Te Whare Hēra

Te Whare Hēra Te Whare Hēra Artist Residency is a partnership between Massey University and Wellington City Council

In 2014 Whiti o Rehua School of Art launched a new International Artist Residency Programme in Wellington. This non-commercial initiative run by Massey University’s Te Whiti o Rehua School of Art and the Wellington City Council is designed to bring contemporary international artists to live, work and exhibit in Wellington city. Resident artists to date have included Christian Thompson, Sasha Huber

and Petri Saarikko, Martín Sastre, Etienne de France, Louise Hervé and Chloé Maillet, Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro, Soraya Rhofir, Tom Dale and from November 2017 Yuka Oyama. Artists are granted an impressive live-work studio suite on Wellington harbour within the Willis Bond & Co prestigious Clyde Quay Wharf Development. Residencies run for a 4-6 month period, the first having commenced late 2014. The objectives of the programme are to:
�stimulate the production of high quality, innovative, creative work in Wellington, which can be shared with Wellingtonians and visitors to the city
�reinforce Wellington as a visual arts leader; and a place where contemporary art is more widely recognised and debated
�make a real difference to the cultural lives of our community
�partner with sector colleagues to enable the best opportunities for the resident artist’s work to be experienced by audiences. The 2016 International Artist Residency programme is supported by Massey University through College of Creative Arts and Te Whiti o Rehua School of Art, Wellington City Council, and in kind support from generous project partners. For 2017 onwards, additional support is welcomed and we look forward to discussing details and benefits with interested parties. To receive invites to our public events, become friends with Te Whare Hēra. Email [email protected] with 'sub tewhareherafriends' in the subject line.

This brilliant artist, Dr Gabby O’Connor, is awash in a sea of blue luminosity at Te Whare Hēra. The mahi she is engagin...
18/06/2026

This brilliant artist, Dr Gabby O’Connor, is awash in a sea of blue luminosity at Te Whare Hēra. The mahi she is engaging in there is excitingly varied, - science and experience based, and she has found a brilliant output to be revealed later in the residency. We’re loving having the space activated by colour and tools and the wonderful Gabby. Watch this space for further developments.

We’re delighted to announce our new artist in residence for June and July. Dr Gabby O’Connor, transdisciplinary research...
02/06/2026

We’re delighted to announce our new artist in residence for June and July. Dr Gabby O’Connor, transdisciplinary researcher, Antarctican, science communicator and educator will be inhabiting the Te Whare Hēra studio space, working on projects that intersect with Wellington Harbour, its history and the state of the water around Clyde Quay Wharf. 

Gabby will collect ocean data using various methods including drawing, photography and science. She describes some of this activity as ‘fishing’ for ocean temperature, and recording harbour visibility for synthesising in to artworks. This residency will also co-host collaborators from different fields to “hot desk” in the studio with Gabby, working together to learn more about the ocean and what it means through direct engagement. 

Look out here for information about workshops, an exhibition project, and other activities from Gabby in the coming weeks.  

We have just one week remaining of our wonderful artist/curator from Ecuador, Rubén Díaz. He’s achieved some significant...
24/05/2026

We have just one week remaining of our wonderful artist/curator from Ecuador, Rubén Díaz. He’s achieved some significant mahi in his time here, not least the exhibition in The Engine Room Gallery, which was well attended and so beautifully collaborative with Regan Balzer, Horomona Horo and the other artists who took part.

Ruben has had one week of portfolio reviews so far, talking deeply with emerging artists about their practices and offering suggestions and wisdom, drawn from his own extensive experience.

Last Friday, Dawn Wilce met with Rubén to show her works and talk through next steps, and the discussion was so interesting to witness. Both of these artists connecting through abstract ideas about concrete things, and both sharing generously. I was very lucky to be allowed to be part of that, and I thank Rubén and Dawn both for allowing me to capture some moments from their meeting.

Rubén is available Wednesday and Friday for the last few appointments, and has some time slots that keen artists could fill. If you’re wanting discussion, please message him via WhatsApp to make an appointment: +593 99 980 8940

We had the most wonderful opening event last Thursday for Tōwai: Between Forest, Mountains and Ocean, at . Current arti...
13/05/2026

We had the most wonderful opening event last Thursday for Tōwai: Between Forest, Mountains and Ocean, at . Current artist in residence Rubén Díaz and Regan Balzer with Horomona Horo have collaborated on this beautiful group show that brings together Sapara and Māori culture. Artists in the show also include .puke.9 , , , , and Kurt Smith-Komene.

Come and visit each weekday 12-4pm, until Tuesday 19th. We would love to see you there.

Calling all emerging artists of Pōneke / Wellington. We have an exciting opportunity for artists to meet with our curren...
13/05/2026

Calling all emerging artists of Pōneke / Wellington. We have an exciting opportunity for artists to meet with our current artist in residence, curator and creative leader Rubén Díaz, for a consultation on individual art practice, and portfolio review.

Rubén is a contemporary artist with an exhibition history that spans the Americas, Europe and Asia. His work exploring the Sapara culture of the Ecuadorian Amazon has brought him to Aotearoa, this time in a partnership with local Māori artists. At home in Quito, Rubén works as the founder, director and curator of No Lugar - Arte Contemporáneo. No Lugar is an independent contemporary art project that operates through residency and exhibition programmes focused on emergent artists. 

Meeting with Rubén is an opportunity to engage in conversation, and receive guidance about your art practice and to learn more about Rubén’s artistic and curatorial practice, and what No Lugar does.

