Welcome to the third instalment of Global Compass. Whether you are joining us for the first time or returning, this digest remains dedicated to tracking Aotearoa’s creative presence abroad and sharing offshore opportunities for those back home.
Writing from Europe, the distance between our hemispheres feels wider this month. Geopolitical conflicts and the ongoing violence in the Middle East are casting a sobering shadow over daily life – our cultural institutions included. As the sector looks ahead to the 61st Venice Biennale, and question arise over the inclusion of Israel, we’re reminded that art is never separate from the weight of the world it is created in.
In images this month, we look to Gadigal Country Sydney, for a different kind of presence. Through the lens of Pauline Autet, Founding Director of Contemporary HUM, we’re sharing a surge of Aotearoa activity. Despite being based in Europe, Pauline travelled to the city in a dual capacity: representing the French art scene while informally continuing the work HUM was founded on – to document, discuss and support our diaspora regardless of the distance.
From the crowds of the 25th Biennale of Sydney: Rememory to exclusive glimpses of Yona Lee in residence at Artspace, a significant Aotearoa presence was felt across the city. Most notably, the Biennale includes contributions from Tāmaki Makaurau-based Benjamin Work (Tongan, Orcadian and Shetlander) and Pōneke-based Iranian Kurdish journalist Behrouz Boochani. In his new commission PĀPAAKI (2025) at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, Work responds to the 1863 history of the violent abduction of 30 men from the island of Niuafoʻou (Tonga). Using steel, aluminium and whale bone alongside archival photography, Work insists on reconnection in a space where history tried to create a void. Meanwhile, at Campbelltown Arts Centre, Boochani presents Code Black/Riot (2025), a multi-channel video installation created with Hoda Afshar and Vernon Ah Kee that confronts the inhumane logic of Australia’s incarceration system.
Beyond the Biennale, our practitioners are front and centre in Sydney's major institutions: at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Francis Upritchard’s imposing bronze commission Here Comes Everybody (2022) greets visitors, while Mike Hewson’s major project The Key’s Under the Mat has been extended in the basement “Tank” until 23 August.
Hewson’s social playground, complete with functioning saunas, builds on themes explored in Rocks on Wheels and Flying Shoes, a 2023 feature on Contemporary HUM. A civil engineer who pivoted to art following the Christchurch earthquakes, Hewson uses perceived risk as a tool for genuine community agency; it’s wonderful to see his unconventional practice, “provisional aesthetic” and sense of humour permeating a major institution.
Also on display in the gallery are Michael Parekōwhai’s stainless steel sculpture The English Channel (2015) and three photographs from Ann Shelton’s jane says series (2015–ongoing). Across the water at the MCA, Kate Newby’s site-specific commission Hours in wind (2024) remains on show. Newby has a prolific year ahead, with two major presentations in Germany and a 23-metre mural soon to be unveiled at Portland International Airport.
Mentioned in last month’s Global Compass, the expansive All the World’s Memories at UNSW Galleries features Aotearoa artists Ana Iti, Fiona Clark, J Davies and Zac Langdon-Pole. This was another strong showing – which leads us to again ask: given such a concentration of talent across the Tasman lately, why weren’t more of our own local curators and art professionals there to witness it? Beyond viewing the work, these are the moments to contribute to global conversations and to advocate for our scene alongside other international actors.
On this month
Australia & Pacific
Rebecca Jensen: Marking Out | Gertrude Glasshouse, Collingwood, Wurundjeri Country | Until 11 April
Jensen’s first solo exhibition compares the scripted spectacle of professional wrestling to the "marking" of dance rehearsals, showing the physical effort and hidden labour behind a performance.
Ava Seymour: two-by-four | Solvent, Gadigal Lands Sydney | Until 12 April
A group presentation featuring Tāmaki Makaurau-based Seymour, known for her cut-and-paste collages that challenge Aotearoa’s social and political history.
