CROWD PLEASERS

The Bay of Plenty is rapidly becoming a hotspot for events. Karl Puschmann talks to the key people behind some of the Bay’s biggest events to get a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to bring these events to life, their cultural and economic impact, and discover if this is just the beginning. PHOTOS ROBBIE HUNTER | HAIR + MAKE-UP DESIREE OSTERMAN

Toby Burrows and Mitch Lowe

I’m standing in the heart of Mount Maunganui’s industrial area, in front of a large warehouse, wondering if I’m in the right place. This unlikely, unglamorous spot is where some of the Bay of Plenty’s biggest events are dreamed up, organised and, if all goes to plan, brought to life. I’ve come to talk to Mitch Lowe and Toby Burrows, the two chaps behind the summer’s history-making Fisher concert at the Bay Oval, about the resurgence of events in the Bay of Plenty, what goes into staging them, and the impact, both economically and culturally, that they have on our region.

But first, I need to find the front door.

I walk down the long driveway, and past the side of the building, whose sliding doors have been pulled open on this bright, hot day, affording me a view of the welders inside who are hard at work behind a shower of bright sparks. It’s a far cry from the triumphant firework display that lit up the sky to bring the Fisher concert to a close.

Near the end of the building, there’s a door. I poke my head inside and see a wall covered in framed concert posters, and a top-of-the-range Pioneer DJ set-up in a booth to my left. This is more like what I was expecting. What I don’t see is people.

“Hello?” I offer, walking inside and knocking on the wood of the DJ booth. Toby bounds down the stairs to greet me.

“Hey mate,” he says, shaking my hand. “Can I get you a Red Bull?”

Energy drinks in hand, he leads me up the stairs and into a boardroom, which is also decorated with framed posters, and where Mitch is sitting in front of a laptop, which he closes as we walk in. It’s here, from this office, tacked onto the back of an industrial factory, that the pair plan out over 150 events a year around Aotearoa.

“The Bay’s always been a priority for us,” Mitch says. “Because we’re local, we’re going to push as much as we can into the Bay. It's a really exciting time.”

“The summer’s been pretty busy,” Toby adds.

That feels like something of an understatement. After a barren few years following the COVID pandemic, there’s been an unignorable resurgence of events happening here in the Bay recently. Coupled with the freshly rejuvenated city centre, the upswing in trendy cafés, bars and restaurants popping up and the ongoing suburban growth down the Pāpāmoa coastline, it’s beginning to feel like the region is shedding its old, and somewhat unfair, reputation as a haven for oldies and gaining a name for itself as a spot where there’s always something happening.

“When I moved to Tauranga a decade ago, people used to go, ‘Oh, it’s a retirement village,’” Mitch laughs. “That used to be the general feeling before we started doing big events here and trying to bring a bit of life to it. Now, I know tons of people who have moved here. They think of Tauranga as one of the event capitals of New Zealand. It’s cool to be a part of that.”

The pair have spent decades working in the events industry — Toby for 23 years and Mitch for 16. Before joining forces, Toby was heavily involved in Gisborne’s New Year’s Eve festival, Rhythm & Vines, while Mitch built his career touring DJs and electronic acts and running club nights. Around a decade ago, Mitch moved to the Bay to launch the single-day music festival Bay Dreams, which debuted in 2016 and ran each summer until it was officially placed on hiatus last year.

The pair knew each other from the industry, and decided to work together on the legacy rocker Bryan Adams’ 2019 Aotearoa tour, which took in Auckland, Wellington, Nelson and Christchurch. This was a significant success, leading the partnership to continue and become more formalised, with Toby moving from his home in “Gizzee” to come to the Mount a year or so later.

“I did a lot of humming and hah-ing about it, but committed to the decision. Now I look back and wonder what I was humming and hah-ing about,” Toby laughs. “It has the beaches and the lifestyle, and geographically it’s sort of in the middle of everywhere. It ticked all the boxes.”

“We love it,” Mitch says. “We’re both raising our families here, which is a good indication of our passion for the place.”

The success of Bryan Adams had shown them there was a gap in the market for legacy artists, so the pair naturally doubled down, bringing over legendary acts like Toto, The Jackson 5 and Snoop Dogg, while also creating one-day festivals targeted at different music genres and audiences, like Rock the Bowl, Le Currents and, of course, Bay Dreams. Most did well. But, the pair admit, not all.

“The funniest one was when I asked my dad’ s opinion on a legacy act,” Mitch recalls. He said, ‘Oh, that’s a guaranteed sell. Absolutely. No question’. We booked it, promoted it, went on sale… and it flopped.” Jokingly, he says, “Dad doesn’t get free tickets anymore.”

But that’s the nature of the events biz, he says. Every show is a gamble that could literally see you losing your house. Something, the pair say, has almost happened more than once over the years.

But that was when they were younger, more naive and excited. But there were some growing pains, and Mitch says they had to learn how to run their business properly.

“We’re not taking stupid risks anymore,” Mitch says. “We’ve learnt how to take calculated risks. Now, when we go into things, I’m confident that we’re either going to win or we’re going to lose an amount that we can handle.”

“We manage risk in a way that doesn’t feel too risky,” Toby says, noting that while their gut feeling still plays a role, they also have a stringent process of running the numbers and looking at specific artist metrics that have to add up before they decide to go ahead with an event. “We’re not risking everything if it doesn’t work anymore. Initially, I was brazen and not afraid to lose everything I had, because I had nothing. As I’ve gotten older, you know, I don’t want to lose everything. We say ‘No’ to a lot of things that come to our desk.

It’s got to fit within certain metrics to make sense.”

Which brings us to Fisher. If there was a single moment that announced the Bay’s arrival on the national stage, it was that summer concert at Bay Oval — the first-ever music event held at the iconic stadium. In hindsight, it seems like a guaranteed success. But at the time, it was a bold gamble. And while their homes weren’t literally on the line, a flop would have set their business back years.

They’d invested half a decade securing Bay Oval and were determined to headline the first show with a global name. Still, having toured Fisher the previous year, they worried it might be too soon to bring him back.

“We thought if we brought him to the Mount in the middle of summer, put him on at Bay Oval with the right line-up around him, and marketed it properly, it would work,” Toby says. “We’re entrepreneurs at heart. We’ve lived with risk for so long that we’ve learned to thrive under that pressure.”

Adds Mitch: “We’ve done massive things here in the past, like Bay Dreams, but to promise one of the biggest acts in the world that they could come to this little region and still do the same numbers that they do in Auckland or Christchurch was pretty ballsy. It paid off.

“We were doubting ourselves right up until that moment we went on sale,” Mitch grins. “Within five minutes, we were like, ‘Okay, we’re good.”

“Fisher was a proof of concept. We wanted to show what was possible,” Toby says. “The goal was to prove that the Bay could deliver numbers and production values comparable to the big cities.”

It certainly did. Over 20,000 punters packed into the Oval for the show. But it wasn’t all locals. More than 82 percent of the punters who attended were from out of town, truly making the Mount the hottest place to be in the whole country that weekend.

Tauranga mayor Mahe Drysdale describes the Fisher concert as an “amazing success for our city”.

“It worked really well,” he tells me. “The feedback we’ve had is that it was an awesome venue, and there’s an opportunity there to grow. Bay Oval is a real jewel in our crown. We’ve had some really great cricket events over the summer, which is what it’s set up for, but we’ve said to Bay Oval, we really want to see more music acts and other events there.”

The one-two punch of Fisher, followed a week later by the UB40 with Ali Campbell concert, has proved the Oval works as a “legitimate venue”. Mahe says promoters can now have confidence that the Bay can successfully pull off these sorts of big events.

“Once one person’s done it, it opens up a whole lot more opportunities in the future,” he says. “We’ve identified events as being one of our priorities and one of our strategies to make this a better place. We want events here because of what they do for our region, for the accommodation providers, the local businesses, the hospo businesses, and for the sense of vibrancy that they attract. We can see the economic benefits of what events do for our city.”

He says the council is actively going out and finding ways to accomplish this strategy, pointing to the upcoming World Triathlon Series as an example.

“We’ve got three years of world-class athletes coming to our city to compete,” he says. “There are so many events out there that we can attract. We’re really excited.”

But what is it that’s attracting these events to the region? Why are organisers increasingly choosing to put on events here?

“The Bay is blessed with natural beauty. That’s certainly a big part of why it’s attractive,” he says. “A lot of people want to come here, so when events are on, people jump at the opportunity to come and enjoy the region. It’s a win-win,” he smiles.

