Leadership in the arts in 2024 needs to be dynamic and forward-thinking. There are some clear signs that future is being ushered in.

Bianca Hyslop (Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue-kaipapa, Tūhourangi-Ngāti Wāhiao, Pākehā) has been announced as the Kaihautū of Atamira Dance Company - a newly created position responsible for its artistic and operational leadership.

Atamira and Hyslop have had plenty of connections during her 15 years in the Māori contemporary dance landscape - including as co-choreographer for the company’s double bill program Ka Mua Ka Muri which premiered in July.

Hyslop - who will officially take up the post after Labour weekend - expressed “I feel honoured to take on the role of Kaihautū of Atamira Dance Company and acknowledge the dedication and passion of those who paved the way before me. 

"I look forward to the opportunity to support, nurture, and advance the vision of Atamira at this time of reflection, as we look to the past to move forward into the future.”

With well-regarded stints at The New Zealand Dance Company and Ōkāreka Dance Company - as well as co-directing and choreographing works like He Huia Kaimanawa and Pōhutu alongside her partner and artist Rowan Pierce - among her career achievements, Hyslop is highly respected for her mahi and her mana in the Aotearoa dance community. The appointment has been met with widespread acclaim.

In addition to her artistic endeavours, Bianca completed Heke Poutuarongo Reo in 2023, a three-year immersion degree in te reo Māori me ōna tikanga through Te Wānanga o Raukawa. Her accolades include this year's PANNZ FAME Mid-Career Award, Creative NZ's Tup Lang Choreographic Award in 2019 and the Eileen May Norris Scholarship in 2013.

The appointment comes with Interim Artistic Manager and choreographer Kelly Nash finishing up at the end of August - which included overseeing Ka Mua Ka Muri and directing three short films which will premiere at Tatai Whetu at Tempo Dance Festival this month.

New head at Hannah

Change as well in the capital, with another highly regarded creative taking on a new challenge.

Eleanor Strathern is the new General Manager of Wellington performance institution the Hannah Playhouse - taking over from Isobel MacKinnon who is heading overseas.

She brings more than a decade - and over 60 productions - worth of experience as an award-winning producer with an intimate knowledge of venues, festivals, audience development, freelance theatre and comedy. 

Strathern told The Lowdown "The Hannah Playhouse is a stunning venue in the heart of Wellington, and I can both see and feel its value to our industry since returning as a public-facing venue in 2022. 

"Prior to the official reopening of the Hannah Playhouse, I was also lucky enough to have seen ground-breaking productions (Destination Mars, Gravity & Grace) rehearse and develop in the space during my time as Producer at Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts. 

"The Hannah fills a gap in our ecosystem – it is somewhere we can make and explore to a significant scale and we can expand the horizons of independent theatre and dance. In the midst of a prolonged period of bad news for a theatre producer, the accessibility, scale, and kaupapa of the Hannah Playhouse has been a real positive; it's made me personally feel like I have more avenues for both survival and success in the arts. 

"I want very much to be a source of possibility and positivity in the performing arts landscape – an attitude I have maintained in my independent practice, even as the odds get stacked ever-higher. I want to be a part of creating better outcomes for our artists, particularly in Wellington, and this role at the Hannah Playhouse appealed to me as an opportunity to provide this in practical and tangible ways."

Like so many of her peers, Strathern is used to wearing many hats in a variety of roles. This new position means she needs to make some big calls.

"A Mulled Whine is my one-woman company that I have been running from my kitchen table for the last 7.5 years. It is a full-time gig, even when there isn't anything on the stage, and I will be taking a significant step back as I step up at Hannah Playhouse. I will keep a very select and intentional number of works on my books for 2025 - so don't look away from our socials just yet! 

"I have also been the in-house producer for Binge Culture since 2020 and would love to continue my mahi with their production of Werewolf which recently celebrated a sold-out season at Edinburgh Fringe. When you get so far with something, it's tough to let it go– especially right before it's about to soar. But when I produce a show, I tend to do try and fill every gap; I'm out there doing production management, HR, fundraising, publicity, graphic design, van driving, front of house, voice work– it's not just the people and he pūtea; I'll do literally anything to get a show over the line. 

"This approach won't work if I'm also giving my all to the Hannah Playhouse, as I intend to do. I have had the privilege to mentor several emerging producers over the years, and hope to connect some projects and tasks with trusted hands."

Wellington Council’s City Events Manager Stephen Blackburn states: “We are excited by the skills and passion Eleanor will bring to the Hannah Playhouse as a home for development.

