Cultural exchanges have enabled the sharing of expertise and the creation of opportunities for professional artists and administrators in the areas of arts, music, drama and dance.
William Morris was one of the greatest pattern designers of all time who became the most influential British interior designer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The Morris & Co exhibition, the largest collection of these world famous furnishings ever seen in this country, will run mid March to end June 2008 at the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu and is toured by Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. It is planned for some Adelaide artists to travel with the exhibition.
Gallery Director Jenny Harper said it was a privilege to host the exhibition and pay tribute to the remarkable talent of one man who created such opulent handcrafted pieces of furniture and furnishings.
"Morris's works are true design treasures. His creative talent and philosophy of handmade quality, with individual workers completing all stages of production, is truly celebrated with the Morris & Co exhibition."
Ms Harper said the exhibition is drawn from the Art Gallery of South Australia's extensive collection of William Morris pieces, donated to the Galley in 1982 by the Barr Smith family. From 1889 to 1929 the Barr Smith's furnished seven huge homes – over three generations – almost entirely in Morris designed and handcrafted pieces. They also commissioned many individual pieces.
www.christchurchartgallery.org.nz
The highly popular My Place exhibition of sixty eight photographs by photographer Bruce Connew, and accompanying texts that reveal the lives and ambitions of Christchurch and its people, will be exhibited in the main foyer of the Adelaide Town Hall from 1 February – 17 March 2006. The exhibition was opened by Lord Mayor Michael Harbison on Wednesday, 1 February 2006.
Deborah McCormick, Deputy Chair of The Christchurch Adelaide Sister City Committee says "It is a real coup to be exhibiting New Zealand art in a South Australian venue. Adelaide is known as a premier cultural centre and by exhibiting there we are showcasing New Zealand photography to an Australian and international audience. As a gesture of friendship and reciprocity to one of our closest Sister Cities this exhibition is a reflection of commonality in terms of diversity of our communities in post colonial Australasia – a sort of trans Tasman mate-ship".
This is the first time this exhibition has toured outside of New Zealand. Touring this exhibition to Adelaide is a joint initiative of the Christchurch/Adelaide Sister City Committee and the Adelaide City Council in conjunction with CoCA and The Christchurch Arts Festival.
See further details of the exhibition on the Adelaide City Council website.
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| Rachel Rakena, Mihi Aroha, from Whare, 2002 installation, courtesy the artist and SoFA Gallery. Curator: Deidre Brown Whare was first exhibited in Christchurch during SCAPE: Art & Industry Urban Arts Biennial 02 www.artandindustry.org.nz |
2400 people visited Whare a dynamic multi media exhibition of seven contemporary Maori artists' work, at the Tandanya Gallery, Adelaide, as part of the official Adelaide Festival of Arts 2004 visual arts programme. Whare's presence at the Festival was made possible with the assistance of the Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee. The Curator was Deidre Brown.
Whare is an architectural video installation that explores contemporary interpretations of customary turangawaewae (places of belonging) through the work of seven urban Maori artists. For them the whare, or Maori house, is a portable emblem of identity, carried in the heart and performed through music, video and, in more recent times, simulation.
The first Maori meeting house to travel to Australia was Mataatua, built in 1875 by the Ngati Awa tribe and shown in the 1880 Sydney International Exhibition. On that occasion the building was displayed with its internal decorations placed on its exterior, its altered appearance facilitating the Western gaze and a fetishised response to indigenous art. Whare acknowledges Mataatua as one of a whakapapa (lineage) of travelling and exhibited nineteenth century meeting houses, but unlike those earlier buildings Whare, as a digital portable simulacra, is made for the art gallery setting and an urban, global audience.
Civic, cultural, education and business delegation to visit Adelaide 27 February - 4 March 2004 during Adelaide Bank 2004 Festival of Arts.
The Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee will be leading a delegation to Adelaide to coincide with the Adelaide Bank 2004 Festival of Arts. A highlight of the delegation visit will be the opening of the exhibition Whare, a dynamic multi media exhibition of seven contemporary Maori artists' work. Whare, first exhibited in Christchurch during SCAPE: Art & Industry Urban Arts Biennial 02 www.artandindustry.org.nz, will be exhibited at Tandanya Gallery, with support from the Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee, as part of the official Adelaide Festival of Arts visual arts programme.
A ‘meet and greet’ function will be held at the Tandanya Gallery on 2 March, which will be an opportunity for delegation members and invited Adelaide guests to network.
Adelaide Bank 2004 Festival of Arts (27 February - 14 March) will be Australia’s cultural meeting place with its epicentre at Universal Playground. From spark to firecracker, the essence of the Festival will grow from a subtle opening installation at Elder Park through to the magnificent Symphony Under the Stars on the closing night. In its 23rd year the Adelaide Bank 2004 Festival of Arts will showcase approximately 1400 artists fom many different countries including: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Indonesia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Russia, Spain, UK and USA. Full programme and booking details are available at the official web-site www.adelaidefestival.com.au.
