The Auckland Festival of Photography launched its 7^th festival with the introduction of the Signature and Fringe Programmes.

The Auckland Festival of Photography launched its 7^th festival with the introduction of the Signature and Fringe Programmes.

With some of the finest photography the region has to offer, the Signature Programme encompasses 25 exhibitions, providing depth and diversity.  Incorporated into this programme are the festival’s signature events; Talking Culture, Gravity Festival Tuesday and Olympus Auckland Photo Day.   

To celebrate the cornerstone open-access nature of the festival is the introduction of a Fringe Program featuring 44 exhibitions from all over the Auckland Region shown in spaces from shop windows, cafes, contemporary gallery spaces to digital online shows.

This year, festival patron is acclaimed photographer Harvey Benge. He says "It’s wonderful to see the festival continue to grow with a natural progression into two programmes, underlining the diversity and democratic nature of photography. More than any other festival I have seen, this festival encourages open access and participation."

Auckland Festival of Photography June 4-27 2010

Dates and highlights of the festival

• Saturday, 5^th June  (Aotea Centre)

Headlining the festival is the the Talking Culture Symposium on Climate Change and Environmental Photography. It will feature national and international photographers; Jocelyn Carlin (NZ), Rodney Dekker (Australia), Peter Evans (NZ), and Professor Anne Noble(ONZM MFA). This coincides with World Environment Day, 5^th June, and includes one day exhibitions of Magnum in Motion, One Planet, One Chance, and Stumps of Silence by Japanese artist Masaki Hirano.

• Tuesday 8^th June 9 galleries in Auckland city

Gravity Festival Tuesday returns this year building on one of last festival’s most successful events. With ten exhibitions over nine venues in a planned circuit of galleries and participants have the option of being ferried between venues in a fleet of minis.  

• Saturday 12^th June – Auckland wide

Olympus Auckland Photo Day – a key event of each year provides Aucklanders with the opportunity to capture their slice of Auckland at any given time in a 24 hour period. Entries are judged and the winner takes home a Olympus camera E620. 

Signature programme’s exhibitions include;

• Gil Hanly’s ‘One of My Worlds’ and Rebecca Swan’s ‘Dying to Know’  exhibition at Whitespace Gallery                                                               8 June - 26 June
• Fiona Pardington’s ‘Ahua: A Beautiful Hesitation’ at Two Rooms                 27 May - 26 June
•  ‘Visible Evidence’ documentary on photography by Leon Narby at the Film Archive 3 June - 30 June
• Gow Langsford presents ‘3x1’weekly exhibitions for photographers Bruce Jarvis (week 1), Simon Devitt (week 2), and Patrick Reynolds (week 3).     25 May - 12 June

 Since its inception, the festival has been free to the public and continues to evolve as New Zealand’s biggest free public art event. The support for the annual Festival has grown significantly since 2004, with 30,000 audience numbers across the regional exhibitions and events since 2008, and 47,500 website viewers in the last 12 months. For all 69 exhibitions, full details can be found on the festival web site www.photographyfestival.org.nz.