“We can share our beautiful city, but also they help drive our economy. They have a significant economic and social benefit.”

One of the best examples of this economic and cultural coming together is the annual AIMS Games. The week-long multi-sport tournament brings together thousands of Year 7 and 8 students from across New Zealand and the Pacific to compete in 27 different sporting codes, generating a tangible excitement as well as some serious cash for the region.

“Last year we had just over 14,000 athletes from 431 schools,” Kelly Schischka, the AIMS Games tournament director, tells UNO. “They compete in sport, make new memories and new friends in f it-for-purpose sports venues across the region. That, for us, is what makes it work so well.”

Add in coaches, managers, officials and supporters, and that number jumps to 29,558, with a whopping 23,425 of those coming in from out of town. This one event alone generated a huge $9,751,958 of tourism expenditure in Tauranga.

“Economically, the AIMS Games makes a big contribution, but more so, it really builds that pride of being hosts. That’s incredibly important,” Kelly says. “You can’t stage an event without the support of the community, and we absolutely have that with the AIMS Games. We’re incredibly lucky.”

The event started here in 2004 and has steadily grown in popularity ever since. The week-long event now takes over 29 different venues around Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty.

“The AIMS Games have really helped shape Tauranga’s identity as an event city. There’s nothing quite like being in town when they’re on,” Kelly smiles. “There are 14,000 kids here for a week-long sleepover with their friends. The energy levels are incredibly high. It’s hard not to get caught up in that. It’s a really special thing to be a part of.”

Along with the AIMS Games, Kelly says there are many events that are now synonymous with Tauranga, making it a vibrant place to live, and encouraging people to visit. There’s the Tauranga Marathon, the Jazz Festival, the Arts Festival, the Flavours of Plenty food festival and the Mount Festival of Multisport, one of the country’s longest-running and most iconic triathlons, to name just a few.

“These are part of the fabric of Tauranga,” Kelly says. “We’ve proven ourselves to be able to host international sporting events and fantastic music events incredibly well. It’s great for those of us who live here to be a part of that, and it’s fantastic to be able to showcase our city to different types of visitors who are here for different types of events.”

Things may feel big now, but it really is just the beginning, as national and international events are increasingly attracted by the region’s stunning backdrop, infrastructure and proven ability to be welcoming hosts for major events.

“It’s an exciting time,” Toby enthuses. “We have agents and artists from all over the world wanting to come down and work with us. There’s a lot of exciting projects in the pipeline right across the country, including here in the Bay.”

“I agree,” Mitch nods. “I have the feeling now that I had when we launched Bay Dreams back in the day. It feels like the start of something big. We literally have the biggest acts in the world asking us to do cool things.”

After the triumph of Fisher, the pair are already working on next summer's show. They know Fisher's a tough act to follow. I cheekily ask who's on their radar and they both grin and say there's some exciting options on the table. Just before I leave, I mention that it's a great time to be living in the Bay.

"It's exciting," Mitch agrees. "And this is just the start."

TUFT LOVE

Irish-born textile artist Leah Creaven explores landscape through richly textured rug-tufted works made with New Zealand wool.

Rug tufting might be having a moment, but for textile artist Leah Creaven it’s a deeply personal way of translating landscape and feeling into form. Here, she talks process, inspiration and why working with wool feels like painting with fibre.

UNO: What first drew you to this medium, and what continues to captivate you about it? Leah: I was drawn to rug tufting a few years after finishing my degree in Textiles and Surface Design in Dublin. I started creating small art with a punch needle and wanted to work on a larger scale, so I guess I started rug tufting out of a desire to explore scale and impact. I’m continuously captivated by the freedom that rug tufting gives you. In my eyes it’s like painting with wool, but with the outcome being both beautiful and tactile. The repetitive rhythm of tufting is also meditative and helps me to shut out the noise (while music blares in my earpods!).

Your pieces often blend influences from both Irish landscapes and the land around you in Aotearoa New Zealand. How do these environments shape the stories you tell through your art? Ireland shapes the inner landscape of the pieces with memory and emotion. It’s less about depicting Ireland directly and more about carrying its emotional weight — a way of feeling land as archive and as something storied and tender. Visually, however, my response is grounded in New Zealand where I now live. The land here informs the physical language of the work. In that sense, my work kind of exists between inheritance and observation, emotionally anchored in Ireland and visually shaped by Aotearoa which allows them to hold both memory and presence at the same time.

Can you talk about your creative process, from initial concept to finished piece, and how you decide on colour palettes and forms? My process usually begins with an idea or a feeling that I hash out with my husband or my dad. I’m a big communicator and voicing these ideas helps me make sense of them before they become visual. They’re normally responses to landscape or a memory or a shift in light. I’ll sketch loosely on my iPad, mostly abstract shapes that suggest contour or horizon, but I leave space for the work to evolve once I begin tufting. Colour is often the first concrete decision (and the most exciting one!). I build a palette guided by emotional tone or seasonal shifts. Then I’ll test combinations by tufting colour samples to see which complement or compete with each other. Then it is time to bring my drawing to woolen-life on my canvas.

You consciously choose New Zealand wool for your art. What significance does this material have for you beyond its physical qualities? Choosing New Zealand wool is a conscious way of grounding my work in the place where it is grown. Beyond its durability, wool carries a sense of locality. Using it allows the work to hold a direct relationship to its environment and embeds the landscape quite literally into the surface. Wool also holds warmth. It has clothed, sheltered and comforted people for generations. In my work, it reinforces the themes of grounding and belonging.

Your ‘Land Girl’ exhibition and pieces like ‘Rapa Rising’ have received critical acclaim. Has public response influenced the direction of your work or your confidence as an artist? While the public continues to be supportive and affirming, what I feel matters most is the sense that the work resonates. That the viewers recognise something of their own relationship to land, memory or belonging in it. That particular connection reinforces my belief that textile-based practices can hold conceptual and emotional weight. Public engagement hasn’t really shifted the conceptual foundation of my work but it has deepened my sense of authenticity and to honour the materials and stories I’m working with.

What role do workshops and teaching (like your rug tufting classes) play in your practice? Does interacting with other creatives change the way you think about your own art? Teaching rug tufting workshops is such an important extension of my practice. Rug tufting can at times feel solitary so the workshops help top up my social meter, but also provide a space for creative exchange. I learn so much from the participants! There’s something exciting about watching people encounter a medium for the first time. Participants bring different stories and aesthetics into the space and that diversity expands the conversation around what tufting can be and encourages me to remain open and curious within my own work.

Looking forward, are there new themes, techniques or collaborations you’re excited to explore in your upcoming work? I’m experimenting a lot with layering and texture, which is very exciting to witness and learn from. I just moved to the Bay of Plenty so I’m feeling inspired conceptually and am looking forward to including some local walks and feelings of rejuvenation in my work. I’m really loving my new studio and being amongst the artistic activity at the Historic Village. It has been a wonderful boost in energy, but also in my confidence. It feels like being back at university, where bouncing ideas and learning of art events is an everyday occurrence.

How long have you lived in the Bay and what do you love about it? I moved to Otumoetai in November so we’re pretty fresh but are absolutely loving it. I’m passionate about the outdoors. Being close to the ocean and surrounded by beautiful walks is everything we could have asked for. I also love an evening scene so it’s been great to experience the fantastic restaurants and live music that are available to us too.

LEAHCREAVENTEXTILES.COM

MAKING FRIENDS

As the collection grows, Tauranga locals are already stepping inside the story of their new museum.

WORDS PIP CROMBIE

Museum Collection Tour

Steadily rising, the Tauranga Museum project, part of the Te Manawataki o Te Papa city centre redevelopment, is well underway and set to open in July 2028. Its steel frame is already complete, with mass timber components to follow, and the roof and external cladding will soon reveal the distinctive shape of Tauranga’s first central city museum. But while the building itself is taking form, the museum is already coming to life, and there are plenty of ways for the community to be part of it now.

Working from the Mount Maunganui Museum warehouses, museum director Greg McManus and his team are full steam ahead expanding staff, planning for the grand opening, securing loans of local taonga from around the world, and coordinating the two major exhibitions that will launch in the galleries. For McManus, the museum is already becoming an active part of Tauranga’s cultural landscape.

Museum Collection Tour

“We hold regular activities that engage the local community in what we already have on offer,” he says. “History walking tours, public art tours, educational programmes and collection tours that provide a snapshot of the more than 35,000 pieces of history in our care.”

Individuals and groups can sign up for these tours, with one proviso, that you must join the free Friends of Tauranga Museum membership to take part in the events. Once you subscribe, you’ll be joining a growing community of more than 1,420 members. And who couldn’t use a few more friends?

