Previous Tūranga Exhibitions
Find out about previous exhibitions at Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery, Tūranga.
Women of the Wheel: Past and Present - 24 August to 24 November
Discover the history of women's cycling in Ōtautahi Christchurch from 1890 to now.
Explore the history of Christchurch as a cycling hub and explore the stories of local Christchurch women whose lives were transformed in the 1890s through their encounter with the bicycle. Discover how cycling motivated women to reform the way they dressed, expanded their worlds, connected them with one another and incited great debate among the people of Christchurch.
Trace the pivotal moments that helped shape the history of women's cycling in Christchurch and New Zealand from the advent of the safety bicycle to the country's inaugural Olympic cycling gold medal.
Delve into the experiences of contemporary women cyclists who are actively shaping the city's landscape today bridging the past and present in a celebration of resilience and empowerment.
Exhibition photos
Women of the Wheel on Canterbury Stories
Drawing connections - Exploring the architecture of Cecil Wood
Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery 9 March to 19 May 2024
This exhibition uses the architectural drawings of Cecil Wood to explore the cultural and historical context of Ōtautahi's built environment.
Wood's apprentice, renowned architect Sir Miles Warren, gifted many of the drawings to University of Canterbury's Library Archives. Seldom displayed, these drawings reveal Wood’s artistic skill and architectural evolution.
This exhibition is a partnership between Christchurch City Libraries, University of Canterbury Libraries and the University of Canterbury Art History Department.
Exhibition photos
Architecture by Cecil Wood
- View a set of images on Canterbury Stories called Exploring the architecture of Cecil Wood
- More Canterbury Stories images of architecture by Cecil Wood
- Ruth M. Helms. 'Wood, Cecil Walter', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1998. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/4w25/wood-cecil-walter (accessed 28 February 2024)
50th Celebration - 1974 Commonwealth Games exhibition
It's been 50 years already and it's time to celebrate one of New Zealand's greatest sporting events with all the people that made it the "Friendly Games".
Tūranga will be hosting an exhibition to celebrate this anniversary with images, stories and memorabilia from the 1974 Commonwealth Games.
Come in and relive a wonderful time in Christchurch history!
Exhibition is on from Saturday 20 January to Sunday 18 February 2024.
Location: He Hononga | Connection, Ground Floor
Exhibition images
View items kindly lent for the exhibition by Vaughan Utteridge and John Hampton
Sanctuary Exhibition OCS: Fri 10 Nov 2023-Sunday 4 Feb 2024
Kiri and Lou at the Library
Saturday 10 June – Sunday 22 October 2023
Explore the world of feelings, friendship and stop-motion animation
Kiri and Lou at the library is an exhibition exploring the world of feelings, childhood emotions, friendship and stop-motion animation.
It was on at Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery, Tuakiri | Identity, Level 2, Tūranga from Saturday 10 June to Sunday 22 October 2023.
Kiri and Lou are the stars of a cool TV series for kids that's made right here in Ōtautahi.
Kiri and Lou colouring in competition
We asked you to drop in your completed entries to one of our libraries between 1 and 15 August. Winners were announced on 30 August and prizes awarded in two categories; 0-5 years and 6 years+.
Kiri + Lou reading list
Kiri + Lou reading list
If you like Kiri + Lou...
More Kiri and Lou
- Kiri and Lou books in the library catalogue
- Learn about stop motion animation with the animators from Kiri and Lou
- See more photos of Kiri and Lou wā kōrero / storytimes
- Official Kiri and Lou website
- Watch Kiri and Lou at TVNZ on demand
- Watch Kiri and Lou on YouTube
- Listen to Kiri and Lou songs on Spotify
- Kiri and Lou on Facebook and Instagram
Te Rā i Whiti Exhibition - 5 to 9 July 2023
Raising Sakinah | Finding Peace: Saturday 25 March – Sunday 21 May
An exhibition about transforming tragedy through creativity
Raising Sakinah | Finding Peace is a project under the umbrella of Darkness into Light. It honours the Shuhada, those taken from us on March 15, 2019, and provides creative tools to help people affected by the attacks through their grief and healing, taking into account their individual spiritual and cultural needs. In the aftermath of the mosque shootings, survivors and supporters joined Janneth Gil and collaborators to transform tragedy through creative community.
Art and photography immortalise the experiences of those affected, amplifying the voices of the survivors, encouraging both personal healing and social cohesion among diverse participants, and inviting viewers to reconsider the unconscious biases they may hold towards those we often see as ‘other’.
