On Now

Start Date
17 February -  
End Date
23 February 2025
Artist
Punaka Collective
Main Image
Aoteroa bush in soft, dense greens. Poster text for Punaka exhibtion at Thistle Hall Community Venue. Artists are Punaka Collective Olivia Fergerson, Amanda Smith, Thomas Strawbridge, Ocean Alleman, Merryn Thompson, Clara Bosshard, Oliver Raikawa, Oliver Budd, AJ Manaaki Hope, Andrew Morris, Jason Fastier
Opening
Opening Hours
Monday - Thursday: 10am - 5pm
Friday & Saturday: 10am - 8pm
Description

PUNAKA is a collaborative installation between 11 artists of varied backgrounds. The work explores an embodied approach to practices of communion and collaboration. Through the interweaving of diverse knowledge systems and personal histories, a transient and nurturing place is formed. This place is what we call ‘Punaka’. It reflects on the ways we gather, build, and sustain each other through collective acts of making.

Join us at for opening night on Monday 17 Febuary from 5.30pm. Funded by WCC Creative Communites Scheme

 

ARTISTS
Olivia Fergerson, Amanda Smith, Thomas Strawbridge, Ocean Alleman, Merryn Thompson, Clara Bosshard, Oliver Raikawa, Oliver Budd, AJ Manaaki Hope, Andrew Morris, Jason Fastier

 

 

CONTACT

Instagram @punaka_collective

Up Next

Start Date
24 February -  
End Date
2 March 2025
Artist
Rae Huang
Main Image
Black and white illustrated by Rae Huang for her exhibtion at Thistle Hall. A busy scene of tiny cats creatures in a town made of flowers and plants.
Opening
Opening Hours
Tuesday - Sunday: 11am - 7pm
Description

Nine Lives, A Thousand Details: A Feline Atlas brings together Rae Huang's intricate ink drawings and vibrant embroidery works, creating a whimsical journey through feline-centered worlds. In the artist's detailed drawings, cats take on human-like qualities – they work, dream, celebrate, and go about daily life in elaborately crafted scenes. Each composition reveals a rich narrative where cats become the storytellers of modern life, blending imagination with familiar situations in unexpected ways.

The exhibition's embroidery pieces, inspired by the artist's Tokyo residency in July 2023, capture intimate city moments through the lens of the strawberry cat – a symbol of Taiwan's Generation Y. These colorful works follow the artist's self-reflective journey through urban spaces: a cat contemplating life from a Tokyo apartment window, wandering through bustling streets, or finding quiet moments in city corners. 

The artist will be drawing on-site during the weekend. Visitors are invited to witness the artist's creative process during weekend drawing sessions.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

 

 

CONTACT

Website: rueithefoxx.cargo.site

Email: Rae Huang at partoftheszene@gmail.com

Start Date
3 March -  
End Date
9 March 2025
Artist
PhotoChoppers
Main Image
PhotoChop 10 poster by Markus McIntyre. A riotous collage of op-art zebras in a National Geographic style yellow boarder.
Opening
Description

PhotoChop, not Photoshop!

For the last 20 years PhotoChop has showcased artists who reinterpret physical ephemera to celebrate the absurd and unpredictable in the human hand and eye. No Photoshop. Cut and paste by scissors and glue. In collecting and combining mass media images a new visual is created: relevant, ridiculous and anarchic.

Collages in PhotoChop are original art works priced from $5 to $100. Anyone can leave the exhibition with an affordable artwork. Stay and make your own PhotoChop at our collage workshop table, or add to an exquisite corpse collage.


With live music cut ups from DJ Tangent.

 

 

Part of 2025 NZ Fringe Festival

Start Date
11 March -  
End Date
16 March 2025
Artist
Playful Crafts Collective
Main Image
Charlotte Hird watercolour painting of dolphins in sparkling deep-blue water.
Opening Hours
Tuesday - Friday: 11am - 6pm
Saturday & Sunday: 10am - 5pm
Description

Come discover an array of creations encompassing paintings, textiles and ceramics. Our goal is simple: to create moments of joy, and opportunities for smiles, with each piece telling a story of passion and playfulness.

 

Charlotte Hird, Watercolour artist

I am an observational artist and my style is contemporary realism with a stark graphic quality. The creation of clear, transparent washes glowing with a crisp freshness brings me great personal satisfaction. No other medium can achieve that luminous quality.

The body of work on show reflects the shapes of nature’s from landscapes, flowers and creatures. My landforms portray dark brooding valleys and clean ridges glowing in the light.

I find inspiration from all parts of my life and in the beauty of nature. My teaching, both here and in Japan, is an integral part of the continuing journey of learning, improving techniques and exploring themes. All these challenges sustain me in my life as an artist.

CONTACT

Website: www.charlotteswebdesign.co.nz
Email: charhird@gmail.com

 

Judith Ewens-Belin (Judith B. Ceramics)

I am a french maker located in Te Whanganui a Tara (Aotearoa, NZ)

My work is rooted in a slow and curious approach to life. I craft objects that give people an opportunity to pause and appreciate the moment, but also bring a sense of connection: to ourselves, to others, and to our environment.

I predominantly make things with clay, and usually work in small series, letting my creative energies guide me from one project to another. Although I may sometimes re-visit some past-designs, they will almost always end up being slightly different than the original.

I typically create functional pieces with a quirky and playful element, whether through design, colour, texture, or use of materials.

 

CONTACT

Website: www.judith-b.com
Instagram: @judith_b_ceramics

 

Lilly Rhind

My art practice is driven by the joy of creation.

Since childhood, I’ve seen art as the best form of play and self expression, using bold shapes and vibrant colours to try to evoke that same sense of fun

Primarily figurative, my work often focuses on the human form and face.

I enjoy experimenting with various mediums, including painting, printmaking, sculpture and jewellery.

 

Website: lillyrhind.wixsite.com

 

Michele Irving

Sewing with colourful fabrics, embroidery and applique,  Michele creates a dream world of animals who play and celebrate life!

She also designs a range of fun greeting cards featuring her playful animals.

Michele works from a studio at her home and sells her work through various galleries and shops.  

 

Stephanie Cossens

I am a visual artist who graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts, First Class Honours, from the Dunedin School of Art in 2016. Since then, I have been based in Wellington, where I continue to develop my practice. My work primarily revolves around soft sculpture, ceramics, and costume design, and I find joy in combining textures and exploring the tactile qualities of handmade objects.

Each piece I create is an opportunity to experiment with materials, blending form and function in unexpected ways. My process is deeply rooted in a love for craftsmanship and the exploration of how objects can evoke emotion and narrative. I am fascinated by the relationships between surface, structure, and touch.

Throughout my career, I have been a finalist in the World of Wearable Art competition three times, which has further solidified my passion for pushing the boundaries of art and design. I continue to seek new ways to express myself through the intersection of art, craft, and wearable sculpture.

Instagram: @handsutured

 

Stephanie Hall

As a potter I like to explore the many different aspects of clay and different ways of working. I create functional pieces on the wheel that I carve into to explore the play of the glaze on different textures and surface.  I slab build houses and Raku fire them in my back garden – this method of firing never fails to create something unexpected but beautiful which is a process that I very much enjoy.  Most of all I like to create pieces that will make people smile and hint at a hidden worlds such as my new series of hand-built cats in fancy dresses.