The next six months, and the week’s news

Brrrrrr! Its midwinter and energy levels are low. Add to that a high dose of nasty bugs and we here at The Big Idea are more than ready for the Matariki break next week. It is a time to reflect on the past, but equally to prepare for the future. The days are slowly lengthening, and there’s still a few important dates on what remains of the calendar year. Next Wednesday organisations who applied to tiers three and four of CNZ’s Arts Organisations and Groups Fund can expect to hear if and how successful they have been in securing funding. Those who applied for tiers one and two have to wait until September. August sees a bunch of NZ creatives shooting their shot at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. September opens with Christchurch’s WORD festival, and closes with Wellington’s VERB – it will be interesting to see if they follow the success of Auckland Writers Festival and Featherston Booktown Karukatea Festival, which broke records of attendance and book sales. In October, Nelson and the Hawke’s Bay host their regional arts festivals, and the Silver Scroll awards will be held in Auckland. 

But perhaps the date that looms tallest is 7 November, election day. The polls are neck and neck. We don’t yet know what a change of government would mean for the arts sector, if anything at all. Labour’s annual congress this weekend launched a campaign motto of “Jobs, Health, Homes”. National is going with “Fixing the basics and building the future.” The issues politicians are addressing are those that are of top concern for voters – usually taken to be what Ipsos research finds: cost of living, healthcare, the economy, petrol prices, and housing. Times are tough, so there’s really no surprises. Still, I think it may be worth remembering that the arts are what give life meaning, what stitches together societies, and ultimately what makes us human. Who is going to remind the politicians and the voters?

Neck of the Woods to hold a community hui this Saturday

After a hugely successful community fundraising effort that exceeded the $150,000 goal, the team behind Neck of the Woods are holding a community hui at 2pm this Saturday, to talk about how operating the venue could be done in a more sustainable way. Just last week Neck of the Woods was on the verge of permanent closure as the standard operating model that relied on bar sales was no longer working. “Now is our chance to reimagine how we do things,” reads the Instagram post. Ideas are also being gathered by Nympho via Google Form. Some that have already discussed are: Increasing the venue hire fee so it’s in line with similar capacity venues, transforming the business into a not-for-profit, creating a member subscription based service, periodic “Neck of the Woods” branded club nights where the venue can take the profit on ticket sales, and keeping what works, aka staff, crew, safe & sound policy.

Music collective in Whangārei signs partnership with council

He Reo (Whangārei music collective) has signed a partnership agreement with Whangārei District Council to strengthen and support Whangārei's music community. The agreement lays the foundation for future initiatives, including the development of a dedicated Music Community Hub. He Reo is inviting everyone connected to the local music scene – musicians, venues, promoters, educators, technicians, producers, and supporters – to help shape what's next. The current focus is to develop a scholarship program and a proposed framework is online here for feedback and consideration. 

Mud Studios gives way to something new

Mud Studios, a shared ceramics studio founded by Becky Richards in a warehouse in Mt Wellington, Auckland, has closed after a fruitful few years. Word on the street is that a collective of woodworkers have taken over the space, so at least beautiful hand-made objects will continue to be made there. 

A new artist-run space on K’ Road

Which Way space is open Friday to Sunday from 10am to 3pm, and is really just off Karangahape, at 4D/30 Upper Queen Street. Its website says that the space is driven by social connection, conversation, experimentation and encouragement, and that it foregrounds process in place of expectations. The first show, titled A Drawing Show, featured works by Amy Potenger, Michael Prosee, Joseph Scott, and Josh Whitaker.

Two new indie bookshops open in Wellington

After the biggest Auckland Writers Festival yet, the opening of two new bookshops on Willis Street this winter, seems to add to a picture of a bolstered books industry. As reported by Claire Mabey for The Spinoff, there were lines out the door and down the street for romance bookstore XO Book Co’s opening day, and Aurelia Books is due to open this month. The stores join indie stalwart Unity Books on the strip. Brodie Joyce, who is opening Aurelia Books told Claire, “The data (genuinely sexy) on the book industry this year is looking OK given the economic state of Aotearoa – and the world... Not to say it won’t be tough and a lot of hard mahi, but the risk of the dream is worth it to me”.

NZ Artist Karma Barnes builds momentum through China

“China has become an important chapter in the development of my practice,” Barnes says. “What began with a single exhibition has grown into long-term relationships with curators, institutions and audiences”. Barnes is currently presenting a site-responsive iteration of CO-Lapses in FORM WITHOUT FORM《大象無形》in Shanghai. Barnes’ engagement with China has accelerated since her selection for the Arte Laguna Prize 20th Anniversary Exhibition at EKA Tianwu, Shanghai, in 2025. This led to an invitation to the 10th Beijing International Art Biennale, where she became the first New Zealand artist invited to the Biennale in six years, followed by her appointment as Arte Laguna Prize Ambassador, Shanghai 2026 and further invitations to exhibitions and international art festivals across China.

Lower Hutt joins Dunedin, Christchurch, and 10 other cities in AudioCulture’s music map series

In the 1950s, Hutt Valley teens were early adopters of rock'n'roll, and the string of suburbs was never quite the same. Lower Hutt gave us Shona Laing, Andy Anderson, DJ Mu, NZ's first rap competition (won by Kas Futialo aka Tha Feelstyle), Radio With Pictures, Clinton Brown, Aaron Tokona, Darren Watson, Bill & Boyd, Steve Gilpin (Mi-Sex), Disasteradio, Jane Walker, and world-class EMI recording studios, and AudioCulture's content director Chris Bourke, who compiled the map. The interactive map allows you to click on locations of interest and find out their music history. And yes, a map for Upper Hutt is on the way.

Artists, designers, writers, and curators among Fulbright 2026 Graduate Award winners

The awards enable New Zealand graduate students to undertake postgraduate study or research at US institutions, and this year’s cohort was announced last week. Designer Kaan Hiini (Ngāpuhi, Te Arawa, Te Rarawa) will be completing a Master of Transdisciplinary Design specialising in indigenous design methodologies at the New School in New York City. Artist Lee Richardson will complete a Master of Fine Arts in Graphic Design at Yale University, writer Emma Sidnam will complete a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing specialising in fiction at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and writer and curator Amy Weng will complete a Master of Arts in Asian Studies specialising in visual cultures at University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Hawai’i.

Zac Nicholls Amped Music Project’s new coordinator

Amped, a four-week music mentorship programme for high school students in Dunedin, has hired an early participant to coordinate the programme. “Without being involved in Amped when I was at school, I would never be where I am as a musician and I wouldn’t have half of the friendships I now cherish,” says Nicholls. “I’m looking forward to providing that for the next generation of tamariki.”  Zac works as a guitar and drums teacher at Abbotsford Primary School, as well as regularly acting as a recording and mixing engineer for local bands, and writing and directing plays. To support the programme, a crowdfunding campaign is currently running.

Comedian Raybon Kan once described Masterton as “a fate worse than death”. He can be forgiven only because the Masterton Arts Quarter didn’t exist in his day. Local writer Marisa King tours us through the quartet of arts organisations there.

With much conversation happening around the operating models of indie venues, Devon Webb’s piece about the all-ages scene in Wellington is particularly powerful. She argues that it provides a model for a scene where alcohol is decentred. 

In July's Global Compass, our foreign correspondent Genista Jurgens reflects on a craving for grounded, ecological mindfulness during Europe's heatwave. There’s also more international opportunities for NZ practitioners than ever before, including for writers, curators, and researchers as well as artists. 

I’m always interested to hear what readers enjoy or detest. You can catch me on editor@thebigidea.co.nz