Matariki Market Day

Print  by Onesian - one of the artists involved in the Market Day

This Sunday the Auckland Museum is holding a Matariki Market Day from 10am - 5pm.


As well as contemporary Maori art for sale, there will also be raranga (weaving) and whakairo (carving) demonstrations, live traditional and contemporary music, taonga puoro (traditional instruments), traditional Maori healing practitioners AND a papa takaro (playground) set up where market goers can play traditional games! 

Big Day Art

To celebrate the opening of the Home AKL exhibition, the Auckland Art Gallery is throwing another Big Day Art on Saturday. Entry to the exhibition will be free all day and there are a whole lot of free events planned for the day. Interactive drop in sessions where kids and adults alike can make art as well as a great line up of performances. 

Don't forget you can get a voucher at the gallery for $4 all-day parking at the Victoria Street car park. Bargain!

10am - 12pm: Drop-in session - North Atrium
 Weaving with Home AKL artists Louisa Humphry and Kaetaeta Watson  

11.30am - 12pm: Lower Grey Gallery

Enjoy traditional Tongan singing with the Fofo'anga group

12:15pm: Prestige Dance Crew - North atrium

1pm - 3pm: Drop-in session - North Atrium

Building sculptural landscape with Home AKL artist Janet Lilo

2pm - 2.20pm: Artist talk - Level 1 exhibition spaces

Artist Angela Tiatia gives short talk on her works Material Culture and Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis.

2.30pm - 2.50pm: Artist talk - Level 1 exhibition spaces

Join artist Leilani Kake as she introduces her video work Ariki Tupu'anga.

3pm - 3.30pm: Poetry - Level 1 exhibition spaces
Contemporary Samoan poet Courtney Meredith is joined by other Pacific poets for an emotional spoken word response to Home AKL.

3.30pm - 4pm: Tatau Dance - North Atrium

Tatau Dance finishes the day with their renowned high-energy and fast-paced Samoan dance.

50% Off Degas to Dali!

Street Kids - Joan Eardly c.1945

Sweet, I keep missing out on deals for this exhibition  but today I will not! Grabone are doing a deal for the amazing Degas to Dali show on at the Auckland Art Gallery - just $10 for a ticket! 
Kids are 14 are free making the whole thing a real steal. Get in there people, it's a one day only sale (but you can use the ticket anytime).


If you still need convincing (philistine) here's a link to the full list of all the amazing works in the exhibition.

Box City in Aotea Square

Alright, so you know I usually try to keep the events I list to free stuff but this one looks pretty cool and worth shelling out a very reasonable $12.50 for. 


Tomorrow thousands of boxes will be dumped in Aotea Square for We Built This City. Kids will be guided by performers/construction workers to use their imagination while they build tunnels, archways, towers and labyrinths out of the boxes. 


There will be three "performances" throughout the day tomorrow, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. 


The idea is that the city is redesigned and evolves with every performance. The event is recommended especially for kids aged 4 - 10 but there will be a special space for smaller people.


Tickets are $12.50 at The Edge (all children have to be accompanied by an adult who must also buy a ticket but as a bonus under 3s are free!)

Cut Collective exhibition in Silo Park

From Friday 6th - Friday 13th of April the giant silos in Silo Park will be open to the public for a collaborative exhibition put on by Cut Collective, Jon Baxter and a host of other artists. The show is called Public Access 5 and is all about making art accessible to the public while also making an Auckland landmark accessible. The artwork will be really cool and interesting for kids and who wouldn't want the opportunity to have an explore inside those cavernous towers! 


Check out this tumblr set up to document the progress of the exhibition going into the silos with some really cool pictures. 


Base FM's annual free Shake & Bake party is on in Silo Park this Saturday from 12pm - 6pm so that would be your perfect opportunity to get down there and check out the exhibition.  

Workshops on the Waterfront with Sustainable Coastlines

I ran into the very cool guys from Sustainable Coastlines at an art exhibition last week and got talking to them about the equally cool workshops they're running down in the Wynyard Quarter over the next few months. 


