Jonathan Mane-Wheoki new APO Trustee

The Head of Elam School of Fine Arts at The University of Auckland, Professor Jonathan Mane-Wheoki, has been appointed to the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra Board of Trustees. 

APO Chairman Rosanne Meo said that the Board is delighted to welcome Jonathan and acknowledges his wealth of experience and knowledge in both the New Zealand and international arts landscapes.

“Increasingly there is recognition of the critical need for interface and cooperation within the broader Arts community, both culturally and across disciplines. Jonathan’s personal and career experience will be a great asset to the APO.”

With his new appointment, Professor Mane-Wheoki joins other APO Board members Jonathan Baker, Richard Ebbett, Michael Moyes and Kieran Raftery. 

“I count it as one of the highlights of my career, and a tremendous honour, to have been appointed to the Board of the APO,” says Professor Mane-Wheoki.

“With its innovative and ambitious programming, soaring performance standards and high impact on our cultural life, this is an orchestra in which our super city, our region and our nation can take enormous pride.”

Professor Mane-Wheoki (Ngapuhi/Te Aupouri/Ngati Kuri) is an art historian, architectural historian and a cultural historian. For the past five years he has worked as Director of Art and Collection Services at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, and before that as Dean of Music and Fine Arts at The University of Canterbury. Earlier this year became the Head of Elam School of Fine Arts in the National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries at The University of Auckland.

His broad range of professional experiences and research outputs encompasses many disciplines, from architectural history to music, including serving as a member of Te Waka Toi (the Maori Arts Board), the Arts Council of Creative New Zealand, the Council of the Marsden Fund and Convenor of the Humanities panel, the International Council of the Centre Culturel Jean-Marie Tjibaou in Noumea, and the selection panel for New Zealand’s participation in the 2001 and 2009 Venice Biennales. He is currently a Governor of the Arts Foundation of New Zealand, Deputy Chair of the Council for the Humanities and a member of the Council of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

The APO is the Auckland region’s only professional symphony orchestra, was established in 1980 and has since grown into one of the country’s premier arts organisations with broad community support. As a valued cultural asset for the city, the Orchestra presents a full season of symphonic work throughout the year and boasts one of the most comprehensive music education programmes in the country.

The University of Auckland’s National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries comprises the School of Architecture and Planning, Elam School of Fine Arts, the Centre for New Zealand Art Research and Discovery (CNZARD), the School of Music and the Dance Studies Programme.