Archived Events

Join us to delve into the remarkable schist exhibition in our Whakaari gallery, Stone Moves, with Curator of Art at Hocken Collections, Hope Wilson. Unpack the layers of geological, botanical and cultural history embedded in Miranda Bellamy and Amanda Fauteux’s installation of this much loved local stone. | Saturday 27 May | WHAKAARI | 2-3pm | FREE

BONES, a one person play exploring the stories we carry in our bones from our ancestors. Setting: a man baking scones telling stories of his mother, and singing a couple of songs really badly. | 25,26,27 May | FREE

You are warmly invited to join us in an evening celebrating contemporary jewellery. Meet local and visiting jewellers and view a stunning range of wearable pieces by leading contemporary artists from around the country. All welcome to this event.

Want to learn more about how you can reduce your household waste and save money doing it!? Sustainable Queenstown is bringing you Wastebusters' brand new workshop series - Low Waste Living - Households. | Thursday 25 May 2023 | 6.30pm | WHAKAARI

A 5-week series of Feldenkrais® lessons. Ideal for singers, musicians, artists, and artisans. Nicky will lead you through gentle movement sequences that help you discover better ways of organising your body in action. No previous experience needed.

Come to this workshop and get your hands on the tools and equipment of gold smithing and walk away with a simple silver ring. | JUNGLE GYM | MAY 21 | 2 sessions avail 2-4pm or 4-6pm

Come to this workshop to explore the art of colour in adornment with experimental materials. Come and make something wild and energetic to break all the tight boundaries we have around contemporary jewellery. | JUNGLE GYM | MAY 14 | 2-5pm

Queenstown Quilters & Patchworkers welcome Australian quilting artist Chris Jurd for a trunk show and talk. | 12 May 2023 | 7-8pm | $5 (at door) | PUĀWAI

A professional development opportunity for the wider jewellery community - bring your current work for a structured master class feedback session, exploring context, craft, and the art of editing for specific audiences. | JUNGLE GYM | MAY 7 | 2-5pm

The only rule here is ‘that we’re having fun!’ Join us for the world premier concert of Queenstown Party Orchestra – performing a joyful programme of Latin, light classics and pop covers. Think Billie Eilish meets the Pentatonix! Saturday 6 May 2023 | 7:00pm | PUAWAI

Come and create original artwork using acrylic and mixed media techniques in this two-hour, four-week workshop with Artist Raquel Carter. Thursdays 4 May - 25 May | 6-8pm | MAHI TAHI

Join us for a series of creative and hands-on workshops where we explore a variety of mediums and art forms. Led by accredited art teacher Michelle, these workshops will offer a variety of ways to have fun in the Arts. Tuesdays 3:30-5pm | Ages 13-18

After a sold-out tour in 2021 and 2022, Brent Street’s iconic team of choreographers are hitting the road again – bigger and better than before! For the first time ever, Paris Cavanagh, Cassie Bartho and Stephen Tannos will be travelling to Queenstown with Brent Street for an epic workshop experience. 1 May 2023 | 4:00pm - 8:00pm (9:00pm finish for auditionees) | PUAWAI

Dance, moving-meditation, music, and community. During this workshop, we will dance, move, share, and reflect. The workshop is open to anyone curious about dance as a practice for living well, no prior experience is necessary.

Come and create a bright and beautiful artwork in this two-hour, four week workshop with Artist Raquel Carter. Sundays 30 April - 21 May | 2-4pm | MAHI TAHI

Come along to our Youthtown Afterschool Programme where we form a fun environment for creative learning. Wednesdays - 3D Creative Fun | Thursdays - 2D Creative Fun | 3:30pm - 5pm | $185 for full term

Join Artist Raquel Carter for a free art taster workshop! Experiment with acrylic painting techniques, learn about colour wheel secrets and a variety of mediums and various techniques of mark-making effects and tonal drawing. | 2-4pm

Join us for a fun-filled, arts and craft-packed holiday programme. Led by accredited Art teacher Michelle and run in collaboration with Youthtown, our bespoke, multidisciplinary arts programme will enhance and enthuse all through a range of workshops. Ages 5-12 | Tuesday 11 April - Friday 21 April

This two-day ceramics workshop with Raquel Carter will include basic hand-building skills that offer the student a foundation to create any form. Wednesday 19 April - Thursday 20 April | 10:30am - 1pm both days

Queenstown-based multi-instrumentalist and composer/producer Cliff Leatherbarrow joins us with his band (three members from Queenstown, one from Auckland) to perform jazz standards, and tracks from his recently released album “Jazz Alchemy”. All proceeds will be donated to Cyclone Gabrielle relief.