The first ones are coming up this Sunday and is free for all kids aged 5 - 12. You do have to register so hurry over to their website and get your names down. 


The theme this Sunday is "Trash to Art" so they'll be upcycling plastic rubbish they've collected from our coastlines (told you they were cool) and showing you how to make it into a piece of art to take home. 


The workshops are taking place in the pimped up shipping container below (have I mentioned how much I love upcycled shipping containers? I want to live in one! Or a collection of them - one might be a bit cosy) so they'll be going ahead even if the weather turns a bit dodgy.

Shake and Bake

This is still a little while off but I'm giving you all the heads up now so you can plan your Easter weekend accordingly! On Saturday, April the 7th Silo Park will be infiltrated by the Base FM crew for a whole day of free music thanks to Che Fu, Julien Dyne, Team Dynamite and a host of Base DJs.  They're teaming up with Silo Sessions for the day which means all the great Silo Park market stalls will be there plus a licensed bar stocked full with New Zealand artisan beers (like Stoke - YUM) and other delicious refreshments. 


As if all that wasn't enough Cut Collective is going to be exhibiting their work inside one of the silos.


Silo Park is right next to the great Wynyard Quarter playground so definitely a perfect day out for the whole whanau. 


My personal recommendation is to drop by the fish market just before 12, pick up some smoked salmon, some marinated mussels and a raw fish salad then get yourself some Hungarian Fried Bread in the markets at Silo Park, a few beers, fluffies for the kids and then find yourself a patch of grass and kick back and enjoy the music. Happy Easter!

Stuff Happening This Weekend

Before I get started on this weekend's entertainment guide, make sure you tune into KFM this morning! I'm going into the studio to talk to Beats For Breakfast host, AD-One about Tiny Thrills.


I love love love this time of year. So much stuff happening and a whole lot of it for free! 


First off you have free rock climbing today from 3:30pm - 5:30pm.


And then tonight Fantastic Mr Fox is screening for free at Silo Park in the Wynyard Quarter at 9pm. The weather isn't supposed to be too fantastic though so keep an eye on their Facebook page for cancellations.


If you have little foodies the take them to the Auckland Fish Market on Saturday for Tasting Saturday. Sample a whole lot of delicious food then get some of the best fish and chips in the city(or something a bit fancier) and relax in the courtyard while the kids play in the sandpit.


From Saturday and until Sunday, January 29th there is an exhibition of live caterpillars and Monarch Butterflies at the Cornwall Park Information Centre. They'll teach how to encourage the butterflies into your garden and send you home with a free swan plant!


Back at Silo Park on Saturday there's a whole lot of really great live music happening from noon till 5pm.


On Sunday, Latin group The Mambo Kings are playing at Cornwall Park as part of the Summer Music Concert Series. 


And lastly there's an interesting exhibition showing for free at the Aotea Centre called Emerging Pixels. Walk past a Digital Art Live Screen and see your image projected onto the screen in edited fragments. Cool! 

Stuff To Do This Weekend

One of the coolest Christmas events on this weekend is Motat Night, Christmas Lights. Just a gold coin koha for entry and it looks pretty magical!


Christmas At The Zoo is on this weekend too so go wish the lions some holiday wishes. 


The Muka Print Exhibiton - strictly for under 18s only - is on this weekend. Don't miss out! 


If you're still looking for Christmas presents/haven't started yet check out the Aotea Square Christmas Markets. They've got free entertainment too!


Definitely make the trip to Franklin Rd in Ponsonby to see the amazing Christmas lights displayed on people's houses. There's also a list here of different neighbourhoods in Auckland with light displays.


I took Haeata to see Santa at Smith & Caughey's yesterday and amazingly the cue wasn't that bad (I suspect because they had two Santas, just quietly). For $10 you get entry into the Enchanted Forest, all lit up and full of moving puppets, and then a photo with one of the best Santas on offer this side of the North Pole. So much more worthwhile than lining up at some fluorescently lit mall. And of course they have the best window displays outside the store too!


