Join Sofia Roger Williams and Beth Torrance-Hetherington for kōrero with artists and creative types from the wide art world of Tāmaki Makaurau and beyond!
The Secret Life of Plants is a new group exhibition at Melanie Roger Gallery.
The exhibition borrows its title from the 1973 book, with the same name, by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird. The book documents “controversial experiments that claim to reveal unusual phenomena associated with plants, such as plant sentience and the ability of plants to communicate with other creatures, including humans.”
Exhibiting the works of Rosa Allison, Georgia Arnold, Heidi Brickell (Te Hika o Papauma, Rangitāne, Ngāi Tara, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Apakura), Ruth Ige, Tessa Laird, Layla Rudneva-Mackay, Star Gossage (Ngāti Wai, Ngāti Ruanui), Ann Shelton and Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, the artists embrace “the secret life of plants” within their practises with works exploring ideas of mysticism, healing, growth and spirituality.
Sofia had a kōrero with gallerist and curator, Melanie Roger, about the show, the artists, and its themes.
New Painting is a new exhibition at Gow Langsford Onehunga by Shane Cotton (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Rangi, Ngāti Hine and Te Uri Taniwha) opening tomorrow.
Cotton is an internationally renowned artist whose career has spanned over three decades. His practice is underpinned by recurrent questioning of his own bicultural identity, and our collective cultural identity in Aotearoa.
In these new works, Cotton explores the collision of Indigenous and European time systems, placing ancestral figures in surreal, cosmic landscapes, exploring hybridities, transformation, and the nature of history.
Accompanying the exhibition is an essay by writer Anthony Byrt, Super Radiance, which explores this new body of work further. You can read Byrt’s essay here.
I had a kōrero with Shane about the exhibition and the ideas behind these works.
Sofia had a kōrero with Shane Cotton (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Rangi, Ngāti Hine and Te Uri Taniwha) about New Painting, a new exhibition at Gow Langsford Onehunga.
Beth caught up with Professor of Visual Art at the Auckland University of Technology, Dr Christopher Braddock, about Resetting the Coordinates, the first anthology/reader of performance art of Aotearoa New Zealand.
For Stage Direction, Alice Canton joins us in-studio to chat to Moss Paterson about Tempo Dance Festival, on at Q Theatre until the 20th October.
Resetting the Coordinates is the first anthology/reader of performance art of Aotearoa New Zealand. It invites the reader into its lively, 50-year critical survey of Aotearoa’s globally unique performance art scene.
It includes 18 chapters by researchers that explore the post-object and performance art of the late 1960s to the rich vein of Māori and Pacific performance art from the early 1990s.
It discusses the work of Jim Allen, Phil Dadson, Peter Roche and Linda Buis, performance art initiatives in post-earthquake Christchurch and queer performance art, among many other topics.
Beth caught up with Professor of Visual Art at the Auckland University of Technology, Dr Christopher Braddock, about Resetting the Coordinates.
from elsewhere is a collaborative exhibition by Newell Harry and Peter Simpson, currently showing at Te Uru Gallery. The exhibition aims to address the notion of being ‘from elsewhere’.
The title is drawn from a quote in philosopher Franz Fanon’s 1961 book The Wretched of the Earth: ‘The governing race is first and foremost those who come from elsewhere, those who are unlike the original inhabitants, “the others.” ’
Beth had a kōrero with the curator of the exhibition, James Gatt, about the collaborative aspect of from elsewhere as well as the curation process.
Last Friday, the winner of the Walters Prize for 2024 was announced, as chosen by this year’s international judge Cameroonian Berlin-based Professor Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung.
The $50,000 Walters Prize - which is now awarded every three years - was decided this year between artists Owen Connors, Juliet Carpenter, Brett Graham and Ana Iti.
On Friday, artist Ana Iti (Te Rarawa) was announced as the winner for her sculpture and sound installation entitled ‘A resilient heart like the mānawa’, which is currently on display alongside the other candidate’s works at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki.