RE:FRESH is an exhibition of brand-new, hot off the press artworks from members of the Queenstown Art Society. Not only are the works spanking new but many of the artists are too.

Join Natalia Lomeiko, Yuri Zhislin and Sarah Watkins for a night of Mozart, Brahms, Moszkowska and Sarasate.

Join us for an action-packed afternoon, exploring an exciting range of activities with new friends. Taking place at Te Kura Whakatipu o Kawarau, Monday - Friday, 3-6pm

Come along to our Youthtown Afterschool Programme where we form a fun environment for creative learning. Wednesdays - 3D Creative Fun | Thursdays - 2D Creative Fun | 3:30pm - 5pm | $185 for full term

These Hip Hop classes will be a fun open class for students to express themselves through dance in a positive enjoyable environment! Classes for 2-14 year olds. Every Wednesday in Term 1.

Join us for an afternoon where we explore a variety of mediums and art forms. Led by accredited art teacher Michelle, these workshops will offer a variety of ways to have fun in the Arts. Tuesdays 3:30-5pm | Ages 13-18

Cindy Huang explores exchange, ancestry, and materiality in her solo exhibition. Her installation of hundreds of handmade porcelain lilies aims to explore the lack of recorded knowledge about the Chinese settlement locally in Tāhuna and regionally in Ōtākou and Murihiku.

A 5-week series of Feldenkrais® lessons
. Ideal for singers, musicians, artists, and artisans. Nicky will lead you through gentle movement sequences that help you discover better ways of organising your body in action. No previous experience needed.

Megan Huffadine will lead this workshop in creating experimental works exploring composition and ideas for a landscape painting by using the mixed media collage process | 10am-1pm

Join us for a kōrero and workshop with Cindy Huang to learn about her practice and her process of working with clay.

Join artist Louise Parker for a 90 minute workshop and collaborative exhibition. Participants will make three white ceramic flowers to be installed as part of the RE:FRESH exhibition | 5:30-7pm

Megan Huffadine will lead this workshop in creating experimental works with mixed media collage exploring the possibilities of abstract composition with motifs and grids. | 10am - 1pm

Come along and listen to acclaimed art writer, critic, and performance artist Megan Dunn discuss her life as a practicing artist and writer | 3pm

The 2023 Aspen New Zealand Summer Series: Geopolitical Challenges will analyse the current geopolitical challenges surrounding our region and discuss what they mean for New Zealand. Great Power Rivalry - 2 March | PUĀWAI

A gymnasium for creative thinking. Squiggla is a programme that exercises creative thinking through free-flow mark-making and is all about visual exploration and creative discovery without the pressure to 'make art' or 'copy' something. In the world of Squiggla, you will experience mark-making in action. You are invited to exercise and embrace your creative thinking with whānau (family) and friends.

Join us for a conversation and morning tea with Sue Gardiner (MNZM) and Karen Gardiner, co-directors of the Chartwell Trust and creators of Squiggla. 11am | Free

Join us for a special Squiggla workshop led by Sue Gardiner, the creator of Squiggla. Listen to local musicians and make marks to the music – exploring different compositions, time and rhythm. 6pm - 7:30pm | FREE

Join us as we explore the Arts in a fun and engaging way. Led by accredited Art teacher Michelle, each workshop enhances your child’s creativity and imagination. Ages 5-12 | Wednesday 11 January - Wednesday 1 February

Explore the possibilities of drypoint with artist Kyla Cresswell. Further your drypoint knowledge and learn how to add colour to your image as part of the print process using ink, chine collé or monoprint. We will also take a look at tetra pack printmaking. Sunday 29 January | 10am - 4pm

From Irish fishermen to war veterans to LL Cool J and Run DMC bucket hats have risen from practical purpose, fishermen seeking cover from the rain to high fashion. Satisfy your inner style by coming along to craft yourself a new summer accessory and trying your hand at slow fashion. Saturday 28 January | 11:30am - 1:30pm | WHAKAARI

Learn how to make a drypoint etching with artist Kyla Cresswell. Use tools to draw onto a plate and hand print onto paper using an etching press. Create burrs, textures, lines and stipple to build up your image. Suitable for beginners. Saturday 28 January | 10am - 4pm

Join us as we explore the arts in a fun and engaging way. Led by established artists from around Aotearoa, each workshop enhances creativity and imagination through a range of activities.

