Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery

Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery is a purpose-built public art gallery at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington. The gallery manages a nationally significant collection of art, built up by the university over many decades.

Since opening in 1999, Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery has presented a well-regarded programme of exhibitions, events and publications for the university students and staff, and the public. It is known for developing innovative projects and curating exhibitions that offer new, timely, critical insights into art and art history.

The gallery has hosted several exhibitions related to Latin America. In 2002, as part of the New Zealand Arts Festival, the gallery presented Lights and Shadows, which included artwork by Brazilian artist Fernanda Gomes. Fernanda used found and constructed objects, which she inserted into the fabric of the gallery for visitors to discover. Then, in 2007, Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery showed Tom Kreisler – an exhibition of work by the New Zealand artist from his 35-year career. Although he lived most of his life in New Zealand, Tom was born in Argentina and his work was heavily influenced by his interest in Mexican folk art.

In 2011, the gallery presented the exhibition Points of Contact, which traced the historical and conceptual connections between New Zealand artist Jim Allen, New Zealand filmmaker and sculptor Len Lye and Brazilian artist Hélio Oiticica. Alongside the exhibition, Brazilian art historian, curator and writer Paulo Venancio Filho presented his research on Hélio, in a lecture called “Hélio Oiticica’s Time and Place”. Paulo’s visit to New Zealand was supported by Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery, Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, the University of Auckland Waipapa Taumata Rau National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries and the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery.

More recently, the gallery hosted Colombian artist Nicolás París in 2019. Nicolás ran a two-day workshop for Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington students, while he was artist in residence at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. The workshop was supported by Creative NZ Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa and the Latin America Centre of Asia–Pacific Excellence.

Wellington art historian Christina Barton was the director of Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery from 2007 to 2023; Sophie Thorn is currently acting director of the gallery.

Location

Wellington, New Zealand

Date

Opened in 1999

Published 02 November 2023