Appointments of between ½ hour to 1 hour, can be made by contacting Rubén by through his WhatsApp number: +593 99 980 8940.
Available times are between 11am-7pm, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 18th - 29th May. Meetings will be in the studio space at Te Whare Hēra on Clyde Quay Wharf. First in-first served - don’t miss this limited time opportunity to learn from a thought-leader and experienced art practitioner.

What to bring to your meeting: 
    •    Your portfolio or samples of your work
    •    Specific questions for Rubén about your approach or direction

We’re so happy to welcome back our favourite Ecuadorian to Te Whare Hēra. Rubén Darío Díaz Chávez is a contemporary arti...
06/05/2026

We’re so happy to welcome back our favourite Ecuadorian to Te Whare Hēra. Rubén Darío Díaz Chávez is a contemporary artist and researcher, curator and cultural manager, with a background in management, visual arts, and cultural studies. He has exhibited in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. He has researched about Quantum Realism, independent spaces in Latin America, and Sapara culture. He has received notable national and international awards. He actively collaborates with Sapara leader Gloria Ushigua. He is the founder, director, and curator of No Lugar – Arte Contemporáneo.

The exhibition opening tomorrow evening (Thursday), is such a rich collaboration with local Māori artists, and Rubén has partnered with them in a way that crosses international borders, and highlights common concerns around indigenous territories and the environmental impact of colonisation and land use.

Come and visit with Tōwai : Between Forest, Mountains and Ocean at The Engine Room Gallery at Massey University, 7-19 May, M-F, 12-4pm. We’d love to see you there.

Our latest artist in residence is Ecuadorian artist and curator, Rubén Darío Díaz Chavéz, returning to Te Whare Hēra, ei...
06/05/2026

Our latest artist in residence is Ecuadorian artist and curator, Rubén Darío Díaz Chavéz, returning to Te Whare Hēra, eight months after he was last in Pōneke. Díaz has come to collaborate in-person with artists he connected deeply with during the month-long residency he took part in during August of last year. This time, he has travelled with artworks to share, and within days is busy installing a new group exhibition in The Engine Room Gallery at Massey University College of Creative Arts.

Díaz is joined by Regan Balzer, Horomona Horo, and a strong group of Māori artists working in Pōneke. Together, Díaz, Balzer and Horo have shown us the power of cultural exchange. We are so delighted to have this collaboration flourish, and to have the opportunity to welcome this beloved artist back into our whare.

Tōwai : Between Forest, Mountains and Ocean
Bringing together Māori artists and the Sapara nation (from the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon).

Exhibition Opening Event:
The Engine Room Gallery
College of Creative Arts, Block 1, Massey University
Thursday 7 May, 5pm
Kai and kōrero in Te Whare Pūkakā, followed by karakia and speeches, then moving through into the exhibition space.
Please join us to celebrate this mahi and the bonds of relationship and discourse between Sapara and Aotearoa artists.

Exhibition open weekdays, 7 May - 19 May, 12-4pm

“Knowledge does not remain fixed in objects, it circulates through the room as vibration, as rhythm, as fiber, animating the space as a living presence. The installation breathes as territory, where voices, memories and relations unfold and remain active.“  Rubén Diaz

Featured artists:
Rubén Diaz, Kura Puke, Kurt Smith-Komene. Stuart Foster, Horomona Horo, Matt Tini, Israel Randell and Regan Balzer

Please join us at The Engine Room Gallery to celebrate the last moments of the exhibition Polynesiaphonia, by our curren...
22/04/2026

Please join us at The Engine Room Gallery to celebrate the last moments of the exhibition Polynesiaphonia, by our current artist in residence, Camille Bleu-Valentin.

With this week’s wild weather and campus closure, we missed out on our public artist talk, but we’d love to send Camille home in style with a gathering that honours the significant work she has made while in residence.

5pm-7pm, all welcome.

Thanks to the French Embassy for partnering with Massey University and Wellington City Council to make this residency possible.

Last week we had the very great honour to welcome the French Ambassador to New Zealand and the Cook Islands - Laurence B...
19/04/2026

Last week we had the very great honour to welcome the French Ambassador to New Zealand and the Cook Islands - Laurence Beau, and Conseiller de coopération et d’action culturelle François Bockel, to visit Camille and Polynesiaphonia. The Ambassadrice was very interested in Camille’s process for making the porcelain sculptures, which utilised 3D scanning and printing techniques in combination with traditional ceramic hand-building methods.

We are so blessed with the partnership that the French Embassy maintains with Massey University and the Wellington City Council for this residency. Artists from France and the French Pacific have taken up residence at Te Whare Hēra annually, and each of them brings so much depth and curiosity through their practice. Camille is no exception - her playful exhibition presents a personal exploration of the impact of colonisation and thoughts about identity, and is a testament to the amount of mahi that can be achieved in a two month residency. Students and staff, and local art community alike are benefitting from conversations with Camille, and from witnessing her methods of research and collaboration.

Come to learn more about Polynesiaphonia from Camille during her artist talk on Tuesday 21 April, 5pm at The Engine Room. We’d love to see you there.

19/04/2026

TOMORROW: Artist Talk with Camille Bleu-Valentin at The Engine Room Gallery - 5pm (21 April). Come along to hear about Polynesiaphonia, and about Camille’s wider practice. Exhibition open every day this week, 12-4pm.

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