To register your interest in joining this delegation, please contact: Deborah McCormick, Director, Art & Industry Biennial Trust and Member of the Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee on: +64 3 365 7990 or artandindustry@xtra.co.nz
On Monday 18 November 2002, The Spheres, two bronze spherical, patterned markers 600mm in diameter, designed and made by Adelaide artist Karen Genoff, under commission by the Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee, were unveiled by Mayor Garry Moore and Adelaide Councillor Bob Angove, the leader of a small delegation from Adelaide, in the Adelaide Garden, at Halswell Quarry Park.
"These bronze 'Spheres' were designed to celebrate the diversity, symmetry and beauty of two Australian Eucalypts growing abundantly in Adelaide parks and gardens today. They have been embellished with pods and caps collected from the Eucalyptus Erythrocorys and the Ecucalyptus Platypus."
- Karen Genoff
"The Sphere" won the cultural category of the 2003 Air New Zealand Sister City Awards. Click here to view a copy of the Award Application (PDF 24 KB).
See a Photo Gallery of Karen's work.
See the media releases below about the artwork and Karen's previous works. These media releases are PDF's. You will require the free acrobat reader to view them.
These media releases are PDF's. You will require the free acrobat reader to view them.
"Gleam" The Physics Room, 30 May - 30 June
"Thrash" The Experimental Art Foundation 28 June - 28 July 2001
Christchurch's contemporary art gallery The Physics Room and the Experimental Art Foundation (EAF), an art project space based in Adelaide, have had an informal relationship for some time, culminating this year in two exchange exhibitions drawing on the similar experiences and aims of the two organizations.
The first, Gleam, was held at the Physics Room and curated by EAF director Chris Chapman, who presented four Adelaide artists concerned with certain codes of contemporary design, graphics and magazine culture. Gleam suggested a certain kind of product-placement, playing on a hip appeal but also slicing through it.
Gleam was reciprocated by Thrash, an exhibition of Christchurch artists at the EAF, curated by Physics Room Director Emma Bugden. The artists in Thrash combined humour and satire, informed by both the stark aesthetic of minimalism and the throwaway consumerism of pop culture. Their work focuses on the ordinary stuff of lives, finding humour and critique in everyday matter and transforming the mundane and the unseen.
For further details see the Physics Room website.
Artworks from primary schools in Adelaide and Christchurch primary schools were exhibited at the Artzone, Centre of Contemporary Art, from 9 September to 22 October 2000. Artworks were based on the children's concepts of what they imagine their environment and activities taking pace in it will be like in the year 2100. To view a selection of the Adelaide children’s artworks visit the GlobalNet website.
Christchurch artist Peter Wolden exhibited in Adelaide in October 2000 his unique artistic project that portrays the connections between Christchurch and Adelaide.
Adelaide sculptor Neil Cranney, was one of 23 sculptors who took part in an international sculpture symposium in North Hagley Park from 1-20 February 2000.
The Christchurch Adelaide Sister City Committee created an Educational/Cultural Assistance Grant and assisted four projects:
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| Sculpture presented to the City of Adelaide, March 1998 |
Handcrafted artworks were exchanged between the two cities in March 1998, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the sister city relationship.
An Oamaru stone sculpture by Christchurch sculptor Sam Genet was presented to the then Lord Mayor of Adelaide, with the inscription:
"The sculpture recognises the bond between the sister cities Christchurch and Adelaide. The unrestrained rivers, which have captured the rose, represent the fluid nature of cultural change, moving from tradition towards an evolving identity.
The rivers are significant geographical features of both Christchurch and Adelaide, as are the impressive gardens and horticulture symbolised by the rose."
Sculpture by Sam Genet, Christchurch March 2000
A replica of the sculpture was made by Sam Genet for the City of Christchurch, and presented to the Mayor and Councillors in recognition of the 25th Anniversary of the Christchurch-Adelaide sister city link, with a request from the Christchurch-Adelaide Sister City Committee that the sculpture be displayed in a prominent public place, for the enjoyment of the people of Christchurch. The sculpture was placed in the Mayor's reception area, first floor of the Civic Offices.
The then Lord Mayor Dr Jane Lomax-Smith presented to the City of Christchurch a black mirrini hand made glass form by renowned Adelaide artist Nick Mount, for which the accompanying description read:
"The piece combines pieces of 'black' glass from New Zealand and Europe with South Australian clear glass.
Like the pieces of a patchwork, the people of Adelaide and Christchurch have many similarities, despite different characteristics and backgrounds. By creating links between these individual pieces, a new structure is formed which not only highlights the richness and inner strengths of our individuality, but also reflects the benefits gained from interdependence."
The piece is held by the Christchurch Museum.