Sofia caught up with Ana about celebrating the win, the creation process behind ‘A resilient heart like the mānawa’, and what’s next for her and her practic
Artist Ana Iti (Te Rarawa) has been announced as the winner of the $50,000 Walters Prize 2024 for her sculpture and sound installation ‘A resilient heart like the mānawa’. Sofia had a kōrero with Ana about celebrating the win, the creation process behind this work, and what’s next for her and her practice.
Beth had a kōrero with curator James Gatt about from elsewhere, a collaborative exhibition currently showing at Te Uru Gallery which aims to address the notion of being ‘from elsewhere’.
For Stage Direction this week: Alice Canton is in to chat with Ravi and Jayshri Ratnam from Prayas Theatre about Tiffin Box on at Basement Theatre from next week.
And to round-off the show, we have your arts guide - giving you the low-down on artsy happenings in Tāmaki this week!
Through the Lens: Gendered Reflections is an exhibition of photography by women artists, spanning a period of over 40 years.
The collection includes visual works by alumni of the University of Auckland Waipapa Taumata Rau, including Yvonne Todd, Lisa Reihana, Marti Friedlander, Ann Shelton and Fiona Pardington. The works highlight the seminal role that women have played in the evolution of photography in Aotearoa.
Beth spoke to Ross Deans, Jodie Yawa McMillan and Madi Macdonald about the exhibition and curatorial process.
RSVP to a special preview of Gendered Reflections at Old Government House on October 2nd, 5:30pm: through.the.lens.exhibition@gmail.com.
Ngā Taonga Tūturu: Treasured Māori Portraits is a new exhibition showing at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki.
Co-curated by Senior Curator of Māori Art, Nathan Pōhio, and Curator of Historical New Zealand Art, Dr Jane Davidson-Ladd, the exhibition brings together whakairo and oil paintings from the gallery’s collection, offering insights into the significance of tūpuna representations within te ao Māori.
Sofia had a kōrero with co-curator, Dr Jane Davidson-Ladd, about the exhibition.
John Davies joined Sofia and Beth in studio to chat about Te Tupua - The Goblin, a solo play written and performed by Davies himself. Tickets for tonight's show at Te Pou Theatre here.
Ahi Karunaharan joined Beth and Sofia in the studio to talk about a mixtape for maladies, the final chapter of Karunaharan's trilogy. The play tells the story of 17 nostalgic pop tracks which chart the deeply moving journey of Sangeetha and her family in 1950s Sri Lanka. a mixtape for maladies is on at ASB Waterfront Theatre from the 4th March. You can get your tickets here.
Alice Canton spoke to artistic director of Auckland Arts Festival, Bernie Haldane, about the programme this year. The festival is running from 6-23 March. More info here!
Brady Peeti (Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Maniapoto) joined Sofia in the studio to speak about "What Happened to Mary-Anne?" - a story of trans woman Mary-Anne and her insatiable adoration for the power of rock. The show is on at the Q Theatre Loft from 11th-15th February. You can get your tickets here!
For Stage Direction this week, Xin Ji joins Beth in the studio to discuss Body Story which is a physical dance theatre piece, as well as his debut solo show. Body Story is on at Q Theatre from the 18th-22nd February as part of Auckland Pride Festival. Tickets from Q Theatre’s website.
Jonjon Tolovae, Nikadrian Peters, and Lijah Mavaega spoke to Sofia and Beth about Mā: a devised theatre and performance poetry work that delves into themes of chosen family, motherhood, and identity coming up at Q Theatre as a part of Auckland Pride Festival.
For Stage Direction this week, Alice Canton joined us in the studio to speak with some of the organisers of the Festival of Sumud at the Button Factory - brought to you by the organisers of the Gaza Dialogues and Make art not War.
For Stage Direction this week, Alice Canton joins Beth in the studio to chat with Andrew Paterson and Jack Buchanan about Don Juan (A Slightly Isolated Dog) at Q Theatre.
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