“The Hannah is a key infrastructural investment for this city’s diverse performing arts. It has already proved its worth with around 900 practitioners working in the space and developing numerous new works that have gone on to entertain audiences both nationally and internationally since we took on the operations of the theatre in 2022."

Music venue advocacy group rebranded

That wretched Pandemic era didn't bring a lot of positives - with the live music industry among those hardest hit at the time. 

It did, however, show the impact of banding together and how important kotahitanga - unity and solidarity - can be, with important work done by the Save Our Venues collective. It became a rallying cry for the sector, and saw fundraising initiatives, research, advocacy campaigns, community events, and engagement with central and local government as well as the wider music sector.

That group has now morphed into a new entity with the introduction this week of Independent Music Venues Aotearoa (IMVA) to "unite grassroots music venues to preserve and celebrate Aotearoa’s live music culture."

IMVA Chair Lucy Macrae explains "We have spent the last four years building a strong network of venues and partners, pushing for real change and initiatives that support and sustain live music venues. To now publicly launch IMVA — a not-for-profit society whose future lie in the hands of its member venues — feels truly amazing."

in a statement, the organisation proclaims "IMVA offers a collective voice to advocate for live music venues and amplify support for them. As we launch, IMVA has 26 member venues spanning the country. We are working to further expand this member base — and strongly encourage venues who regularly host original live music to apply for membership and join the cause."

Among IMVA's mission points will be advocating for regulatory reform and policies that nurture and sustain live music venues, addressig ongoing threats posed by noise/sound enforcement, alongside a focus on liquor licensing and urban/regional planning.

"These intimate spaces are homes for our music whānau. They serve as incubators for local talent to take their music to the world and create jobs in the music sector and associated industries. And they are where New Zealanders share in the experience of live music — week in, week out."

Hay's clay hits home

Nelson Clay Week has been a hit, with the second edition of the biennial  Pushing Clay exhibition (open until 19 October at Refinery ArtSpace) declaring its prize-winning entries.

South Canterbury artist Graham Hay - now based in West Australia - has won the $8,000 Contemporary Ceramics Award, edging out the other 29 finalists with his work, Double Chamber: Mortal Coil series.

It's the latest addition to many accolades for Hay, who has had work exhibited in 16 different countries (including seven biennials) and has led more than 300 paper clay workshops across 14 countries, including most of the international symposiums.

Hay responds “The award is a huge boast to my morale, to my 30-year journey as a ceramic artist, funding, shipping, experimenting with materials, and a pursuit of further opportunities,” 

“I hadn’t exhibited this experimental direction in my work so was unsure of its appeal. The works are strongly linked to childhood memories of sunny holidays around Nelson, and the recent interment of my mother’s ashes here.”

Artists Julia Holden (Ōtautahi Christchurch) and Richard Stratton (Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington) both received a Judges’ Merit, taking $1,000 each.

The judging panel of Ceramicist Aaron Scythe and contemporary art curator, writer, and Professor of Fine Arts Heather Galbraith explain “The decision-making was challenging, with 44 pieces by 30 makers. We selected three works that enthralled us, and also made us ask difficult questions, of ourselves, and of the brief. 

"Graham Hay’s work was selected as the winning piece for its courage of its convictions. It has at its core a process of experimentation, and technically it is sophisticated in its realisation. We kept circling back to this work, it had a life force that was compelling.”

Nelson is on a mission to reclaim its position as one of New Zealand’s most active centres for ceramics - with a heritage in the at form stemming back to the 1950s. Clay Week has helped draw some of the country’s leading makers and clay enthusiasts together to share techniques, ideas and skills.

“Arts Council Nelson is committed to building an archival record of contemporary New Zealand ceramics, as presented through the Pushing Clay exhibition and award," states Janja Heathfield, Manager of Refinery ArtSpace.

“We are thrilled with the calibre of works submitted this year. As a collection they demonstrate what Pushing Clay is all about. This exhibition celebrates originality, with an emphasis on works that stretch the boundaries of traditional practice, and embrace the contemporary, conceptual and unconventional possibilities of working with clay."

Five and finished for Miyazaki

Arts Centre farewells Sculpture Festival curator
As Nelson Clay Week draws to a close (4 October), things are just starting further south. 

The fifth annual Arts Centre Sculpture Festival in Christchurch opens to the public on Saturday (5-20 October), with over 300 works by 37 NZ artists on display, ranging from jewellery to ceramics, glass, mixed media, and sculpture - as well as a range of artist workshops including harakeke weaving and scratch-building. 

It will also be the last for inuagual curator Koji Miyazaki - himself a jeweller - before he returns to Japan in November.