Sriwhana Spong: HA HA HA | Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA), Naarm Melbourne | Opens 24 April | Artist’s talk: Thursday 23 April, 5.30pm
The first major Australian survey for the London-based Balinese-Aotearoa artist uses sculptural instruments and mist to explore the idea of "unknowing" beyond simple labels of culture and identity. HA HA HA will travel to Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery in October 2026.
Asia
Auckland International Art Gallery at AFIH 2026 | Hotel Éclat, Beijing | 23–26 April
Participating in the 7th Art Fair In Hotel (AFIH), the gallery presents a room-based exhibition featuring Alvin Pankhurst, FLOX, and more, bridging Māori heritage and Western contemporary styles.
The Americas
Emma McIntyre: Aragonite and conchiolin | Château Shatto, Los Angeles | Until 04 April
LA-based McIntyre presents abstract paintings that function as a theatre for material behaviour. By combining poured oil paint with iron oxide and even guano (bird droppings), McIntyre creates reactive surfaces that chemically transform over time.
Pelenakeke Brown: Don’t mind if I do | Smith College Museum of Art, Massachusetts | Until 28 June
Part of a collaborative show by Finnegan Shannon featuring a 7.5-metre conveyor belt of touchable sculptures that encourages visitors to participate from a place of comfort rather than formality.
Pelenakeke Brown: Technologies of Relation | MASS MoCA, North Adams | Until Spring 2027
An 18-month exhibition reframing our relationship with digital devices. Features Brown’s new work Reverb (2025–26) which uses traditional Sāmoan siapo (bark cloth) and Crip Theory to show how technology has always been a tool for Indigenous storytelling.
Europe & UK
Moniek Schrijer: Magic Mirror on the Wall | DIVA Museum, Antwerp | Until 19 April
Following a residency in DIVA’s jewellery and silver studios, Schrijer presents objects that question how we assign value to things in a world full of images.
Jess Robinson: Relaxing concert | Feel Free Yoga Studio, Graz | 26 April
Now based in Graz, the Tāmaki Makaurau-born sound artist combines cello with DIY electronics to present an immersive “relaxing concert,” exploring the connections between listeners, players, and the space they share.
Fiona Connor: I haven't arrived yet, Closed Down Clubs | Maureen Paley, London | Until 16 May
Connor presents 1:1 “crafted readymades” of doors from shuttered establishments in London, LA and Aotearoa. Paired with bronze-cast shoes, the work transforms everyday architectural details into a sculptural record of lost social spaces.
Kah Bee Chow: IASPIS Residency | Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin | Until 14 June
Chow’s six-month residency focuses on the physical feel and history of specific sites, developing sculptures that respond directly to the unique environment of her Berlin studio.
Opportunities beyond Aotearoa
Schloss Wiepersdorf Fellowships 2027 | Brandenburg, Germany | Apply by 15 April
A three-month fully funded residency at a historic estate south of Berlin. Open to visual artists, composers and writers from abroad. It includes free accommodation, meals, a monthly cash stipend of €1,200 and a one-time material grant of €480. Visa costs for international fellows are also covered.
Embassy of Foreign Artists: Art & Science Residency | Geneva, Switzerland | Apply by 19 April
A three-month residency pairing artists with scientists from leading Geneva-based laboratories. The programme is open to all disciplines and includes private accommodation and a monthly residency stipend of 1,400 CHF (approx. $2,450 NZD).
Proyecto 'ace: Exploration & Production Residencies | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Apply by 30 April
A highly-regarded residency for artists, curators and researchers focusing on expanded art practices. The programme provides a studio, technical assistance, professional networking and inclusion in the online archive. Note: This is a fee-based residency (starting at approx. US$480).
VIIAF 2026: International Image Art Festival | Chengdu, China | Apply by 01 May
A call for image-based works including photography, video art, AI-generated imagery and VR installations. Selected artists will participate in a two-week residency in Chengdu (06–25 June) leading into the festival opening and a three-month Documenta exhibition.
If you know about upcoming international exhibitions or events featuring Aotearoa artists (visual or otherwise), or not-to-be-missed opportunities, send me a message via Instagram.
