Sculpture Festival 2026 - Call for Exhibiting Artists

Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre, located in Ōtautahi Christchurch, is run by an independent charitable trust and comprises the country’s largest collection of Category 1 heritage buildings. It is home to over 70 entities, including galleries, museums, cinemas, boutique retailers, artisan eateries, bars, accommodation, and vibrant events and venues.

The Arts Centre aims to be a hub for diverse creative expression in the heart of the city. Its vision is to stimulate and celebrate communities by restoring memories and creating futures, while fostering interest in art, culture, and education through providing spaces for these activities.

Applications are now open for exhibiting artists at Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre’s annual Sculpture Festival 2026.

About the festival

Sculpture Festival brings together emerging and well-known artists from around Aotearoa New Zealand to present a public exhibition of distinctive sculptural works appealing to a wide audience.

In the sixth year of this event, we aim to offer over 200 works for sale, across a full range of scales and materials. We especially welcome ngā toi Māori, Pacific and Asian artists to apply.

Works will be showcased in the Great Hall daily across the festival dates of 10-26 October 2026 with larger outdoor sculptures placed throughout the North Quad.

All sales from the Sculpture Festival benefit both the artists and Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre, for which this is an annual fundraiser.

For general enquiries about the festival, please contact Chris Archer at chrisa@artscentre.org.nz before 24 April 2026.

Application Details

Artists interested in presenting work for sale, please read the following information and complete the application form. Works will be selected by a panel comprising co-curators Ryan Dewsbury and Melissa Reimer, and Arts Centre Creative Director Chris Archer.

What Te Matatiki Toi Ora provides

• An opportunity to have your work seen by a large and diverse audience
• All aspects of administration involved with sales
• Promotion of the festival including through our website, social media channels and databases
• An artist commission of 60%
• An invitation to an opening event for you and a partner
• Support for installation and deinstallation of your work
• Insurance for your work while at Te Matatiki Toi Ora
• Re-packaging of artworks for postage back to you if not sold – costs to be covered by the artist

What is expected of you

• To provide title, dates, dimensions, media, sale price, an image of each work and biographical/contextual information to be included in the catalogue
• To be present for install and deinstall of your own works if possible
• To arrange and pay cost of freight and insurance while your artwork is in transit to Te Matatiki Toi Ora, and back to you if unsold
• To invoice Te Matatiki Toi Ora for your commission and any public programme fees (if applicable) after receiving sales advice from Te Matatiki Toi Ora
• To promote the festival through your own networks