Workshops and inks crafted by Janneth from the tributes that poured in make these metaphors and lessons visible, reminding us of the loss of innocent lives and the hope that unity, healing and wellbeing can carry us through our darkest days, bringing to life conversations and images carved from the memories of our friends and neighbours as they pursue Raising Sakinah | Finding Peace.
The exhibition is on from Saturday 25 March to Sunday 21 May at at Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery, located on Tuakiri | Identity, Level 2, Tūranga.
Find out more about the Darkness into Light project on Janneth Gil's website.
All images courtesy Janneth Gil, Darkness into Light Project. Photographs: Arabella Spoors.
Download Raising Sakinah | Finding Peace exhibition brochure [913KB PDF]
Listen: Janneth Gil
Janneth Gil talks about the origin of the project after 15 March and the collaboration between professionals and the community since this tragedy. Janneth provides insight into how the idea for the exhibition came about, the process of making these prints and invites everyone to come and experience these stories as they share universal messages of hope and love.
Photos
Images from the exhibition and events
All images courtesy Janneth Gil, Darkness into Light Project.
Article: Light in theDarkness
Light in the Darkness: Transforming tragedy through art
Humans of Christchurch Ōtautahi: Everyone has a story exhibition (Saturday 17 December 2022 to Sunday 12 March 2023)
A collection of stories and photos that celebrates the everyday heroes in our lives is on display at Tūranga’s Ti Pito Huarewa Southbase Gallery for the summer.
The Humans of Christchurch Ōtautahi project shares honest stories about everyday people. It recently celebrated its fifth year in existence with a rebrand, a new website and an exhibition, in collaboration with Christchurch City Libraries.
The exhibition opened 17 December and ran until 12 March at Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery on Tuakiri | Identity, Level 2, Tūranga. The Humans team hosted a number of events in association with the exhibition including writing workshops, their iconic red chair chats, and finished with an International Women's Day speaker event.
More about Humans of Christchurch / Ōtautahi
- Visit the Humans of Christchurch / Ōtautahi website
- Like Humans of Christchurch Ōtautahi on Facebook
- Follow Humans of Christchurch on Instagram
In search of Ngaio: Life and work of Dame Ngaio Marsh (27 August to 27 November 2022)
Dame Ngaio Marsh is probably New Zealand’s most well-known writer.
Ōtautahi’s own Queen of Crime Ngaio Marsh sold two million copies of detective novels internationally. She was an established theatre director, a mentor, an artist, a friend. Publicly enigmatic, yet fiercely private independent woman, whose life was divided between hemispheres, she dedicated her hard work, talent and time to people and arts she loved the most.
The exhibition will uncover Dame Ngaio Marsh’s work and life as a crime writer, theatre director, a painter and a mentor.
Amongst the material gathered from Ngaio Marsh House and Heritage Trust, St Margaret’s College, Alexander Turnbull Library, Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision and Christchurch City Libraries, a keen detective eye will be able to find rare manuscripts and writing notes (she burnt most of them!), play production books, her own artwork as well as the artwork of The Group and even a beret – her signature style accessory.
Education pack
Download In search of Ngaio: Discovering the life and work of Dame Ngaio Marsh education pack [1.63MB PDF]
Educational resources
Download:
- In search of Ngaio: Discovering the life and work of Dame Ngaio Marsh education pack [1.63MB PDF]
- Ngaio Marsh worksheet [264KB PDF]
![Download Ngaio Marsh worksheet [264KB PDF]](https://my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/09/Untitled-1.jpg)
Te Ao Hou: A Moment in Time (16 April to 7 August 2022)
A timely moment to celebrate the tenacity and elegance of the Māori spirit through this new exhibition. It centres the magazine Te Ao Hou: The New World and 2022 marks the 70th anniversary since the first volume was published.
Come and be welcomed into the exhibition that explores the treasures of Te Ao Hou.
Karanga – Nau mai, haere mai. The call of welcome, the voice that invites you in. Our promotional material and design extends to you the opportunity to join us.