In these workshops, we encourage you to unlearn all that you have been told and connect your playful side connect with your creativity.

A series of photographs by international award-winning British artist Mandy Barker highlighting the impact of society’s reliance on plastic and the damage it causes to marine life and, ultimately, ourselves. 5 December – 24 January | WHAKAARI

Mixed media including tin, glass, variety of plastic rubbish. Shane Woolridge has created Until the Last Drop, 2022 as a local response to British photographer Mandy Barker’s SHELF-LIFE. A work which is made from rubbish collected in Arrowtown.

An installation that mimics the form of three seaweeds, or macroalgae. This installation is thought-provoking, meticulously hand-cut and dyed, the seaweeds writhe and curl like their natural forms. They are constructed from man-made materials and the end result is visually appealing with the strips of nylon full of small bumps and realistic holes.

Nature journaling is a wonderful creative practice for connecting with our natural environments through observational drawing, painting, and writing. Beginners are welcome. This is the perfect follow-up class to Beginners Botanical art. Saturday 21 January - Sunday 22 January | 10am - 3pm both days

An exhibition with the Silver Smiths of studio38. A celebration of the hoop earring. Fashioned and worn for millennia, once part of the ensemble of Kings and Queens, a statement of confidence and diversity, its natural organic circular form symbolises wholeness, unity, and infinity.

Botanical art is a beautiful classic art practice for those who love nature, gardening, botany, science and art! Tabatha focuses on the elegant tradition of botanical art, and she takes her students through a little of that history - particularly in its New Zealand context. Wednesday 18 January - Thursday 19 January | 10am - 3pm for both days

In this workshop, you will learn to eco-print using local plant materials and an iron-based mordant. This method creates clear, dark leaf prints, and is suitable for cellulose fabric – perfect for upcycling clothing or creating original fabric! Saturday 14 January | 9:30am - 12:30pm and 2pm - 5pm | MAHI TAHI

Join us as we get into the Christmas spirit! Led by accredited Art teacher Michelle, each workshop enhances your child’s creativity and imagination. Ages 5-12. Monday – Thursday. All materials provided (Please note children will be supervised during lunch break only if signed onto All Day programme. Please provide a packed lunch).

Come along to our Young Picassos Afterschool Art Programme. Lisa Duncan is a professional and qualified artist and teacher who understands how to inspire and draw out the best of a child's creative potential whilst having fun and producing quality artwork.

Come along to our Youthtown Afterschool Programme where we create a fun environment for creative learning. Every Wednesday 3:30pm - 5pm - Ages 5-8. Every Thursday - 3:30pm - 5pm - Ages 9 and 12. REGISTRATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL.

Join us for an afternoon where we explore a variety of mediums and art forms. Led by accredited art teacher Michelle, these workshops will offer a variety of ways to have fun in the Arts. Tuesdays 3:30pm - 5pm - ages 13 -18 - FREE.

Two perspectives championing environmental change through art. Join Anny Tubbs and Martin Hill as they discuss the topic of art as a platform to champion sustainable and positive change. Saturday 10 December | 10am | WHAKAARI | Free

Explore innovative ways to up-cycle waste and found materials into unique wearable designs led by jewellery designer Kay Turner. Make your own pair of sterling silver hoops embellished with recycled plastic. Saturday 10 December | 10am - 12pm | MAHI TAHI | $40

Celebrate the festive season and shop local this Christmas with our late-night Christmas shopping night!

Try out or improve your pottery skills! Tuesday mornings, 10am-12pm & Thursday evenings, 6-8pm | TE PĀ MATAPAIA

A selection of video, photography and painting by local and international artists reflecting solitude and togetherness - the key themes of the 2022 At the World's Edge (AWE) Festival. 1 October - 28 November 2022.

