Kim Ireland is the recipient of the 2024 Iris Fisher Scholarship

Living and working in Nelson, Kim Ireland holds a Bachelor of Arts and Media from NMIT, Te Pūkenga, and is currently completing her Master of Māori Visual Arts at Massey University. Her practice is driven by the examination of a fragmented past, and the desire to explore the cultural and social mechanisms that form Aotearoa’s history.

Ireland has said: “(...) There is a visible resurgence in Te Ao Māori, and what has been repressed has been reclaimed. But not without struggle. Consequently, this constant push has evolved into a multidisciplinary practice that is guided by mātauranga Māori. It is this directive that has my work moving within the realm of image, installation, and object, although always speaking to my initial practice - the drawn line.”

Ireland's most recent solo exhibitions include Kei hea a Tiki? (2022) at Refinery ArtSpace, Nelson; 24 (2022) at The Gallery, Nelson; and push/pull (2021) at Ardern, Nelson.  She also had work featured in several collective exhibitions over the past years, including: Triumph of the Heart (2023) at Quiet Dog Gallery, Whakatū; Matatau (2022) at Te Manawa Toi, Palmerston North; and Encounters with Cook (2020) at The Suter Te Aratoi o Whakatū, Nelson.

→ Read Art News latest post about Kim Ireland here.

History

The scholarship is named after Iris Fisher, who was a founding member of the Pakuranga Arts Society and the driving force behind the creation of the Fisher Gallery, later to become Te Tuhi. Her original bequest has fostered contemporary visual arts practice and in particular, art education. The Iris Fisher Scholarship has been created to encourage and assist an excellent postgraduate visual art student with their studies.

The scholarship

The Iris Fisher Scholarship is awarded to one recipient annually. The award is $5,000 and is payable in one lump sum. It is envisaged that these funds will be put toward fees, materials, travel or a purpose which will support the recipient to successfully complete their final year of tertiary study.

Eligibility

The scholarship is to support a student enrolled in a visual arts/fine arts course of study at tertiary level, according to the following requirements:

  • Applicants must be in their final year of a postgraduate course of study at an institution accredited by the Tertiary Education Commission. This must be either 4th year (level 700) Honours, Postgraduate Diploma or Masters degree, or equivalent – both full-time and part-time students are accepted.
  • Applicants must provide proof of their current postgraduate enrolment status.
  • The Iris Fisher Scholarship is not available to any person who has an employment contract with Te Tuhi.

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