Whaikōrero – Tēnā koutou katoa. The forum for formal speech making and to set the foundations of the day. The exhibition presents moments of discussion and formal gathering. 16 April – 15 May
Hongi – Tihei mauri ora! The breath of life that is shared to connect people with each other. The exhibition presents moments of whānaungatanga | relationships and inter-tribal connections. 16 May – 12 June
Hakari – Nāu te rourou, nāku te rourou. A time to share food together as well as close off the formal part of the proceedings. The exhibition presents moments of manaakitanga | hospitality or care for others in action as well as recipes a plenty. 13 June – 10 July
Poroporoaki – Nō reira, tēnā tātou. The time of reflection altogether on where we have been, what are doing now and where we are going. The exhibition presents moments of celebration for our artists and creatives as well as visions and aspirations for the future. 11 July – 7 August
Te Ao Hou: A moment in time
Object Lessons: Imported collections, local art, and design education in Ōtautahi Christchurch (Saturday 19 February to Sunday 27 March 2022)
About Object Lessons
Object Lessons Exhibition - Sat 19 Feb to Sat 27 Mar 2022
Whakaata mai te Kūkūwai - Reflections from the Wetlands Exhibition
Whakaata Mai te Kūkūwai
Whakaata mai te Kūkūwai - Reflections from the Wetlands
Whakaata mai te Kūkūwai - Reflections from the Wetlands
Images of the exhibition
View images on the Whakaata mai te Kūkūwai – Reflections from the Wetlands exhibition on Flickr.
We Stand Here: Celebrating Five Years of the Christchurch Documentary Project, and Children’s vision for Ōtautahi (9 July to 27 September 2021)
A city seen over five years, 2015-2019. Five suburbs from the north, east, south, west and centre, containing a multitude of communities all experiencing rapid change as a city recovers. As the landscape and built environment evolved these communities continued to do what they've always done: working to make their place meaningful; a place to feel connected to; a place to stand.
The Christchurch Documentary Project sought to capture a snapshot of life in our city during this period through the eyes of University of Canterbury, School of Fine Arts photography students. Their brief - to create a portrait of an area of Christchurch that was informed by both the physical environment and the often overlooked moments of community life. Starting with Halswell in 2015, followed by New Brighton and its neighbouring coastal suburbs, Bishopdale, Central City and finally Woolston in 2019.
The exhibition We Stand Here: celebrating five years of the Christchurch Documentary Project, curated by Senior lecturer of Photography and Place in Time Director, Tim Veling, brings together a selection of images from the project that honour the photographers involved and the people who so generously opened their doors and shared their stories. Tim's vision also enquires into the nature of representation in library archives and through his associated exhibition We Stand Here: Children's vision for their Ōtautahi, challenges the viewer to consider how younger generations will see themselves and their culture reflected in our city's public spaces.
- We Stand Here: celebrating five years of the Christchurch Documentary Project Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery, Tuakiri | Identity, Level 2, Tūranga
- We Stand Here: Children's vision for their Ōtautahi beside Foundation Cafe, He Hononga | Connection, Ground floor, Tūranga (previously located outside Tautoru / TSB Space, Hapori | Community, Level 1)
About the exhibitions
Exhibitions: We Stand Here (9 July to 27 September)
Wild Ōtautahi - Exploring the wildlife of our city (20 March to 20 June 2021)
Inspired by Gavin Bishop’s illustrations from his book Wildlife of Aotearoa this exhibition told a story about the wildlife habitats of Ōtautahi. Gavin’s original illustrations of the bush, the rivers, the wetlands, the estuary, the sand dunes and the sea provide the context to explore the richness and fragility of these local habitats and species living in them.
Through engaging storyboards and gadgets, borrowed from conservation’s shed, this exhibition provided an opportunity to expand knowledge about local natives, how to protect them and make them thrive.
Wild Ōtautahi: An exhibition about wildlife in our city
Talanoa i Measina – Sharing our stories (12 November 2020 to 28 February 2021)
An expression of Pacific identity, cultural belonging and visual Talanoa from Christchurch's Pacific community.
Using gathered images, film and objects from Pasifika communities, archive material from Christchurch City Libraries and other institutions, Talanoa i Measina - Sharing our Stories is a visual showcase mirroring a living room that celebrated achievements, people and love for Pacific culture in Ōtautahi.
Inside the exhibition
Join exhibition curator, Nina Oberg-Humphries for a 360° experience of the exhibition in the video below.
From Paper to Pixel (21 September to 1 November 2020)
Explore stories of Christchurch and wider Canterbury in this exhibition that highlights over 20 years of digitising and collecting born digital heritage items at Christchurch City Libraries. Among many of the items to discover are ship board diaries from the 1850s, letters home during World War II, maps from the mid twentieth century, band posters from the 1980s and thousands of photographs from the late 1800s to today.