Tuatahi Creatives present an exhibition exploring the natural world through the artistic expressions of contemporary Māori artists from Aotearoa. 28 October – 23 November | WHAKAARI

The Queenstown Writers Festival is a biennial boutique festival that brings writers and readers together to celebrate the written word in many forms. At this spring event novelists, poets, short-story writers, children’s writers and non-fiction writers talk about books, share their stories and lead writing workshops. 11 November - 13 November

Living Within Our Limits: Green Growth vs Degrowth, 28 October, 5:30-7:30pm | PUĀWAI

Food For Thought: Creating Resilient Food Systems, 25 October 2022, 5:30-7:30pm | PUĀWAI

A show romancing the music of two of the greatest trumpet players ever to walk the earth. From passionate ballads, raging swing tempos, to cool muted grooves with a funky connotation. A modern glimpse into the life and times of these two innovators. If you love Miles Davis and Chet Baker or just beautiful jazz you will enjoy this. Saturday 22 October, 7:30pm | PUĀWAI

Mīharo is proud to present an exhibition that celebrates the work of early childhood tamariki through to high school rangatahi based on the theme ‘Legends of our Lands, our people, our places, our stories.’ 30 September – 21 October | WHAKAARI

A journey of sight and sound, of solitude and togetherness, of wonder and awe through six intertwined programmes, free Queenstown events and AWE Community performances. Take your place At the World’s Edge this October.

Join us as we explore the Arts in a fun and engaging way. Led by accredited Art teacher Michelle, each programme enhances creativity and imagination through a range of activities. Ages 5-12 Monday – Friday 9am - 3.30pm All materials provided – please bring a packed lunch.

Join us as we explore movement in this four-day contemporary, street dance workshop. Led by contemporary dance artists Ooshcon and Jahra Wasasala (CONJAH), this programme will enable young people to embrace body language as their first language. No experience required. Tuesday 11 October - Friday 14 October, 11am - 3pm. $10 | KAPA TAHI

Drop by and meet Te Atamira staff, artists and special guests for informal talks about current exhibitions and events over a cuppa. Every Thursday morning at 10:30 | MANAAKI NUI.

Join us as we explore the Arts in a fun and engaging way. Each programme enhances creativity and imagination through a range of activities. FREE Ages 13 - 18 Tuesday - Thursday 12pm - 2pm

Are you interested in designing arts programmes and creative production? Perhaps you would like to know more about how to turn an idea into a reality? If this sounds like you, come and join our Creative Producers group. 13-18 year olds, Fridays at 3:30 (term-time only). FREE - registration is required.

Come along to our Youthtown Afterschool Programme where we create a fun environment for creative learning. Every Wednesday 3:30pm - 5pm - Ages 5-8. Every Thursday - 3:30pm - 5pm - Ages 9 and 12. REGISTRATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL.

The Queenstown Embroiderers’ Guild presents a selection of their work alongside four panels from the Tapestry Trust of New Zealand’s ongoing project New Zealand: A History in Stitch. 19-29 September | MANAAKI NUI

Come and join Nat Perks for a cosy afternoon of embroidery - go slow, chill and create together. Saturday, 24 September, 1-4pm | MAHI TAHI

The Queenstown Salsa Festival is back for a second year from the 15th of September to the 18th of September 2022.

6 - 24 August - showcase of artwork created by students in Years 5 to 6; 30 August - 17 September, Years 7 & 8, produced through the Three Lakes Cultural Trust Arts in Schools programme 2022 | MANAAKI NUI

An exhibition with works by printmakers Kyla Cresswell, Emma Kitson and Kim Lowe, exploring the artists’ connections to Southland and celebrating Murihiku, the great Southern Mother. 6 August - 14 September | WHAKAARI

DramaLAB’s award winning solo show Solitude is about the hidden life of Annie Chaffey. In 1913 Annie fled into the remote Kahurangi Nat Park with her lover Henry where she spent forty years in raw exile. Martine Baanvinger brings you this remarkable true NZ story in an incredibly imaginative and touching way. Sunday 11 September, 7pm | PUĀWAI

Fiona Clark: Unafraid, dir. Lula Cucchiara (2021). Film screening followed by talk and Q & A with renowned NZ photographer and social documentarian Fiona Clark. Sunday 28 August, 3pm | PUĀWAI

Learn the process of creating a drypoint and printing by hand on an etching press. Create your own prints and learn how to add colour. Saturday 27 August and Sunday 28 August, 10am-12pm | MAHI TAHI

