-authored Rita Angus: Live to Paint & Paint to Live (2001).

In Rita Angus: An Artist's Life, Trevelyan draws on newly available archives and letters to bring to life Rita Angus the person. Family papers recently returned to New Zealand and archives in the Alexander Turnbull Library reveal the stories behind many of Angus's iconic artworks, and give a fuller picture of this articulate and forthright woman. Stunning artworks, personal photographs and insightful letters help complete the compelling portrait. Jill Trevelyan gives a free public talk at Auckland Art Gallery on Sunday 16 August at 1pm. Rita Angus: An Artist's Life is for sale in Auckland Art Gallery's shop for $69.95.