I have been lucky enough to escape for the weekend to visit Wellington, take in WOW (World of Wearable Art) Awards, Te Papa and being an election year meet with Chris Finlayson (Minister for Arts, Culture & Heritage for the National Party). On arriving in Wellington my first priority was to go and see “Rita Angus: Life & Vision” at Te Papa. Having written my article last week on the vibrant state of arts and culture in rural New Zealand I was equally enthused to see the number of people who like me were a little over eager, were early for opening and were waiting for 10am when they would be able to enter the exhibition. A crowd of people waited including a large number of young people, both teenagers and primary school groups.

When 10am came this group streamed up the stairs into the Rita Angus exhibition which showcases over 200 works by the pioneering woman painter who fought for her right to live and work as a full time artist in New Zealand when there was literally no precedent for such a vocation. Being a “Gallery/Museum” person I can’t help but listen in to people’s responses to the work and took great interest in the Te Papa educators speaking with groups of school children about New Zealand’s art history. It is enlightening to see our youth taking such an active interest and seeking participation in our own unique arts, culture and heritage experiences. The Wearable Art Awards was no exception with our young people both attending and taking part in the awards in large numbers. So many talented young New Zealanders provided with opportunities to be involved in creativity and innovation, two traits, often expressed as the number eight wire mentality which we as New Zealanders are known for. Arriving home in Ashburton, we at the Gallery are readying ourselves for the annual Ashburton District Schools exhibition where young people from all over the district take part in displaying some of their creative work produced in our schools over the past year. Around two thousand young people and their families will move through the Gallery over the coming weeks and we invite you all to come and engage with and support the creative work of the young people in your community.