Come and join Mark, Lizzie. Elis, Andy and Teegs as they explore the slightly weird but very wonderful world of Radiohead - a Te Atamira Nights Concert. Saturday 27 August, 7pm | PUĀWAI

The Eastern with guests and friends Tom Maxwell & The Killergrams. Sunday 21 August | 7pm - 9pm | PUĀWAI

Five songwriters, Louis Koopman, Violet Hirst, Katy Anderson, Margaret O'Hanlon and Pol Nicholson, trade songs in this experiment of creation. Friday 19 August, 7 - 8:30 pm | PUĀWAI

Get a taster of our upcoming after-school programmes with this series of free open workshops. REGISTRATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL.

Film screening of the acclaimed Footnote NZ Dance Company's touring work Dry Spell, followed by Q & A with dancers. Tuesday 16 August, 6:30pm | PUĀWAI

Creative Queenstown and Queenstown Writers' Festival with Arts on Tour proudly present Mad Doggerel Cabaret - Two poets and a musician combine to present a comic and lyric portrait of Aotearoa New Zealand and its place in the South Pacific today. Sunday 14 August, 7.30pm | PUĀWAI

Join us as we take inspiration from the works of illustrator, Sally Payne and create a mixed media masterpiece! 10 August, 3.30-5pm. FREE | MAHI TAHI

Ōtautahi-based artist Kim Lowe is hosting an exploratory workshop in Chinese ink and brush techniques. Sunday 7 August, 11am - 1pm | MAHI TAHI

Find out more about the work of kaiwhakairo Steve Solomon who will be working in MANAAKI NUI Tuesdays – Saturdays 10am – 4pm, 14 July - 4 August.

MILK Bottle People, organised by Frankton Library, is a series of community art workshops culminating in an exhibition from 15 June to 31 July | MANAAKI MAI. Opening event: Wednesday 15 June, 6-8pm.

Eight-channel sound installation by Auckland-based artist and musician Rachel Shearer (Pākehā, Rongowhakaata, Te Aitanga a Māhaki). 12-31 July | WHAKAARI. Artist's talk: Tuesday 12 July, 10.30am. **EXTENDED UNTIL 3 AUGUST**

FRIDAY SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - WHAM! ZAP! POW! In this programme children will cast loose their inner superhero, cape included. Ages 6-12 9.00am - 3.30pm ($50 (bring along a white t-shirt, all other materials provided).

Join in on the fun this school holidays with a range of exciting activities every day for children 6 - 12 years old. Time: Everyday, 9am - 3:30pm Cost: $50

THURSDAY SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Explore identity through the eyes of an artist. Children will examine the works of contemporary portrait artists Chris Ofili and Teesha Moore, as they inspect portraiture with a twist. With guest talk from local carver Steve Solomon, children will reflect on the theme of Taonga as they create meaningful trinkets. Ages 6-12 9.00am - 3.30pm $50 (all materials provided).

WEDNESDAY SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Explore rhythm and skip to the beat. In this programme, children will explore sound and movement through a variety of mediums. Ages 6-12 9.00am - 3.30pm ($50 all materials provided)

TUESDAY SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Transform the world as you know it as you delve into the life of a monster. Create freaky sidekicks in clay and textiles and explore body movement as you step into the role of a creepy creature. Ages 6-12 9.00am - 3.30pm $50 (bring along an empty tin can to upcycle, all other materials provided)

MONDAY SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME - Celebrate the rise of Matariki in the winter skies with us! Children will explore a range of constructing techniques as they design and make a range of kites, stars and lanterns. Ages 6-12 9.00am-3.30pm $50 (bring along a white t-shirt to upcycle, all other materials provided)

Arrowtown-based weaver Jasmine Clark will be working in our project space, MANAAKI NUI, Mondays – Fridays between 23 June and 10 July, 11am – 3pm.

***SOLD OUT*** Spend a day learning to weave NZ flax/harakeke and create your own beautiful Waikawa storage basket. This technique uses whole flax leaves to create a large strong practical basket. Saturday 9 July, 10am-4pm | MANAAKI NUI

***SOLD OUT*** Working with rattan vine and other found and recycled materials you will learn the art of random weaving, creating one-of-a-kind baskets and wall sculptures. Sunday 3 July, 10am - 4pm | MANAAKI NUI