He recalls “Those first few years I was so nervous. But every year, getting such great support and feedback - from artist’s communications and people’s comments at the exhibition - it feels like I have done something worthwhile."

The Arts Centre’s Creative Director Chris Archer adds “We will miss Koji’s deep commitment to object art and his enthusiasm for the festival. He has been a great friend of The Arts Centre – we have built this festival together - and we wish him well on his next life adventure.”

Miyazaki says people will find most pieces in this year's festival highly relatable. “As with all art, these objects can make you feel something new... sometimes it is just the beauty of the form that draws a response. Other times it is a sense of connection: an emotional response, or a reminder of events or people from our past.”

Proceeds from sales go to the artist and The Arts Centre. Buying a piece of sculpture is not something most people do every day, Miyazaki admits. “It’s something unique, something different than commercially mass-produced items. And so, it’s also an expression of personality.” But given the bespoke nature of art, Miyazaki is clear: “If you love it, buy it now - you may never see it again.”

50 for Fingers

Jewellery makers in Tāmaki Makaurau are also celebrating a special event - with an even more special milestone this weekend.

Fingers Jewellery in the Auckland CBD is celebrating 50 Years with its Golden Anniversary Group Show starting on Saturday (5 October). Long established as one of the city's leading contemporary jewellery galleries, the group show has become something of a tradition. This year, to mark the half-century landmark, over 60 contemporary jewellery artists have been invited to interpret 'Golden' in their unique ways.

Eszter Szigethy, an Auckland-based stone artist and architect, is among the featured artists, creating a series of jade pieces inspired by the golden ratio and minimalism especially for the show.

Szigethy enthuses “Cheers to Fingers on their 50th anniversary! This golden milestone is a testament to the gallery's commitment to showcasing the best in contemporary jewellery, and I'm honoured to be part of this celebration with my own work. It's a privilege to contribute to Fingers' legacy and to be among such talented artists.”

Auckland's art takeover

The event is part of Auckland getting the full creative treatment in the coming days, with the return of Art Week (4-13 October) - with over 70 events, exhibitions, installations and activations set to fill the city centre over a 10-day programme. 

The most beloved element traditionally is Changing Lanes, with nine temporary public artworks in some of the city centre’s well-known and well-walked laneways by artists including Karen Sewell and Elliot Collins. A series of guided art walks, artist meet and greets and the popular Late Night Art programme that features over 40 events and activations - incling Art Battle where professional artists and on-the-day sign-ups compete in a live painting battle judged by the audience.

Viv Beck, Heart of the City’s Chief Executive states “Art Week’s programme is packed with free events, from art exhibitions, walking tours through to Late Night Art, and so much more. It’s such an uplifting event, allowing people to celebrate creativity and connect with the city centre without cost being a barrier.  We love seeing our streets jammed with people and their curiosity ignited.”

There will be plenty of visual treats as the city is lit up with the likes of Bloom at the Viaduct, with digital sculpture and multimedia events becoming the popular norm for these style of events. 

Throw in a host of family-friendly opportunities like the Wrap Around Squiggla Trail takeover of Silo 6 (below), this could be the sign many parents looking for school holiday solutions are looking for.

Decade of Loading Docs

There's no such thing as too many creative opportunities. 

We are blessed in Aotearoa to have a number of events and platforms for our storytellers to get a chance to be seen, to be promoted. For the last ten years, Loading Docs has been one of those.

As it reaches the double digits milestone, it's worth celebrating what they've achieve so far - nearly 200 filmmakers supported to take part and feel the aroha of the documentary-driven platform - with over 19 million views to date.

“Reflecting on the journey from the spark of an idea to a global platform, it’s been extraordinary to witness how Loading Docs has grown over the past ten years," says Founder and Executive Producer, Julia Parnell.

"Initially, we dreamed of showcasing Aotearoa’s short documentaries to both local and global audiences, and today, that dream has far exceeded our expectations. These films have broken new ground in storytelling and built a strong community of filmmakers committed to telling stories that are uniquely Kiwi and universally relatable. 

"This collection is a testament to their boldness, creativity, and the collective belief that short documentaries can create lasting impact. I’m proud and humbled to see how far we’ve come.”

After a sold out premiere at the Hollywood Avondale, the 10th collection of authentic Aotearoa stories has just been released, with six short documentaries ranging from an emotional battle to protect ancient trees to a tender quest for extraterrestrial contact.

So instead of doom-scrolling through reguritated cat video compilations, maybe give these talented Kiwi storytellers some of your time instead.