Rangatahi Māori from kura across Tāmaki Makaurau will exhibit their work in Kiritai, photography exhibition opening at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki on Saturday 26 September.
Kiritai is an annual Gallery programme that brings Māori secondary school students together to engage with art through a series of artist-led workshops, culminating in an exhibition at the Gallery.
Tātaki Auckland Unlimited Director of Auckland Art Gallery Dr Zara Stanhope says, “Through Kiritai, rangatahi grow in confidence and creativity as they develop their own art-making process. The programme gives them an opportunity to explore their unique perspectives and relationships with their environment. We are proud to present their photography at the Gallery and celebrate their work alongside their whānau, kura and communities.”
This year’s exhibition presents work created in response to ‘Ko au te taiao, ko te taiao ko au’ (I am the environment, and the environment is me), a theme exploring ancestral connection, belonging and identity.
49 rangatahi from Mount Albert Grammar, Ngā Puna o Waiōrea, Ngā Tūmanako o Kahurangi (Auckland Girls Grammar), Pukekohe High School, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o te Kōtuku and Tipene College took part in workshops spanning photography and still life, toi Māori, tātai arorangi (astronomy) and storytelling through dance. They learned with artists and practitioners including Atamira Dance Company, photographer Rāwhitiroa Bosch, Māori astronomer Oriwa Karena-Lockyer, and artist’s Dion Hitchens, Tonina Ngatai, Te Ohorere Williams and Ngaio Simmons.
Ahead of the exhibition’s opening, Kiritai will be celebrated at Pō Rewa, a free evening at the Gallery on Friday 25 September from 7pm to 9.30pm. The event is open to everyone and will feature music from DJ Nickalee, drop-in toi workshops, performances of Louise Pōtiki Bryant’s Te Ata Kura by Unitec students, a fashion hīkoi with Bachelor of Sustainable Fashion Design students at Whitecliffe, spoken word and moving image from local rangatahi.
The Gallery’s education programmes are generously supported by the Joyce Fisher Charitable Trust, the Friedlander Foundation, the Open Doors for Schools Fund, Jenny and Andrew Smith, the Sir William and Lady Lois Manchester Charitable Trust, the One Foundation and Four Winds.
Kiritai is part of the Enriching Local Curriculum programme, supported by the Ministry of Education and facilitated by experienced teachers and art educators.
Kiritai is open at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki from Saturday 26 September until Sunday 25 October 2026. Entry is free.
www.aucklandartgallery.com
Photo: Lee Oakes, Tainui, Whakatohea, Pukekohe High School, Ko au te poi, Ko te poi ko au, Digital Photograph, 2026(2)
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