Art Day for Gender Equality returns for its second year with an amazing line-up of workshops, music, performance poetry and a lively panel discussion. A full-day programme running from 9am to 6pm. SIGN UP for updates

Art Day for Gender Equality is is held in Monte Cecilia Park at the site of 1001 Spheres sculpture. It is a free and inclusive community event.
Everyone is welcome!

The day starts with two inspiring workshops designed to get your physical and mental creative energies flowing. A mindful movement workshop with renowned choreographer Tiaki Kerei and creative writing with award-winner writer Kathryn Burnett. 

 From 12:30, DJ and powerhouse vocalist Sandy Mill will be pumping up the energy and the volume as we transition to the performance part of the day. Bring a picnic, bring your friends and settle in to be entertained by the awesome combined voices of Jubilation Choir and acclaimed performance poets Carrie Rudzinsky, Arihia Hall and Marcus Mackenzie. Sandy Mill’s eclectic and laid-back DJ selections continue through the afternoon, and we welcome back the fabulous Carla Rotondo as MC. 

Rounding out the day is Art + Gender, a panel discussion moderated by Dina Jezdic and featuring contemporary artists and thinkers Rosanna Raymond, Jack Trolove and Francis McWhannell. 

Register here for Workshops and Panel Discussion.

Workshops

PŪNGAO. Mindful Movement Workshop

9:00am – 10:30am

Free Workshop. Registration required

Join renowned contemporary dancer and choreographer Tiaki Kerei for a workshop grounded in Te Ao Māori and mindful practice. 

PŪNGAO means ENERGY, and this workshop blends contemporary movement, improvisation and storytelling in ways that connect body, spirit and environment. With Tiaki’s skilful guidance, participants will explore themes of resistance + resilience, adaptability + regeneration and the strength + continuity of Māori knowledge.

Developed through Tiaki’s long-term creative research into contemporary dance and movement and inspired by the powerful presence of 1001 Spheres sculpture, PŪNGAO workshop will stretch both your body and your mind. 

Tiaki Kerei (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungūnu, Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa) is Artistic Director of Whakamana Creatives and a founding member of Atamira Dance Collective. Tiaki’s many achievements include being an AMP Scholarship recipient to the USA, Visiting Assistant Professor at University of California Riverside and Artist in Residence at University of California Berkeley.

Spaces are limited. Register here.  

GET SHORTY. The lowdown on writing short fiction.   

10:45am – 12:15pm

Free Workshop. Registration required.

Join award-winning writer Kathryn Burnett for a fun, creative session and discover different forms of short fiction.

The great thing about very short stories is that they are short!  Whether the word count is in the hundreds or the thousands, completing one is do-able. You can expect to learn the essential elements of short but sweet stories and get your own story started! 

The first half of the workshop focuses on the must have story elements and in the second half you'll be brainstorming your short story idea inspired by the gender equality theme of 1001 Spheres sculpture.

Kathryn Burnett is an award-winning screenwriter, playwright and writing coach with significant credits for stage and screen. Her latest play was the critically acclaimed 'Nicola Cheeseman is Back' which premiered in 2024. She annually curates Writefest - a one day writing event and has been teaching her own writing classes for over 12 years.

Spaces are limited. Register here.

Performances

SANDY MILL. Vocalist  & DJ

From 12:30pm 

1001 Spheres sculpture, Monte Cecilia Park

Undertheradar describe Sandy Mill as ‘a goddess: an amazing vocalist and brilliant percussionist’. We couldn’t agree more! 

Opening the afternoon session, Sandy will be behind the decks with a DJ set to get us in the mood for a joyful afternoon of music and performance poetry.  

Sandy Mill is performing at Art Day both as a DJ and a Vocalist. When she is selecting, expect to be taken on a musical journey. Sandy’s taste is eclectic, from hip hop, funk, soul and jazz, to drum n bass and house. Sandy will close the afternoon session performing some of her recent releases and earlier favs. 

Sandy Mill is a singer, songwriter, producer, DJ and Ngāti Porou soul sister. Sandy has collaborated and performed with some of New Zealand’s best-known artists. Her debut EP A Piece of Me was a NZ Top 20 hit and in 2018 she was a finalist at the Waiata Māori Music Awards. 

JUBILATION CHOIR

Jubilation Choir fuses its gospel heart and rock 'n' roll soul to celebrate the naked human voice in all its glory. 

Branching out from their roots as a gospel choir to find a city groove, Jubilation will be performing at Art Day with a groovy mix of the divine and the profane, the sweet and the raucous, Americana meets Aotearoa.

