Culture & Heritage

The Wellington Heritage Festival is set to showcase Te Whanganui-a-Tara and the region’s multicultural history once again.

Art is returning to Auckland CBD as part of Heart of the City’s Artweek In The City event next month.

The Ministry of Culture and Heritage has opened the $300,000 Commemorating Waitangi Day Fund for communities seeking to organise events that commemorate the signing of Te Tiriti (the Treaty).

Tourism Bay of Plenty and Tauranga City Council have launched a new app to promote the area’s culture, history and visitor activities during Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, Māori Language Week.

Visitors to Wellington can experience extended reality through their mobile devices and see a new virtual sculpture hovering above the harbour.

The Waiorua Gallery has joined the annual Kāpiti Coast Art Trail for the first time this year.

QT Queenstown has opened an art gallery on the sixth floor of its hotel.

A Deed of Settlement between the Crown and Te Korowai o Wainuiārua will see the iwi groups receive $6.8m in cultural funding and the return of 19 sites of cultural significance.

Wellington Airport is paying tribute to Ngā Tipua Nui, The Great Beings from Māori legend that inhabited Te Whanganui-a-Tara, the harbour and hills.

Thousands of travellers expected to arrive at Auckland Airport on Friday 14 July, the day of the Matariki public holiday, will receive a special welcome.

Wellington’s public spaces and parks will be more inclusive, integrated, regenerative and better reindigenise and reflect mātauranga Māori under changes to the city’s plans

A museum group, performing arts venue and an effort to promote waka through workshops and public events are amongst the 17 recipients of the final round of the government’s $28m Cultural Sector Regeneration Fund.

Queenstown Lakes District Council and Three Lakes Cultural Trust are encouraging the community to have its say on the region’s arts, culture and heritage strategy.

Air New Zealand is supporting the world of virtual reality for a new photo exhibition in the Metaverse.

Te Pā Tū Rotorua’s summer season has hundreds of visitors through the doors every week with the reintroduction of cruise, but its quieter months are coming with a focus on food events and the returning MICE sector.

Half of all New Zealanders took action to mark Matariki in 2022, according to a poll from Te Papa.

NZ Māori Tourism, Matariki and Te Matatini also secure funding from Budget 2023.

More changes could be coming for the arts and Proposed cuts to Auckland Council’s 2023/24 budget for arts, culture and events may not be as severe as initially expected. sector and other regional services in Auckland’s 2023/24 budget.

New Zealand’s cultural sector contributed $12.9bn in the year to March 2022, with a growth rate of 10.6% compared to 5.3% for the entire economy, according to the government.

The first Matariki celebrations have begun with the launch of a new karakia booklet at the Dark Sky Sanctuary in Takapō.

The four-day Te Matatini festival contributed to a $22m boost to New Zealand’s economy, according to a post-event report cited by Eden Park.

Queenstown’s town centre now tells more of the story behind its history in a narrative woven through paving and light poles around the area.

A new art exhibition in Foxton encourages visitors to follow their nose and indulge in the sensory experiences of olfactory art.

Cyclists around Pōneke Wellington will soon see blue and green designs representing hidden waterways and sites of historic cultural significance around the city.

Air New Zealand it celebrating the launch of Te Matatini kapa haka festival with a charter flight dedicated entirely to te reo Māori.

Avis has signed a sponsorship deal with the Royal New Zealand Ballet for a three-year partnership.

The Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage has allocated $22m to the cultural, creative and festival sector to ensure it is able to thrive.

“Tens of thousands” of fans are expected to flock to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland for the Te Matatini Festival of kapa haka, which is returning to the city for the first time in 11 years.

“New Zealand needs to be a premium destination,” says the Marlborough operator.

Tauranga’s waterfront is awash with lights and colour as part of a new art and sculpture installation in the city centre.

Up to $300,000 for the Creative and Cultural Events Incubator investment fund will support events that highlight New Zealand’s diverse culture and build national pride.

Historic battle site Te Pakanga o Ōhaeawai near Kaikohe in Northland has opened to the public after a $1.79m restoration project.

Māori cultural performances are back at Auckland War Memorial Museum after being suspended due to Covid.

The projects include a digital storytelling app for the Russell Museum, e-commerce functionality for local art galleries, and a 3D virtual exhibition for the Tairawhiti Arts Festival.

Te Papa has spent $627,000 on the acquisition of two paintings by New Zealand artists from the Bank of New Zealand’s art collection.

Te Kōngahu Museum of Waitangi is opening its upstairs exhibitions gallery for a look inside the history of building and maintenance works at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds since 1934.

Whanganui Regional Museum is partnering with the Blumhardt Foundation in an effort to support public art galleries and museums in their acquisition of work by contemporary New Zealand craft practitioners.

A new kiosk and etching in Tauranga’s Wharf Street Upgrade in Te Papa will showcase the history of the city as part of an interactive audio and video experience.

A plan to transform a Tauranga reserve into a cultural and historic centre would provide a visitor experience around Māori life, including the 1864 battle of Gate Pā Pukehinahina.

The Cultural Sector Regeneration Fund is designed to support strategic, sector-led initiatives that will have lasting benefits for arts, culture, and heritage.

Sections of Tauranga’s Mt Maunganui Mauao will be closed to the public next week as works get underway to place new wayfinding signage and cultural touchpoints across the mountain.

Wellington City Council says its city promotions and business support costs the capital’s residents $35.3m every year, with arts and cultural activities costing an additional $24.5m.

With a focus on having a laugh, a new venture aims to leave guests smiling.

Edgewater Hotel at Wānaka is weaving te reo Māori into guest bathroom amenities to include more heritage and culture into its visitor experience.

The new public holiday is an opportunity for Māori operators to tell their stories to the world.

The Waitangi National Trust Board has been granted $3m to keep its grounds open to the public.

Budget 2022 has allocated more than $185m to support the country’s cultural sector.

A Tauranga reserve commemorating the 1864 Battle of Re Ranga is being upgraded to create a place of remembrance and storytelling.

The government’s Arts and Culture Covid Recovery Programme has paid out more than $20m to arts and culture events that were cancelled or suffered a loss of income due to Covid.

The government has invested $2.97m into a complete rebuild of the Waikato Rangiriri Pa Trenches complex.