Exhibition season kicks off for Whitireia

Exhibition season kicks off for Whitireia Visual Arts and Design students

Tash Helasdottir

Exhibition season has begun for Whitireia Visual Arts and Design students, with shows being held around the Greater Wellington region.

The Bachelor of Applied Arts (Visual Arts and Design) students, who specialise in a range of art forms, are required to organise and hold a body of work exhibition as part of their final year of study. Graduate Diploma in Applied Arts students are also involved as part of their programme requirements. The shows include photography, textiles and jewellery exhibitions, to be held at venues including the National Library Gallery, Seventeen Tory Street, QUOIL Gallery, Toi Pōneke and Mahara Gallery.

Whitireia Visual Arts and Design Programme Manager Deb Donnelly said the students each present an artistic body of work that locates their conceptual enquiry, media skills, creative enterprise and research contexts at sites of their choice. The works are promoted on view in galleries or public spaces where the enquiry best suits the context.

“The exploration and presentation is a mid-year milestone for students to reflect on whether the works convey meaning to their intended audience,” said Donnelly.

She noted that past solo exhibitions have resulted in students gaining the confidence to mount shows, win awards, internships and residencies, and further their arts industry experience in an increasingly competitive global environment.

Third year student Tash Helasdottir-Cole, who specialises in photography through Whitireia affiliate The Photo School at Raumati Beach, said it has been an interesting challenge to finish work and organise an exhibition at the same time.

“We’re being pushed to do things we haven't done before, and gain skills and connections that will be useful in the future.”

Helasdottir-Cole’s show, ‘.alterity’, focuses on questions of queer identity in a post-marriage world, and whether the push towards mainstream acceptance marginalises those already more marginalised members of the LGBTQ community. It is on exhibition at Seventeen Tory Street in Wellington from 28-30 July.

The Visual Arts and Design final group show, to be curated and exhibited at Porirua’s Pataka Gallery in November, is a refinement of mid-year works based on valuable feedback from community audiences and an expert arts industry panel.

Check out the News and Events section of the Whitireia website for a full list of exhibition dates and locations.

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