32 voices strong, Jubilation Choir is a vibrant collective of people from all walks of life singing songs that reflect the universal themes of struggle, salvation, and love. The Choir includes some of Aotearoa’s most celebrated performing artists such as theatre icon Jennifer Ward-Lealand, actor/writer Fiona Samuel and entertainer extraordinaire Jackie Clarke. 

'This choir is probably the most versatile selection of singers in New Zealand and can only be described as spectacular!' Sam Airy - NZ Musician magazine.

EQUALITY SPEAKS. A Poetry Open Mic 

Curated by award-winning feminist poet and performer Carrie Rudzinski, Equality Speaks. A Poetry Open Mic returns to Art Day for the second year. 

Equality Speaks brings together seasoned poets with emerging new voices from Tāmaki’s spoken word poetry community, exploring themes of identity, diversity, empowerment and gender. Carrie will be performing alongside Poetry Slam Champion, Marcus Mackenzie, published poet Arihia Hall and a selected group of emerging spoken-word performers. 

Carrie Rudzinski is an American-New Zealand poet who has performed widely in Aotearoa and internationally. She is the co-editor of Rapture: An Anthology of Performance Poetry from Aotearoa New Zealand (AUP, 2023) and the co-creator of Hysterical which won Best New Aotearoa Play at the Wellington Theatre Awards.

Marcus Mackenzie (he/him) is a Queer and Pākehā spoken word artist from Tāmaki Makaurau. A storyteller, his work focuses on the rainbow experience and the many facets of life found within. He is the 2023 New Zealand National Poetry Slam Champion, and has performed his work across Aotearoa.

Arihia Hall (Ngāti Tukorehe, Ngāti Tuwharetoa) is a kura kid and poet who uses spoken word as a vessel to explore and uplift kaupapa Māori. Her work is deeply rooted in identity and whakapapa, often weaving reo, waiata, and karakia into her writing and performance. Beyond the stage, Arihia carries her voice into spaces of advocacy and Tikanga.

MC. Carla Rotondo

Returning for the second year is our dynamic MC Carla Rotondo!

 With more than twenty years’ experience in the film and television sector, Carla Rotondo is a much in demand MC for celebrations and cultural events. The multi-talented and multi-tasking Carla works as an MC, celebrant, voice-over artist and free-lance producer. 

Bringing her boundless energy to the MC role, Carla will be weaving together the afternoon segment of the programme, introducing performers and speaking to the gender equality theme of the day.  

Panel Discussion

ART + GENDER

4pm – 6pm. The Arts House Trust, Pah Homestead

Free event. Registration required.

Art + Gender brings together artists and thinkers who stretch, question, and celebrate the ways gender and queer identities shape contemporary art. 

Moderated by Dr. Dina Jezdic, the kōrero moves between lived experience, artistic practice, and the politics of visibility. Joining the discussion are multidisciplinary force Rosanna Raymond, painter Jack Trolove, and gallerist Francis McWhannell, each bringing sharp insight, humour, and heart to this lively exchange.

Join us at 4pm for complimentary drinks and food. The panel discussion starts at 4:30pm.  Spaces are limited. Please Register.

Dina Jezdić is an art critic, curator, and decolonial scholar. She holds a doctorate on the decoloniality of museums, examining contemporary Indigenous activation as a collective methodology for unsettling colonial frameworks. She is widely published across leading art journals in Aotearoa, Australia, and the United States.

Rosanna Raymond is a leading figure in contemporary Pacific art and culture. Her multifaceted practice spans performance, writing, curation, institutional critique, pedagogy, and body adornment. She is a founding member of the internationally recognised  SaVĀge K’lub and long-standing member of Pacific Sisters art collective. Internationally recognized for her work, she has exhibited and presented in diverse institutions and communities around the globe.

Jack Trolove (Pākeha, Scots-Irish) is an artist with a practice is rooted in the poetics and politics of in-between-ness. He uses painting to uplift states of transition - taking inspiration from trans bodies found in the natural and ancient worlds. Jack has been a practicing artist for over twenty years, exhibiting nationally and internationally.

Francis McWhannell is a writer, gallerist, and curator. He holds a Master of Arts in Art History from the University of Auckland Waipapa Taumata Rau. Since 2019 he has been the curator of the Fletcher Trust Collection and in 2022, Francis and Jade Townsend opened Season, a commercial gallery based in central Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.

Locations

Transport & Parking

Parking is limited so please plan ahead and use car-sharing or public transport where possible. 

Art Day for Gender Equality is held in Monte Cecilia Park at the site of 1001 Spheres sculpture.

Art+Gender Panel Discussion is at The Arts House Trust at Pah Homestead.

If you have special needs or require assistance please email us.

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