Art and History Tour

Membership also brings a quarterly newsletter to your inbox, featuring upcoming events, snippets of local and international museum news and trends, insights into artefacts that will eventually feature in the museum, and other information reserved for Friends. It’s not an exclusive club. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. The aim is to build a diverse community of museum supporters well before the doors officially open in 2028.

Paul Cuming’s photo competition entry

In September 2025, the museum launched the inaugural Tauranga in the Spring photography competition. Judged by award-winning local photographers Michal Pinkerton and Bob Tulloch, the competition attracted 48 entries in the under-18 category and 54 in the over-18 category.

“The quality of the entries was simply outstanding. We were so impressed,” says marketing and communications manager Nineke Metz. “We’ll be running the competition again this year with a new theme to be announced.”

Excellent prizes will be on offer, and the winning images will be shared publicly. If you’re over 16, sign up as a Friend of Tauranga Museum to be among the first to hear the competition details, and to gain a whole new perspective on what promises to be a rich cultural journey for Tauranga. LETSTALK.TAURANGA.GOVT.NZ/ PROJECTS/TAURANGA-MUSEUM

Centre stage

Tauranga Arts Festival will come to life with a dazzling circus, bold beats, sharp wit and homegrown brilliance.

WORDS Monique Balvert-O’Connor

Hayley Sproull is The Baroness.

Internationally acclaimed circus performers, musicians, authors, actors and comedians will be amongst those set to thrill at the 2025 Tauranga Arts Festival. Taking to our stages will be the likes of Cirque Bon Bon, Tami Neilson, Hayley Sproull, Rhys Mathewson, Te Radar, Chelsea Winter and Catherine Chidgey to name but some. It’s an impressive line-up that also includes plenty of local talent keen to delight the crowds at their city’s flagship art festival event, kicking off over Labour Weekend.

Tauranga DJ queen Ayesha Kee.

Ayesha Kee doesn’t plan on raising the roof of the Carrus Crystal Palace, but she’s sure hoping she’ll have that glorious tent rocking.

The Tauranga DJ queen can’t wait to “slay the disco way” during the Tauranga Arts Festival where she’ll help fulfil many a dazzling disco dream. Ayesha will team up with powerhouse vocalist Lisa Tomlins to deliver a Queens of Disco event. Expect the most iconic disco anthems ever to hit the dancefloor. Think Diana Ross, some Pointer Sisters, Bee Gees… feel good music, Ayesha says, that’s likely to seduce many, of varying age groups, onto the dancefloor.

By day Ayesha is a community development manager at Kaiwhakahaere Whakawhanake Hapori. By night, well, that’s alter ego time.

“I have always loved music but never learnt an instrument, so I got into deejaying about 20 years ago. I love it so much as there’s the opportunity
to take people on a musical journey, and you just make people happy,” she beams.

Tauranga’s proud to claim her. While Ayesha’s only been Tauranga based for 10 years, Ngāti Ranginui is her iwi and Ngāi Tamarāwaho her hapu.

She will be one of an array of local talent in the spotlight over festival week. 

UNO is proud to be sponsoring what’s expected to be a hugely popular festival event: comedian Hayley Sproull’s show The Baroness. It’s so named as Hayley is The Baroness sky-rocketing towards 40, with a “happily untenanted” womb and a life of love, leisure and lingus. Hayley feels less barren and more Baroness.

As a Baroness, her focus is on making “martinis, not milk. She changes her mind, not nappies. She wants durries, not diapers.” Tauranga Arts Festival attendees can rest assured she’ll be delivering not a child, but copious amounts of chuckle-worthy moments.

Tauranga Arts Festival general manager Sarah Cotter says this year’s event will be full of fun, magic and vibrancy, with world-class performances, thought-provoking conversations and experiences to stir the senses and soul.

Ozi Ozaa.

Local creatives playing a part in delivering all that wonder include the festival team’s very own content creator Fabio Camera, who, like Aeysha, cannot resist the call of music when his day job is over. Aptly, he’s a musician in a band carrying a name meaning work and happiness - Ozi Ozaa. This Afrofunk band will perform on the Tauranga Waterfront in the Carrus Crystal Palace Spiegeltent.

Still on the music front, local talent will also be showcased during two of the festival’s free events - Opus Pocket Orchestra Concert and Undergrand.
The former is focused on little listeners and will feature 30-minute concerts offering young ones a joyful, interactive introduction to orchestral music. Undergrand, meanwhile, has been dubbed “a piano
in the wild”. Imagine stumbling upon a baby grand piano in the most unexpected places, like Mount Main Beach at Sunrise, Tauranga’s waterfront after dusk, and in a city park by day. This roaming, open-air musical experience will include a line-up of up-and-coming Tauranga students and seasoned pianists playing everything from classical to jazz
to improvised soundscapes.

Battle Chorus.

Playing a key, guiding role in two events is award-winning Tauranga born and raised Jason Te Mete (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngai Te Rangi), a freelance actor, singer, dancer, director, pianist, and playwright/writer. His festival babies are Battle Chorus – where two choirs go to war — and also Waiata Mai, a free-to-all sing-along (watch out for some local legends, like a free-to-all sing-along that closes the festival on Sunday November 2. 

The final days of the festival, in early November, involve Escape, with its focus on the literary. In amongst the major New Zealand fiction writers is Tauranga’s own Anne Tiernan, author of bestselling novel The Last Days of Joy (partially set in Tauranga), and (recently released) The Good Mistress. 

Less joyful, but inarguably good, is the demise of the New Zealand media, and Tauranga’s investigative journalist Jared Savage will speak to this in Media Madness. Jared will join a line-up of journalists in unpacking and debating the media landscape of 2025.

Sarah Ell will also offer learning opportunities. Sarah’s recently published book The Spirit of a Place, is a new history of The Elms | Te Papa Tauranga, recognised as one of New Zealand’s most significant heritage sites. Sarah’s talk promises a rare glimpse into Tauranga’s layered past.

This part of the festival will honour the late, great Tauranga writer Sherryl Jordan who wrote beloved novels for children and young adults, including:
Rocco, The Wednesday Wizard, The Juniper Game, and Winter of Fire.

Escape invites people to “sit back, relax and immerse in a suite of scintillating conversations”, says former Tauranga resident Claire Mabey. She would know - she devised the programme. Claire, who is of strong literary pedigree, has strong ties to the festival, having been part of the organising team on previous occasions. Amongst her accomplishments,
Claire is The Spinoff’s book editor, the founder of Wellington’s Verb Festival, and author of The Raven’s Eye Runaways (and its just-completed sequel).

To end with a Z… back by popular demand is Tauranga Zinefest. This popular independent publishing event that celebrates creativity on
the fringe returns.

Undergrand's piano in the wild.

FREE EVENTS

The festival excitement includes a diverse range of family-friendly and free events offering the chance to be wowed, to sing your heart out, get creative and to have a giggle or two, says its proud and excited general manager. 

“This is Tauranga’s festival, and we want to make it as accessible as possible to as many Tauranga people as we can,” Sarah says.

Some of the free events (Undergrand, Zinefest, Opus Pocket Orchestra Concert) are mentioned above. Add to that Waiata  Mai, Obelisk Natura and CAR-A-OKE! 

For show times and tickets, visit taurangafestival.co.nz

Reggae, revolution and red red wine

Karl Puschmann catches up with Ali Campbell, the legendary UB40 frontman, to talk band beginnings, protest and politics, their big hits, and why he can’t wait to bring the band’s reggae vibes back to the Bay.

Ali Campbell is bleary-eyed but upbeat when UNO calls. It’s 8am in the UK, and the UB40 frontman only got home from a European festival tour yesterday.

“It’s all a bit mad here,” he jokes, before settling in for a breezy and candid chat about UB40, the influential reggae band he co-founded in 1978 and led to global success before inner band turbulence saw them splitting into two groups.

But before getting into the past, we need to talk about his future return to Aotearoa to headline music festival Kingston Calling this Waitangi Weekend. The brand new reggae tour, with seven stops across the North Island, also features Katchafire, The Black Seeds and Corrella.

“I’m very, very happy to be coming back. It’s one of my favourite places,” he enthuses. “I’ve got a lot of friends there, a lot of Māori friends, so we always have a great time. It's a beautiful country.”

Then he pauses and says, “There are some weird things happening politically that I'm not too sure of. I've heard about the new Prime Minister... I've got to look at all that.”

