As a salute to Ōtautahi's Queen of Crime - Dame Ngaio Marsh - we are celebrating Ngaio Marsh Beret Day on Monday 10 October.
You can see a beret - Ngaio's signature style accessory - on display at In search of Ngaio – An exhibition about the work and life of Ngaio Marsh until Sunday 27 November in Te Pito Huarewa Southbase gallery in Tūranga.
Why did she choose to wear a beret? The Zoe Report has one explanation which makes sense when you realise Ngaio was a painter as well as a writer:
Berets are the unofficial hat of choice for artists, especially if you belonged to groups like the Impressionists. Rembrandt, Monet, Picasso, Cézanne — the list of creatives who donned the headgear is vast and goes back centuries. Though it's unclear when this unassuming hat became representative of creativity, there's no undoing the association of beret and paintbrush.
Have a look at the set of images Hooray for Berets! and see photos from Canterbury Stories of Dame Ngaio Marsh in her beret, and other local beret wearers wearing military or fashionable styles.
Have a look at the Flickr set of library staff and customers in berets.
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