Christchurch City Libraries collect and describe these items to preserve them for the future and make them accessible to the public.
Aroha Revolution: A community Matariki quilt (13 August to 13 September 2020)
To celebrate Matariki 2020, Stitch-o-Mat hosted Ron Te Kawa as Artist in Residence during July, thanks to generous funding from Te Puni Kōkiri and Christchurch Creative Communities Scheme. Ron delivered a series of workshops on Whakapapa quilts and heritage flags and worked with the community to make the community healing quilt that is displayed in the Southbase Gallery. On display 13 August to 13 September 2020.
Exhibition Photos
Aroha Revolution: A Community Matariki Quilt: (13 August to 13 September 2020)
Labyrinth in the Library (29 February to 2 August 2020)
Exploring the landscape of the mind through creativity. The labyrinth, an installation by artist Robyn Webster at Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery, Tūranga, examines the concept of individual and collaborative creativity. Local artists, choreographers, filmmakers, musicians, storytellers will respond to the artwork throughout the exhibition and opportunities for the public to respond and contribute.
Labyrinth in the library interview with the artist
Labyrinth in the Library
Heartfelt (15 to 23 February 2020)
An exhibition of collages from cards sent with messages of love and support after the 15 March mosque attacks.
A collaboration with NMIT - Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
Exhibition photos
View exhibition photos on Flickr
Extraordinary: Alexander Turnbull Exhibition (9 November 2019 to 9 February 2020)
An exhibition inspired by the people and landscapes of Ōtautahi Christchurch from the collection of the Alexander Turnbull Library.
Featured in the exhibition are a wide variety of objects ranging from significant artworks by Rita Angus, Leo Bensemann, photos of early Christchurch by Steffano Webb and John Pascoe, Ngaio Marsh's production script for A Midsummer Night's Dream (including felt tip sketches for costume), Douglas Lilburn music scores and more domestic artefacts including an old recipe book and children's craft work.
Ordinary treasures, Extraordinary exhibition
Illuminate: Unearthing treasures from our collection (3 August to 27 October 2019)
To celebrate our 160th birthday, we've gone deep into our vaults and rummaged our shelves to bring you some of our favourite gems.
Stunning, unexpected, extraordinary, curious - come and find your favourite!
Exhibition photos
View exhibition photos on Flickr
Va Oceans Between (18 May to 21 July 2019)
Va is the guiding curating principal of our exhibition Va Oceans Between and is a fundamental Pacific value that underlines everything. The relationships we have with each other, with the physical world and the spiritual word connecting past, present and future.
Va Oceans Between is an exploration of Pacific Peoples living in Christchurch and their relationship to the Moana, Ōtautahi and each other through the use of never seen before Polynesian artefacts from Canterbury Museum, oral histories and visual, performance and written art forms from Christchurch-based Pacific artists.
Exhibition events included an artist floor talk, poetry reading by Tusiata Avia, and theatrical performance by Pasifika collective YNOT.
Kā Huru Manu (26 January to 28 April 2019)
Compiled over ten years, Kā Huru Manu (The Ngāi Tahu Cultural Mapping Project) is dedicated to recording and mapping the traditional Māori place names and associated histories in the Ngāi Tahu rohe (tribal area).
This exhibition showcased six of the key maps for Ngāi Tahu place names within the Canterbury and Banks Peninsula region, including maps by Rāwiri Te Maire, Teone Taare Tikao, Tieke Pukurākau, and Hoani Te Hau Pere.
Unique artefacts were also showcased such as Canon James Stack’s original 1898 correspondence of Ngāi Tahu place names for Banks Peninsula and the original Tieke Pukurākau notebooks of place names within the Waitaki catchment.
We would like to acknowledge both Archives New Zealand and the Hocken Library for their support in loaning these items for the exhibition.
For more information, visit kahurumanu.co.nz, opens a new window
Kā Huru Manu Exhibition
Our Painted Stories (Friday 12 October 2018 to Thursday 17 January 2019)
The Our Painted Stories exhibition explores the presence and importance of local Canterbury settings in children's books and celebrates the power of visual storytelling. Featuring original illustrations from books by Margaret Mahy and Gavin Bishop.
Created in partnership with the Painted Stories Trust.
Exhibition photos
View exhibition photos on Flickr
Related pages
- Find out what else is on Tuakiri | Identity, Level 2
- Find resources about Art
- Te Pito Huarewa / Southbase Gallery
