About
Te Tuhi has a focused curatorial programme of contemporary art that is locally engaged, regionally responsive and internationally ambitious.
Te Tuhi fulfils a unique role within Aotearoa New Zealand’s visual arts economy: we are small enough to be flexible with our programme, to take risks and respond to artists’ needs, but large enough to realise ambitious projects. We commit to providing artists and curators the space, opportunities, resources and support to present work of significant scope. Te Tuhi has a long history of exhibiting New Zealand’s leading artists; equally, it is often the first gallery to recognise emerging artistic talent.
Te Tuhi has worked with nationally and internationally established artists including Aernout Mik, Tom Nicholson, William Pope.L, Santiago Sierra, The Otolith Group, Tehching Hsieh, Artur Zmijewski, L. Budd, Phil Dadson, Julian Dashper, Darryn George, Maddie Leach, Alex Monteith, Kate Newby, Luke Willis Thompson, Kalisolaite ‘Uhila and Shannon Te Ao.
Te Tuhi’s primary focus is on commissioning work, by offering stimulating contexts for artists to respond to and work within. The emphasis is on artistic process and practice, always placing the artist at the core of the programme.
From 2021 Te Tuhi is embarking on a strategy of working with independent curators to deliver our exhibition programme. Opening out our programme to a broader range of curatorial voices is an acknowledgement of the times we are in – that is, an era of global conversation, necessary social change and imperative rebalancing of institutions of power. Recognising the very real need for direct engagement with communities, we anticipate working with a series of curators who practise with and alongside communities of Aotearoa, and for whom social politics, historical narratives and contemporary art are integrally related. The independent curator commissions are in a sense one-off projects, but the intention is to build, sustain and extend our relationships. While this represents a change of approach in some ways, Te Tuhi’s core kaupapa remains the same.
Along with strengthening our programme, there are further benefits of the independent curator programme. First, it enables us to respond to a gap in professional development opportunities for mid-career curators, for whom roles of this scope are limited. Secondly, an independent curation model will allow for direct engagement with a diverse range of curatorial voices, and a breadth of national and international expertise. This will connect artists from Aotearoa New Zealand with international curators, and in turn, provide significant opportunities for local curators. Ultimately, we anticipate that this will open up our institutional perspective, strengthen our network of relationships, grow our capacity as collaborators and provide development and mentorship for a wider group of local and international curators.
Te Tuhi exhibitions are presented at our Pakuranga gallery, and via an extensive offsite programme throughout Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland and beyond. All Te Tuhi exhibitions are free, as are most of our public programme events.
Exhibition programme policy
Te Tuhi's exhibition programme is curated by our programme team. Proposals are accepted for Te Tuhi's Project Wall, Speaker Space and Billboard spaces only in an annual open call. Read Te Tuhi's Exhibition Programme Policy here.
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