You may think it’s unusual that a British music icon would know about or even be interested in our politics, but Ali has a long history with our country. He lived here for months when he was a judge on reality show New Zealand’s Got Talent back in 2012, his current tour manager is Māori and he’s even taken the time to read something that a lot of us haven’t; the Treaty of Waitangi.

“I lived in the middle of Auckland in the Viaduct. I know my way around,” he laughs. “And, of course, we've travelled extensively around both the North and the South Islands.”

Aotearoa’s always had a huge love for UB40. This stretches right back to the band’s cracking debut single, the politically charged deep reggae groove of Food For Thought, which topped our charts in 1980, to give the band their first-ever Number One hit. But when I ask why he thinks the band has resonated with us Kiwis so much, he’s modest, saying, “It’s not UB40 that people love. It's the music. People love reggae music.”

“Reggae is unifying, and it's still cool today,” he continues. “That's the important thing. It's still cool. People like us because we're an accessible reggae band.”

Ali grew up in South Birmingham, “on the wrong side of the tracks,” as he says, surrounded by the colourful sounds of the Caribbean and Asian cultures that were his neighbours. Unlike most of England at that time, it was a true multicultural environment, and one that impacted his world view.

“I was very lucky. I had Jamaican, Indian, West Indian and Arabic friends. I grew up amongst this melting pot. I loved it. It gave me a broad outlook on life. I wasn't prejudiced against anybody. Just fascists, I didn't like them. I’d go to a lot of anti-fascist demos and all that stuff. But we'd do it all together.”

Then grinning he adds, “And generally, the police were our enemies. Everybody else was friends.”

Aged 15 he went and saw Bob Marley and the Wailers in concert. It would be a transformative experience.

“It was like seeing the Messiah. I was totally blown away,” he says, a note of awe still resonating in his voice. “The year before that, I'd seen the Jackson 5. And that also blew me away because I was a mad Jackson 5 fan as well. Those two years basically showed my musical future to me. It was life-changing.”

After the show, he decided to form a band. But his plan had two big problems.

“We didn't know how to play. And we didn't have any instruments, so we... acquired our instruments, let's say,” he laughs. “We were on the dole, so we couldn't go and buy them. We had to acquire them.”

With instruments “acquired”, all they had to do next was learn how to play them. To do this, they continually played the 12” version of Gregory Isaacs reggae hit, ‘Mr Know It All’, which features a dub breakdown in the middle, deconstructing each part and slowly working it out by playing along. Eventually, they got to the point where the record stopped and they could continue jamming.

“And that's how we learned to play. Six months later, we'd written our first album, which went on to sell eight million copies. It was ridiculous,” he grins.

That album was Signing Off, a groundbreaking and politically charged album of deep groove reggae whose music and message still resonate today.

“We followed Bob Marley's lead and other reggae artists like Lee Perry, who were political. We felt obliged if we got a platform to write something relevant. And we continue to do so.”

As an example, he cites ‘Burden of Shame’, which, when he sings it live now, has the lyrics “A baby in Gaza dies,” instead of “A boy in Soweto dies”.

“Depressingly, the songs are still as relevant as they were when we wrote them,” he sighs. “I've learned that you don't change anything by singing about it. It's as simple as that. All we're doing is voicing an opinion. It doesn't change anything. Things might have got worse even.”

As well as their political material, UB40 also explored the smoother, pop-leaning side of reggae, with their hugely popular Labour of Love albums, which saw them performing covers of the songs that had influenced them, like ‘Red Red Wine’, ‘The Way You Do the Things You Do’ and ‘Here I Am (Come and Take Me)’.

“We kept getting asked about why we played reggae, so we decided to do those albums,” he says, laughing that they’d been strongly advised against recording a covers album. Labour of Love would top global charts, including here, and go on to sell over 21 million copies.

“They’re the songs we used to hear on jukeboxes in cafés where we used to hang out as kids, playing pinball and running errands for prostitutes. We grew up listening to those songs. We loved them, and we knew that anybody else who got to hear them would love them as well. And we were right.”

After 24 years together, tensions within the band led to a split in 2008, with Ali moving on to front his own group, UB40 featuring Ali Campbell, while the remaining members continued under the original name.

“When I left it was sad, but I couldn't carry on with them. They wouldn't let me promote my second solo album, which was called Running Free, ironically enough,” he says. “All I wanted was a month off to promote it, and they were steadfastly telling me I couldn't do it, so I walked. It’s all very silly and a very petty argument. But I was quite happy to leave and I've had a great time since. I've got my new band, who are all seasoned reggae players, and I love them. That's who I'm bringing to New Zealand. I think they’re the best band around.”

Which makes them a fitting choice to headline Kingston Calling, especially as it’s the first-ever concert to be played at The Bay Oval, in the heart of Mount Maunganui.

“I'm a little bit nervous,” Ali admits when asked how it feels to be christening this new venue. “But it's fun being the first to do anything really.”

I confess to taking a sneak peek at some of his recent setlists, which gets a chuckle when I say he’s bringing some absolute bangers that will keep all fans of UB40’s multifaceted career extremely satisfied.

“It's more or less a Greatest Hits set,” he smiles. “We're not self-indulgent. We know what the people want to hear, so that's what we do.”

Purchase tickets to Kingston Calling at

kingstoncalling.co.nz

A new rhythm

After calling the Waikato home all his life, Katchafire frontman Logan Bell recently moved to the Bay.

It was just two short years ago that Logan Bell, the Katchafire frontman, and his family made the move from the Waikato to Tauranga’s Welcome Bay. For his wife, who grew up in the Bay, it was a return to her roots, but for Logan it was a completely new experience. While he’d toured the world many times over with the band, the Waikato was the only place he’d ever called home.

“This is the first time I've moved away,” he admits. “We love it here. It's really awesome for our family. I love my house. I'm a total homebody. I don't go anywhere else”.

Then he laughs and says, “I’m nearly a real local now, bro. I almost don't need Google Maps to get around now.”

Already, he says, the relaxed lifestyle, beachtown vibes and the musical community here in the Bay has begun to influence his music.

“Your environment and your vibe always has a lot to do with what's coming out creatively. This morning I was in the studio with Tiki Taane. The other week, me, Laughton Kora, Fran Kora and Joel from LAB got together and had a bit of a jam. It's just a nice community here and a nice vibe for me.”

Over their almost 30-year-long career, Katachfire has become one of Aotearoa’s most beloved reggae bands, first coming to national attention with their 2003 debut album Revival, before building an international audience through hits like ‘Frisk Me Down’, ‘Giddy Up’ and ‘Get Away’ and going on to tour with legendary reggae acts like The Wailers, Shaggy, Lauryn Hill, and, of course, UB40 who they’re sharing the stage with at Kingston Calling.

“We’re blessed to get the call up,” he smiles. “UB40 has always been a huge inspiration of ours, we kind of modeled our career off them. We’ve followed their example and their path in a lot of ways.”

While music styles come in and out of fashion, reggae’s popularity has never waned, especially here in Aotearoa. This, Logan says, is because

reggae is the “people’s music”.

“It touches on matters of truth. And a lot of it's to do with the underdog truth, the sufferer's truth. We, as a nation, are born of that. We can identify with these stories, and we have our own to tell as well. That's why I think it's so easy for us to feel connected to reggae and feel a part of the music and the messages.”

Beyond the surface

Artist Jacki Barklie fuses emotion and bold experimentation to create striking, unconventional works.

For over three decades, Jacki Barklie has explored the delicate interplay between human connection and identity through both her creative professions, first as a hairdresser and now as a multi-disciplinary artist.

With roots in Africa and a passion for the psyche, her work delves into themes of fragility and desire, often expressed through mixed media, printmaking, textiles and photography.

After completing a Bachelor Degree in Creative Industries, Jacki embraced experimentation and introspection, creating art that pushes boundaries and celebrates the unconventional. Here she shares insights into her process, and the emotional resonance behind her evocative works.

UNO: How did your creative background in hairdressing shape your approach to art today? Jacki: Hairdressing trained my eye for form, texture and design. It was sculpture in motion. I treated hair like fabric, shaping and layering with intention. Competing creatively honed my skills, but it was always about the human connection. Listening to people and understanding their emotional relationship with aesthetics now flows into how I create and share my art.

You were brought up in Africa. Can you share a specific memory or cultural influence that continues to inspire your art? Africa lives in my bones. There, creativity comes from what’s at hand, such as clay, dyes, dust, fabric. That bold innovation still inspires me. I remember painting with earth and watching patterns emerge from chance. Sometimes, I feel you can almost smell African dust in my work. Its textures, warmth and raw energy continue to guide my hands.

