The Wynyard Quarter Art Series

Overview

Trendy Wynyard Quarter on the Auckland Waterfront will host a series of free arts events presented by the Arts Foundation. The Wynyard Quarter Arts Series is produced in partnership with Waterfront Auckland and in conjunction with the inaugural Macquarie Private Wealth New Zealand Arts Awards. The free series runs from 25 November to 11 December and will provide the public an opportunity to be involved in the celebration of New Zealand arts across all disciplines.

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The Series kicks off with Arts Foundation Laureate Alastair Galbraith’s extraordinary Wires project. On 25 November Alastair will attach a wire to the side of a large silo at the west end of the Wynyard Quarter, using the wire to turn the silo into a sound chamber. This sound installation will be performed on the half hour from 6pm to 8pm on the opening day and again on Saturday 26th from 11am to 1pm, weather permitting. DUE TO POOR WEATHER, THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

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An Arts Foundation Information Hub in a red container located next to the Viaduct Events Centre, will be open during the series. People can learn about Arts Foundation Awards recipients and can view the TVNZ 7 series The Artists on LG smart TVs. The Information Hub will be the source of arts information about the Wynyard Quarter Arts Series and the Arts Foundation.

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Events include Silo Cinema, featuring films, short films and music videos by Taika Waititi - Eagle vs Shark screening 25 November, Oscar Kightley - Siones Wedding screening 2 December and Florian Habicht, who just won an award on the weekend for the Aotearoa Film & Television Awards for Love Story screening 9 December. The films will be screened on to the side of a large Silo. It’s a great place for mates to gather on the grassy knoll and enjoy an evening of twilight cinema.

We hear there will also be free outdoor concerts on 26 November and 11 December with very cool New Zealand musicians curating the event and collaborating with other talented musicians.  Artists' names to be released soon.

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Nine writers have donated phrases or poems for display in the Wynyard Quarter throughout the series. Words will be located on silos, walls, containers, a fishing boat and under sand. Writers include Arts Foundation Icons Patricia Grace, Margret Mahy and Hone Tuwhare, laureates Kate de Goldi, Elizabeth Knox, Bill Manhire and Ian Wedde and New Generation recipient Eleanor Catton. There will also be words displayed from a 2011 Award recipient. However, this artist will not be credited until after the award announcement on 29 November.

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In the evening a Stoneleigh pop-up container bar, near the Karanga Plaza, will host Talk Box from 7pm daily, 6-11 December. The series will feature recipients from the Macquarie Private Wealth New Zealand Arts Awards on 29 November in discussion with recipients from previous years. The programme will include presentations of artist works. Talk Box is an opportunity to get up close and interact with artists while enjoying a glass of Stoneleigh wine as the sunsets; nice.

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Arts Foundation Icon Margaret Mahy’s poem Down the Back of the Chair will feature in an interactive children’s sandpit. In the poem Dad finds all kinds of wonderful treasures down the back of the chair. Children will dig in the sandpit to find the treasures. The sandpit is being built by Arrow Construction for children of all ages. School visits and parents are welcome to bring children to the sandpit.

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The flagship event, the Macquarie Private Wealth New Zealand Arts Awards, will be held on 29 November. The Arts Foundation will donate $360,000 to artists at a glamorous red carpet event at the Viaduct Event Centre on Auckland’s waterfront. Ten of New Zealand’s finest artists will receive awards for excellence including five $50,000 Laureate Awards, three $25,000 New Generation Awards, the $25,000 Marti Friedlander Photographic Award and the inaugural $10,000 Mallinson Rendel Illustrators Award. Tickets are $250 and can be purchased at www.thearts.co.nz.