Join Beth Torrance-Hetherington and Sofia Roger Williams for kōrero with artists and creative types from the wide art world of Tāmaki Makaurau and beyond!
Sofia had a kōrero with the Assistant Curator at Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery, Hester Rowan, about Soft Spot - a new group exhibition showing Claudia Kogachi, Ming Ranginui, and Erica van Zon.
Beth spoke with artists and siblings Oscar and Sophie Bannan about Chicken Poems, a new body of collaborative and parallel work opening today at Gus Fisher Gallery.
And for Stage Direction this week, Ahi Karunaharan joined Beth and Sofia in the studio to speak about a mixtape for maladies.
Chicken Poems is a a new body of collaborative and parallel work by artists and siblings Oscar and Sophie Bannan. The exhibition includes collage, photography, video and sculpture.
Artnow writes that ‘each work is conceived as a visual poem that explores radical intimacies with time, and the creation of meaning through image/object relationships. Thematically, their work explores rhythms of living such as cooking and food, domestic chores, personal ritual, familial and romantic relationships’.
For the exhibition, Sophie and Oscar have made a moving image work using existing dance films made of and by the siblings over the past thirty years.
Beth had a kōrero with Oscar and Sophie about Chicken Poems, which is showing at the Gus Fisher Gallery until the 10th of May.
Soft Spot is a new group exhibition showing Claudia Kogachi, Erica Van Zon, and Ming Ranginui at Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery.
Through their respective practices, Kogachi, Van Zon, and Ranginui engage with the home conceptually and formally, depicting household items and activities while working with craft modes often associated with domestic furnishings such as rug making, carpentry, and needlework.
Sofia spoke with curator of Soft Spot, Hester Rowan, about the exhibition, her curation process, and the themes of Soft Spot.
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.
Launched in 2016 by writer Peter Wells, the goal for the festival is to be ‘an exciting event that makes people think about sexuality, difference and community, stretches their understanding, gives them a few laughs and creates a slightly magic space for two days in February’.
Pip Adam, author of Ockham-nominated novel Audition (2023), and Nathan Joe, award-winning theatre-maker and performance poet, are both board members of Samesame but different.
Beth caught up with Pip and Nathan about the festival this year
Swan Crash is an new exhibition by artist Tony Guo at Season Gallery Aotearoa.
Guo is a painter born in Aotearoa New Zealand who grew up in Northeast China and moved to Tāmaki Makaurau in 2012.
Although informed by particular experiences and histories connecting back to his parents’ and grandparents’ experiences in northeastern China in the 20th century and his queerness, Guo’s works invite shifting and multiple interpretations.
Sofia spoke to Guo about his artistic practice, the ideas within his works, and his process.
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!
Books of Mana is a new book edited by Jacinta Ruru (Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui), Angela Wanhalla (Kāi Tahu) and Jeanette Wikaira (Ngāti Pukenga, Ngāti Tamaterā, Ngāpuhi) which released earlier this week.
It is the first of its kind in the world to celebrate non-fiction indigenous writing – exploring 200 years of Māori print legacies. In examining the ways 180 selected books have enriched lives and helped to foster understanding of the Māori experience, both at home in Aotearoa and internationally, the book is a clear vision of influence, excellence and diversity of Māori writing.
Sofia spoke with co-editor and Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Otago, Jacinta Ruru, about Books of Mana.
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