What was the turning point that led you to pursue a Bachelor Degree in Creative Industries later in life? After 37 years in hairdressing and countless night art classes, I craved full immersion. I didn’t want a traditional fine art degree. I needed one that embraced creative risk. The Creative Industries degree was a perfect fit for me. I’m a multimedia artist whose work evolves from one material to the next.

How do you decide which medium, whether acrylics, textiles, printmaking or photography, best suits the idea or emotion you’re trying to express? It starts with a feeling or story. From there, I follow the materials that speak to that idea. I explore the tension between materiality, light and shadow, stillness and movement. Whether I choose textiles or ink, the medium must hold that emotional vibration. It’s instinctive, process driven and always rooted in intention.

What role does experimentation play in your creative practice? Experimentation is everything. I’m a curious artist drawn to risk and discovery. I often research ancient methods and remix them with contemporary techniques. I love when the unexpected happens, like when a material surprises me. That’s where the magic is. Every piece starts as a question, and sometimes the answer comes through failure.

How do you think our environments shape our emotional or psychological states? We’re deeply shaped by our surroundings. My art often reflects the fractured rhythms of the world and offers a kind of stillness in return. I explore contrasts in form, reflection, old and new, raw and refined. Within these tensions, I find beauty. My work invites presence, asking viewers not just to look, but to feel.

As someone who celebrates the unusual, what draws you to the unconventional or unexpected? The unexpected excites me – it’s alive and full of truth. While I admire tradition, I often find it too familiar. The unconventional feels raw and present. It’s not trying to be anything but itself. That honesty inspires me. It challenges the rules, breaks them if needed and that’s where true innovation begins.

How do you stay true to your raw, emotionally-driven approach? I know my “why.” I show up in the studio daily and follow what feeds my soul. I let the process guide me, not trends. I create art that moves me first, trusting that it will resonate with someone else. If I had to make formulaic work, I’d lose the heartbeat. Emotion keeps it alive.

What advice would you give to someone wanting to explore their creative side later in life? Start now. But take it seriously. Don’t shrink yourself to ‘just crafting.’ Be brave, be messy, try everything. Follow what excites you. Let failure be part of the fun. You’re never too old to become who you are creatively meant to be. The second half of life is the perfect time to rediscover yourself.

How long have you been in the Bay and what do you love about it? We’ve been in the Bay for 27 years. It has been our longest home since emigrating twice. The weather drew us in, but our friends and pace kept us. My husband is my rock, and our home is a sanctuary. Our grown kids are flying, and I’m living the dream with my studio, surrounded by light, love and space to create.

Jackie is holding a solo exhibition titled ’SURFACE TENSION' from October 24 to November 2, celebrating her new body of work.

BACKSTUDIO.NZ

BACKSTUDIO_

Echoes of the giants

Moa bones, eagle claws and ancient wonders are sparking young minds in the Bay.

WORDS JO-MARIE BAKER

Photos courtesy of the Tauranga Museum collection.

Peter Jackson’s Jurassic Park-like plan to resurrect the moa is still a long way from reality but Tauranga students can literally get their hands on the giant bird’s bones, a replica moa egg and even a life- size Haast’s Eagle claw right now.

The objects are among the most popular items in Tauranga Museum’s Hands On Collection available for local teachers to borrow, free of charge.

“We have a set of real moa bones that were found in Te Puke and they’re some of our most popular objects,” explains museum educator Megan Hoskin. “We have 14 bones in all – three huge leg bones, ribs and vertebrae. It’s incredible that children can have these in their classroom and are allowed to handle them.”

The recent addition of a replica Haast's Eagle claw (which was big and powerful enough to kill an adult moa) is also grabbing attention. “The Haast’s Eagle is something children just have an innate curiosity about. We have roughly 250 objects in our education collection that teachers can borrow. It gives a zing to a classroom and sparks excitement, enthusiasm and curiosity. If a class is learning about space, for example, we have meteorites that are four and a half billion years old. Allowing children to hold objects and pass them around is a great way to hook them into a topic.”

The collection is available to schools within Tauranga City Council’s boundary. Teachers simply book objects online and Tauranga Museum will deliver and collect them. “It could not be an easier service for busy teachers.”

Megan, a former primary school teacher, is also available to run classroom lessons on topics such as The Elms, the Battle of Pukehinahina Gate Pa, the Rena disaster, kiwi, penguins and Tauranga-related aspects of World War One. She believes it’s more important than ever to put physical objects in our children’s hands to help balance learning off digital screens.

While two generations of children have grown up without a museum in Tauranga, the wait is almost over. The city’s new museum will open in 2028 and will feature two purpose-built education spaces along with a Discovery Centre that will focus on Tauranga’s marine environment. “It’s going to be all about the ocean, islands and marine life we have here in Tauranga, so very much a science and environmental Discovery Centre. It will be a very exciting, interactive play space.”

HANDSONTAURANGA.CO.NZ

Te reo rising

Reena Snook is bringing world-class, all–te reo Māori theatre to Tauranga, creating a bold new direction for Baycourt.

words SUE HOFFART photos TE POU THEATRE & THE DUST PALACE + DAVID COOPER

Work has become undeniably personal for Baycourt Community and Arts Centre manager Reena Snook. Four years into her tenure, the drama school graduate and first-year te reo Māori student is championing a production that combines a theatre and circus spectacle with dialogue entirely in te reo.

“This is something I wish a young me could have seen,” Reena says of the Te Tangi a Te Tūī performance being staged in Tauranga in August. “One reviewer called it transformative, and I’m convinced that’s true. It’s an experience that really could be pivotal for a lot of the young people we’re bringing into our theatre.”

Baycourt will host the August 6 opening night of a tour that encompasses four other North Island centres. And Baycourt is also gifting tickets to all students attending a school-only performance on August 7.

“We want to remove as many financial barriers as possible because nothing should stand in the way of rangatahi experiencing world-class performers. This young audience will hear stories grounded in indigenous culture, they’ll hear te reo Māori on stage and that’s likely to feel powerful and personal to many. Perhaps they’ll see a pathway I couldn’t imagine at their age.”

When Te Tangi a Te Tūī had its Aotearoa premiere at Te Pou Theatre in Auckland last year, Reena was immediately determined to bring the production to Tauranga. A long-standing connection to two of the project’s key creators helped: Eve Gordon of The Dust Palace and Tainui Tukiwaho of Te Pou Theatre attended drama school with Reena in Auckland.

The work also marks a strategic shift for Baycourt as the centre moves towards broadening and complementing its current programme offerings. Reena acknowledges Baycourt’s “incredibly rich history” that’s achieved so much. But, she recognises some voices and stories haven’t been as visible as others.

“As a community arts centre, we need to take deliberate steps to bring people from all parts of the community onto the stage and into the audience,” she says.

Te Tangi a Te Tūī, which tells the story of the tui’s song and its evolution over the centuries, is a positive step in that direction. “It’s the first time we’ve been able to support a professional production performed fully in te reo Māori. I love the way this show honours our Pākehā audiences too, with the cirque theatre and universal story elements ensuring it’s accessible and understandable for everyone.

“There’s no tokenism here. We’re not just putting a Māori theatre production on stage to meet a diversity quota. One of the goals is to offer Pākehā a safe entry point into te ao Māori – something they can genuinely connect with and enjoy, without feeling like they’re being overwhelmed or excluded.”

Reena shares how she has spent much of her life distanced from her Ngāpuhi roots and how a deep sense of not belonging shapes some of her story. “As someone of mixed heritage I often felt I wasn’t ‘brown enough’ to be Māori or ‘white enough’ to be Pākehā.

“That’s a tension that has informed my approach to programming and community engagement. I want to create spaces and experiences where people of all backgrounds and identities can feel recognised and valued.”

It was only after relocating from Auckland to Tauranga with husband Greg, in 2018, that Reena began closely examining her own identity. (She left a job as senior producer at performing arts platform, Auckland Live, to take up a Tauranga City Council events management position).

She speaks of an unexpected sense of connection with Tauranga mana whenua and how the warm welcome spurred her to begin tracing the threads of her whānau and whakapapa.

“It’s funny the further away I got from my tūrangawaewae in the Far North, the more I wanted to learn about my Māori whakapapa.”

Alongside her personal cultural awakening, Reena realised she missed the performing arts world and its creative people. So, when the Baycourt role came up in 2021, she pounced. Presenting Te Tangi a Te Tūī will be a career high.

“For those who still doubt the calibre of Māori theatre, this production is set to challenge that perception entirely.”