Tonight in Aotea Square there are Burundian Drummers playing at 6pm and then Batucada and the Brazilian Divas are on at 7pm. There is entertainment happening there all weekend and all next week so check out this schedule for more. 


Have a great weekend and remember to take time out to just chill.

Muka Print Exhibition

The Muka Print Exhibition is the only art exhibition in the country where adults are strictly prohibited from entering. The collection was put together so that art lovers under the age of 18 could purchase art for a low price - without the influence of adults. The prints cost $65 and the signature of the artist is covered to ensure the young collectors purchase work solely on their love of the actual piece. 


My parents paid for me to choose my own print on my 16th birthday and it was a great experience. My print cost $35 so it's great to know the prints have almost doubled in value since then! 


The exhibition is on today and tomorrow in Howick and is a great opportunity to help a small person (5 - 18 years old) in your life to start to their own collection. 

Random Acts

So, this event got heaps of publicity yesterday so I probably don't need to promote it except to say it is still on and that the organisers would like to reassure the public that there will be no more horrific yet miraculously survived accidents involving the performers. 


Who knows if the aerial acts are still going ahead but the rest of the line up definitely looks worth checking out!

Literary Sandpit at The Wynyard Quarter

Go down to Wynyard Quarter from today until December 11 to have a dig in the "Literary Sandpit". Treasures - illustrations from Margaret Mahy's poem "Down The Back of the Chair" are buried in the large sandpit for kids to dig up.


If you're there on Saturday in particular they'll be giving away spot prizes from 1 - 3pm.

Wynyard Quarter Art Series

This Friday The Arts Foundation Wynyard Quarter Art Series opens. There will be sound installations, they're building a Margaret Mahy themed sandpit (I'll keep you updated!), poems and words displayed in strange places and free open air movies!


The first films to be screened are Taika Waititi's short film Two Cars One Night and his first feature Eagle vs. Shark. It will be projected on to the wall of one of the giant silos at 9pm. Stalls and street food on from 5pm. The event is totally free and there will be a different movie on every Friday night during the series. Fun! So summery. *


*This just in, this Friday night's screening on Eagle Vs. Shark has been cancelled! 


Stink.


 But there are still movies scheduled for next Friday so I'll let you know about those next week.

Art In The Dark

Aww, I love this time of year when all your favourites come rolling around again. This weekend, Art  In The Dark! I know it's stretching out bedtime a little but it's totally worth letting the kids stay up for this. The once a year event sees Western Park lit up by art installations, short films and live performances. It's surreal and amazing and just plain wonderful. 

And so you don't even have to worry about dinner, Il Buco in Ponsonby is doing a sweet as deal this weekend. Just order your pizza between 6pm - 8pm, tell them that you're taking your (delicious) pizza down to Western Park for Art In The Dark and you'll get your pizza for just $5 a slice! Come on, crazy light sculptures and a pizza picnic in the park after dark? How can you deny your children that?! 

Nathan Homestead Arts Open Day

Now, this looks like it could be a lot of fun. The theme for their open day this year is art from around the world so there will be art workshops going on, demonstrations from tutors and lots of live music including Chileno Latino and Duo Flamenco. 

And of course they'll have all your classics....bouncy castle, a magician, face painting and street theatre. 

Check out this link for more information. 

Auckland Art Week

Auckland Art Week starts this Thursday and there are heaps of cool free things you can take the kids to. 


This Friday get down to the Wynyard Quarter from 1 - 4 to make a book! You'll learn simple book making techniques and make your own pages and covers.


On Saturday they're getting all retro and holding a wood, string and nail artwork workshop, also at the Wynyard. Bring back 70's arts and crafts! Hands up who had one of those hanging in their home growing up? Expect to see them showing up in Your Home and Garden now.