“It’s special that Baycourt is the tour’s first stop and I’m proud our local rangatahi will see themselves reflected on stage. For some in our audience, this may also be their first visit to a traditional theatre.

“It’s critical Baycourt supports work like this, so that culturally powerful storytelling reaches the communities that need to see it most.”

BAYCOURT.CO.NZ

Bay of style: Local fashion, flair and creativity

The Bay has been a mecca for successful fashion designers for decades, and now the new Tauranga Museum is planning to showcase its creative history in a collection that’s dressed to impress.

words DEBBIE GRIFFITHS

From homemade psychedelic ’60s frocks to prototype shoes to swimwear that made waves worldwide – the Bay is home to innovative fashion that will be celebrated in Tauranga Museum when it opens in 2028.

“Our fashion collection will show the talent and stretch people’s ideas of what Tauranga is,” says curator Fiona Kean. “Our fashion industry doesn’t get as much focus as it should.”

In fact, there are a number of New Zealand brands – both past and present – that many don’t realise are local. Expozay burst onto the scene in the 1970s, within a decade becoming the first Kiwi swimwear label in the North American market.

“We have the largest Expozay collection in New Zealand that starts from the beginning with hand airbrushed bikinis through to pieces from the early ’90s. Then we leap forward to emroce, which is also groundbreaking and global.”

Expozay swimsuit, photographed by Karen Ishiguro, nzfashionmuseum.org.nz

Pāpāmoa-based emroce, by designer Emma La Rocca, is the only zero-waste swimwear brand in the world. “Her desire is to see the way clothing is manufactured change to be more sustainable,“ says Fiona. “She uses fabric made from recycled fishing nets and cuts it in a way that means there’s no waste. She also makes inclusive gender-neutral swimwear.”

There’s also a nod to Staxs that had 21 stores around the country, boutique shoe designer Chaos & Harmony, surf labels – like RPM and Lower – Nyne, Repertoire and Greerton-based Beverley Productions that’s been creating knitwear since 1962.

“We’ve got over 5000 textile related objects in the museum collection and a lot have been handmade by local women who have the skills and passion to look great, and make their own clothes,” says Fiona.

Among them, former Ōtūmoetai Intermediate home science teacher Ruth Espin who donated seven pieces before she passed away in 2019.

“Each dress represents a pivotal moment in her life; the one she wore when she got engaged, her wedding dress and the outfit she was wearing when she took her baby home from hospital.”

Some of the outfits were purchased at Hartley’s on The Strand. Those who grew up in Tauranga will have fond memories of their Lamson Cash Carrier System before the store closed in 1987.

“Nostalgia will be an important part of the museum experience and reminding people that they’re part of something bigger,” says Fiona. “There’s so much to share, we’ll be swapping out items regularly so it will be constantly changing. We’re very excited to showcase our fashion success stories.”

TAURANGAHERITAGECOLLECTION.CO.NZ

For whom the bell trolls

Tauranga’s surprising past and present connections to the ever-popular Troll Doll.

words KARL PUSCHMANN  |  photos ALAN GIBSON

Damian Sutton.

Once upon a time, Tauranga was filled with Trolls. Hundreds of thousands of them, in all shapes and sizes, with their outrageously coloured, spikey hair and perpetually cheerful grin. Trolls were everywhere. And then one day, they were not.

This is not a child’s fairytale. This is a cold hard fact. Because despite more than 50 years of sustained popularity, not a lot of people know that Troll Dolls used to be manufactured here in the Bay. 

“The New Zealand connection started down at Sulphur Point with the company K. Pasgaard Limited,” says Damian Sutton, Katikati local and one of Aotearoa’s biggest collectors of New Zealand manufactured Trolls. “Kristian Pasgaard, his wife and two children immigrated to New Zealand with their two sons in 1959. In 1960 they got the license from Trolls creator Thomas Dam in Denmark.”

The company was one of only four Troll Doll factories in the world. There was Dam’s original factory in Denmark, one each in America and the UK, and the factory in Tauranga. As well as fulfilling children’s Troll needs here, the company also sent them abroad. Sutton reckons around 80 per cent went to Australia, and there are news reports of shipments weighing two tonnes being shipped as far as Africa.

The ’60s and ’70s were a boom time for the company. But in the ’80s interest in the Trolls began to wane and the local factory pivoted their focus to things like tennis balls and sporting equipment and ending the Bay’s 30-year association with the beloved Trolls. 

Sutton says that amongst collectors, the Tauranga-made Trolls are prized. 

“There’s a whole lot of different things that New Zealand did that the other three factories didn’t,” he explains. “Due to vinyl shortages, we couldn’t always make the ‘normal’ ones, so that’s how the weird and wonderful colours came about. They made them in four colours. We’re the only factory in the world that did that. Also, because of our sheep’s wool we have these gingery colours that the rest of the factories around the world didn’t make.”

Another interesting tidbit is that we also didn’t discriminate. Both the male and the female Troll Dolls manufactured here used the exact same mould. The only way to tell them apart was due to the Troll’s clothing.

“We’re the only one in the world that has done that,” Damian says, explaining that the female moulds used elsewhere had more “feminine ears”. 

These weren’t our only innovations. We also created strange and unusual Trolls, which were produced in limited runs and only made here. Things like Yeti Trolls (available in four different colours), Cow, Elephant and Giraffe Trolls and even Trolls that doubled as piggy banks. These have all become hot collector items.

To illustrate, he holds up a Cow Troll from his personal collection of around 1500 Trolls and says, “There’s about 10 different New Zealand cows. One of these is now $2,000 a pop.” 

He puts it down, carefully, and continues. “The locally made Yeti Trolls are worth between $200-$600 depending on colour and condition. And if you ever find a little blue three-inch Troll, they’re worth $1400.”

These Trolls are so desirable because the factory didn’t make them all year round. Production was seasonal and mostly focused on the lead-up to Christmas. 

“The New Zealand Troll has now become the most rare in the world,” Damian says. “Sadly there is not a full set in New Zealand.”

This is something that he wants to fix.

“My mission,” he states with purpose, “is to bring the New Zealand trolls home. To have a full set of New Zealand trolls so that we can see what we had in New Zealand. These are our native trolls! And people can’t see them.”

It’s an admirable pursuit and one that’s seen him connect with Trolls fans and collectors around the globe as he hunts to reunite our long-lost Trolls. His story starts aged eight, when his aunt brought him his first Troll at a craft market in Pokono. 

“I still have that one,” he smiles. “Family just continued to buy them for me. They’d arrive for Christmas or birthdays. Now I’m probably one of the biggest collectors in New Zealand. But it’s only in the last few years that I found out about the Tauranga factory.”

Despite the Troll’s massive popularity, he says that Aotearoa’s collecting community is relatively small. It mainly centres around the Facebook group, Troll Collectors New Zealand, a welcoming community of fellow Trolls lovers where people come together to share stories, and photos and buy and sell Trolls. As well as being an admin of that group he also puts on the Te Puke Toy Fair with a fellow collector twice a year. 

These days, it’s the thrill of the hunt and his mission to reunite the local Trolls that keeps him interested in collecting. But what was it that first attracted him to the Trolls? These little Scandinavian creatures that are often lovingly referred to as “ugly-cute”?

“It was the smiley face and the hair for me,” he says, thinking back. “And the constant happiness of the Troll. That’s what really drew me.” 

Gold standard

Singer-songwriter Ayla Gold recently broke into the Bay’s indie music scene with her first EP Nuance. Her vintage rock style has been influenced by an eclectic mix of artists over the years. Here, she tells UNO about her artistic process and where she sees Tauranga’s music scene headed in the future.

Twenty-five-year-old acoustic engineer Ayla Gold was raised listening to everything from Hayley Westenra to Evermore. Kiwi music was always being played on Dad’s stereo or on the family car’s CD player – tapes in her pre-school years. And it’s still Kiwi artists who are her biggest inspiration. 

UNO: How did you get into music?
Ayla: I started piano and guitar lessons in primary school and loved to sing along to anything that was playing, and still do. You will often catch
me singing along or harmonising to whatever’s playing in the supermarket. The teachers I had right through school played a huge part in encouraging me to get up and sing on stage. The support from my high school music teacher, Matt Bodman at Ōtūmoetai College, was huge. He would get me involved with school assembly performances, songwriting competitions, Smoke-free Rockquest, and just playing and writing well in general. We’re still in contact today and he’s always quick to give great feedback on my releases.

How would you describe your music?
My vocals are always quite strong as I feel it’s the way I can truly express myself. I believe that what you listen to is what your own music becomes, so I would say my music is indie singer/songwriter, if I were to put it in a box. Hamish Berkers from Mish Studio based in Kirikiriroa is always enthusiastic when we are in the studio recording, as is my video director and producer Finn Lloyd (Mount Maunganui). Both of these lads are legends in their fields and push me to make my music and visuals the best it can be while keeping all my own flair.

What and who inspires you musically?
I love artists who aren’t afraid to be themselves and be genuine and vulnerable in their lyrics. This inspires me to write the way that I do. In terms of sound, I mostly listen to alternate/indie rock and more solo artists than bands. I love lots of washy guitar and drums and finger-picking style electric. I feel most inspired when my emotions or environments feel intense, good or bad. I’m definitely someone who can see through the pain in things and enjoy the creativity of art that flows when things are tough for someone, or how the skill of the artist can portray this. In terms of specific artists, this is always changing as I’m always discovering new music. I’m also someone who loves to be outside – open spaces help me to develop the ideas that come to mind.

In the last few years, my biggest influences have been Molly Payton, Julia Jacklyn, The Beths, Angie McMahon and Sam Fender. Again, these artists are not afraid to put their lyrics and sound into a raw form that transports you straight into their shoes, or you find their lyrics apply to some struggle of your own. A common theme in music I like is the greater hope that an artist can talk about, or almost talk you through, a form of empathising and knowing that there is light at the end of the tunnel. They show you’re not the only one who has gone through whatever it is you are experiencing.

What instruments do you play and do you write your own lyrics?
I play rhythm electric and acoustic guitar as well as piano. I write all my own lyrics. All through school I wasn’t much of a reader so I found it hard to write songs. It wasn’t until late high school that my writing started and during my engineering degree, I got right into reading which took my writing to a whole new level. My notes app on my phone is often growing with lyrics or lines that pop into my head in everyday situations. I’ve actually found catching the bus is a great place to write for me.

How do you find the Bay music scene? How do you see it developing in the coming years?
The scene here is growing and there are a few people that have really invested in their music. The Jam Factory in the historic village and Palace Tavern at the Mount have been great to help support this. I would love to see more small-scale gig venues similar to what you find on Karangahape Road in Auckland, as it would really help to support up-and-coming artists and just bring more of a scene here. We need more of a culture that people can hook into, knowing there is always something on a particular night. I think Tauranga schools have a great arts scene, as well as churches, which are often the catalyst for producing great musicians.

What are your plans for the future?
I want to release more regularly and do a tour of New Zealand at some stage. I’ve had a job in acoustic engineering for three months now with Marshall Day Acoustics. Many of us are musicians, which encourages me to keep at my music and be inspired and supported. I love playing and recording with friends, and I’m excited to meet more people through my music, to see where it takes me. All the creative outlets involved have a chance to develop their skills through me bringing my projects to them and vice versa. 

 aylagoldmusic

Between the lines

Dive into UNO’s top picks for great holiday reading.

Beating Burnout

By Mike McKinney, Exisle Publishing

Clinical psychologist Mike McKinney takes an informed look at the features of burnout, why and how burnout happens, and the signs it might be about to strike. This insightful, practical book is filled with suggestions for positive changes that can be sustained, and offers ways to help you consider a wider (and possibly new) purpose in life, underpinned by ways to enhance resilience.

Charlie and the Christmas Factory

Inspired by Roald Dahl, Penguin

A magical and hilarious Christmas collection of stories from 13 bestselling storytellers inspired by the great Roald Dahl’s incredible characters. Why is Matilda worried about being on the naughty list? What happens when years after the creation of his original marvellous medicine George’s granddaughter Gigi decides to make her own potion? And how does Charlie plan to celebrate Christmas at the chocolate factory? Perfect for Christmas Eve or a fun, nostalgic Christmas present.

Eden Undone

By Abbott Kahler, HarperCollins

This true story of murder is a stranger-than-fiction account of the search for utopia in the Galápagos set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the march to World War II.  With a mystery as alluring and curious as the Galápagos itself, this novel explores the universal and timeless desire to seek utopia – and lays bare the human fallibility that, inevitably, renders such a quest doomed. Part narrative non-fiction, part Agatha Christie murder mystery, Eden Undone will grip you from start to finish.  

Unreel

By Diana Wichtel, Penguin

New Zealand writer and reviewer Diana Wichtel shares her hilarious and profound memoir about growing up watching the Golden Age of television. In the 1960s, her family fell apart and they left Canada for Aotearoa, minus a father. Here, she witnessed the rise of television again, this time on the other side of the world. Twenty years later she began working for NZ Listener magazine, where she became a renowned television critic. Her story uncovers family secrets and a search for her father, all lived alongside the magic of television.

Lisa Carrington Chases A Champion

By Dame Lisa Carrington, illustrated by Scott Pearson, Huia Publishers

Eight-year-old Lisa is determined to take part in a big surf competition coming up, but she’s nervous. With encouragement from her coach, family and top paddler Māia, she trains hard. But disaster strikes when her canoe capsizes, shaking her confidence. Lisa goes to the river to compose herself and, with the help of her family and dog Colin, she draws on her strength to prepare for the race. 

All the world’s a stage

The couple behind Summer Shakespeare promises an accessible
take on the great bard’s famous play Romeo and Juliet.

words KARL PUSCHMANN

Vikki and Pascal.

There’s a surprising fact about William Shakespeare’s plays that not everybody knows.

“Shakespeare's full of really bawdy jokes,” Pascal Tibbits grins, before
wife Vikki Gorton-Tibbits adds, “It’s quite hilarious. There’s a lot of comedy interjected with the seriousness of it all. Romeo and Juliet isn’t just a tragic love story.”

The couple is behind Tauranga’s increasingly popular annual Summer Shakespeare production, which this year is putting on his most famous play, Romeo and Juliet. Pascal, who is the creative director, says that making the works of the great bard user-friendly for modern audiences is one of their primary goals.

“It’s about the theatre, community, and accessibility for everyone to come and have a good time,” Pascal says. “We make sure our actors are telling a story that anyone can watch and understand. All the themes that were relevant in Shakespeare’s day are relevant now. This is the magic of Shakespeare.”

Vikki, who is the producer, nods and says “You don’t have to be a Shakespeare buff to go to one of these shows.”

Romeo and Juliet is the seventh play that the Summer Shakespeare Tauranga Trust has put on, and sees them transport the great tragedy from the Elizabethan era into the roaring 1930s. Running from February 6 to the 16th at the Te Puna Quarry Park, the beautiful purpose-built amphitheatre is set amongst a stunning natural backdrop.

Food is another passion of the pair, who together won the reality TV cooking show My Kitchen Rules in 2023. Fittingly, they’ve put together a flavourful menu of locally sourced and produced food, wine and beer, including crowd-favourite Pork Belly Bao buns and spiced beef focaccia.

“Our vision is to create an experience where people can enjoy themselves and feel welcomed, without breaking the bank,“ says Pascal. “Tickets are reasonable, the food and wine are priced fairly. We don’t believe in taking advantage of a captive audience. It’s about making the event accessible and enjoyable for everyone.”

Of course, you’re also free to bring your picnic basket. The main thing for the pair is that people enjoy themselves. 

Tickets available here

Rolling with it

The first woman to represent Aotearoa on the international skateboarding scene is throwing her support behind a skateboard collection that will be part of the permanent exhibition at Tauranga Museum opening in 2028. 

words DEBBIE GRIFFITHS | photos CRAIG BROWN

Georgina Matthews started skateboarding around her home in Ōtūmoetai at the age of 13. A year later, she won a national competition and then placed second at an international in Melbourne where she caught the attention of sponsors. 

“I was skateboarding and travelling the world from when I was 16 until my 20s,” she says. “I got to skate against the world’s best like Elissa Steamer and I met Tony Hawk a few times. In 2006, I was ranked ninth in the world. They were fun times.”

Skateboarding fits hand in hand with the Bay’s surf culture. In fact, it was the acquisition of an iconic collection of classic Kiwi surfboards and memorabilia from Tauranga businessman Dusty Waddell, along with around 40 of his vintage skateboards, that enabled museum curator Fiona Kean to create the exhibit. 

“The Waddell collection came with a skateboard made by ‘Cahoot’ which was a Mount Maunganui brand made in the 1970s. They pioneered the use of urethane wheels,” she says. “In researching the skateboard collection and also with the opening of the Destination Skatepark, one of the things that struck me is that there’s a story to tell here in Tauranga. Georgina fits so beautifully into that. She reached the top level and she grew up right here in the Bay.”

“Tauranga’s skateparks are amazing,” says Georgina, reminiscing about cheese grater ramps, splinters and rails so hot they burned. “We’ve come a long way from the old skatepark at 17th Avenue by Historic Village. It’s 100 percent easier for kids to get into. I love seeing them at parks that have entry level ramps and easy progressions.” 

It’s the next generation of skateboarders who were targeted in a recent competition to ‘design a deck’. Out of more than 260 entries, Georgina picked two winners – aged 9 and 13 – who had their images put onto boards. 

“The first design reminded me of how important cultural representation was for me on a global stage. My iwi is Ngāpuhi and I’m very proud to be from New Zealand. When I was competing, sometimes I’d wear a Māori band or a Tino t-shirt. I felt that this design was a beautiful reflection of our country and culture, and I loved the composition of the Tino Rangatiratanga flag, koru, and ferns contrasting. I could picture this being a cool board for a kiwi athlete in the Olympics someday. It’s what I would choose.”

Georgina loved the vibrant colours, fun characters and creative use of the whole board of the second winning design.

“I imagine that would be a really popular pick in skate stores,” she says. “We hope we’ve inspired the kids in some way – to try skateboarding or maybe graphic design,” says Fiona. “You never know what’s going to spark someone’s future passion. Museums are here to enrich our communities and to make people feel that they belong and are part of something bigger. A sense of collective place.”

“I’m very honoured and grateful to be involved in Tauranga Museum and that kids will be able to see more than what’s on YouTube,” says Georgina. “They’ll have an understanding of the history and the evolution of the sport.”

Fiona has been working with the museum collection for nearly 20 years and remains passionate and excited by it.

“We’ve got a history of Tauranga to tell from the 1400s to beyond today. Our plan is that we’re not picking a point in the past and saying ‘we’re doing up to here’; we’re creating contemporary stories so we can show local innovators, diversity and fresh stories and events.”

“It starts with talking with the community and our conversation about the new museum has been a long one,” Fiona continues. “It’s not a one-way conversation. There have been consultations and discussions over the last thirty years but over time you can see the trends coming through and the objects that support the stories we’re being told. Sometimes it’s just magic, like getting the opportunity to purchase the Waddell collection of surfboards and that it came with the wonderful bonus of the skateboards which will now allow us to tell that story as well.”

Today, 37-year-old Georgina still gets on her board and is looking forward to skating and sunbathing through the summer. 

“For me skateboarding is amazing for mental health,” she says. “You’re your own boss, you don’t have to skateboard at a certain time or in a certain place. It’s an indescribably beautiful feeling of freedom. I still love it like I did when I was 13. I’ll be skating until I can’t.” 

taurangaheritagecollection.co.nz

Something to talk about

At Sala Art Gallery, the art is an invitation to conversation and connection.

words KARL PUSCHMANN
photos JAHL MARSHALL

The thinking behind Tauranga’s newest art gallery can be described as gently radical. There are no price tags or pretension on exhibits at Sala Gallery. Instead, it takes a more holistic approach where the art on display can be considered an invitation to deep thought, reflection and, most importantly, genuine connection. 

“I put the gallery together as an excuse to have conversations with people,” Nigel Banks says. “Rather than a focus on showing art or a focus on selling pictures, the focus of the gallery is about having conversations with visitors about the origins of meaning in their lives. The primary purpose of the pictures is as props to support those conversations.”

Nigel is both Sala’s founder and the artist behind its inaugural exhibition We Are The Earth. This series of works meditates on the journey of life and explores larger themes of sense and self. Nigel sees the work as a conduit to conversation, either with oneself or with the artist himself, as he is often to be found nearby.

“It’s been a lifelong obsession, thinking about issues of meaning and where meaning comes from,” Nigel says. “When you touch into those moments, it’s something that feels really worthwhile. Much more so than just the standard social exchange.”

The vibe inside Sala is peaceful and meditative, which is appropriate as it’s nestled beside the popular Thai Touch massage therapy studio in Tauranga’s CBD, which Nigel opened with his wife Orasa in 2023. In fact, there’s an internal entrance to the gallery straight from Thai Touch which allows those holistic vibes, and visitors to the gallery, to flow in. It’s a welcoming space and one that takes off any pressure or intimidation that people can sometimes feel about entering a gallery.

That’s one of the most important aspects of value that I see in the philosophy that’s driving this,” Nigel explains. “Instead of going into a gallery and feeling an obligation to look into the pictures and figure out what they’re about, in this case the whole conversation is about meaning, and the pictures are there to support that conversation. You’re not looking for the meaning in the picture, the pictures are there to support the conversation about the meaning. It takes the pressure off.”

This core belief shapes every aspect of Nigel’s work and Sala, right down to the gallery’s carefully selected name. 

“It’s a Thai word, chosen because it’s soft, because it’s short, it’s got a slight repetition in it, but also that it means ‘outdoor meeting room’. A sala in Thai is like a pavilion or a little shrine or temple in somebody’s garden. People go to a sala, they meet in the sala, and they'll have conversations that are important to them. This is creating a space that is dedicated to that same sort of purpose.”

While Sala only recently opened its doors, the idea for a gallery of this nature has been percolating in Nigel’s mind for 20 years, after a “transformative” experience at an exhibition by the prominent New Zealand artist Melvin ‘Pat’ Day in Wellington.

“I was totally entranced by his artworks, just amazing stuff. I spent two hours there, intimately and repeatedly engaging with every piece. It was like a mental vacuum cleaner, a little bit like meditation. Extraneous thoughts were washed away from me. When you’ve got art, you’ve got an obvious thing to focus on. By the time you’ve done that for a couple of hours you are left in this blissful state of being totally at peace and at one with the pictures. I was interested in whether this might happen for other people.”

It was his piece ‘Billboard’ that inspired him to make this longheld dream an “audacious” reality. Fittingly, ‘Billboard’ is Sala’s centerpiece. It abstractly depicts the journey of life, the search for meaning and what you leave behind. While working on it he vowed that when finished he’d have a place to hang it. Over the 18 months it took to create ‘Billboard’, he worked on having Sala ready to open.

“When I put this up it felt like a monumental shift inside me,” he says. “It’s like a perfect life opened out in front of me because I get to have these conversations on a semi-professional basis. Having conversations with people about the stuff that is actually really important to everybody, but most of the time we don't talk about, is a really amazing thing to me. Just casually with people who have stopped by, I’ve had amazing conversations about people’s lives and it’s just really, really neat.”

Then the artist smiles and says, “In Sala’s case I’m thinking beyond anybody’s requirement. I don’t think anybody needs this. But I’m hoping that some people will really enjoy it.”  

sala.gallery

Art for our sakes

UNO catches up with Deborah McCormick, the newly appointed chair of Tauranga’s Public Art Panel, to find out how our city is about to change for the better.

WORDS Karl Puschmann

Deborah McCormick.

When you look at Tauranga you see the sparkling glint of the Pacific Ocean, the potential of a city centre revitalising itself, and the excitement afforded by our great outdoors that offers ample activities of escape and recreation to indulge in.

When UNO asks Deborah McCormick what she sees, her answer is simple: “A blank canvas”.

As the recently appointed chair of Tauranga City Council’s new Public Art Panel, hers is an invigorating view. After all, a blank canvas offers only possibility and promise.

So what are we talking about when we say public art? Deborah says the council has developed a “sophisticated” framework that expertly defines
the parameters but, after some light prodding, gives her own explanation.

Fanfare by Neil Dawson. 

“My definition is that it’s art in a public space developed with a community. It’s often sculpture or installations, it can be mural or performance,” she explains, noting that public art comes in two flavours, permanent and temporary. Even though the medium and duration can be vastly different, there is a shared commonality. 

“All public art comes with a different idea and all start with an artist responding to a site, responding to a brief, and responding to the current issues of the time,” she says. “That’s the exciting part of it.”

Deborah’s worked in the public art space a long time, 25 years by her reckoning. In 1998, aged 23, she co-founded Scape Public Art in Ōtautahi Christchurch after finishing art school. In that time Scape has commissioned over 250 temporary public artworks and 15 permanent artworks, indelibly enhancing the Garden City. 

Te Aika by Rachael Rakena and Simon Kaan.

“I want to bring that experience to this role,” she says of her new position as chair. “I want to learn about the local connections and stories and show how a shared vision can be produced when a group of civic people come together with artists to take art out to the public realm.”

These qualities are what the newly appointed panel of six will be looking
for during their three-year tenure as they start envisioning how best to
fill our shared blank canvas.

“It’s one of the first – if not the first – opportunity where a city in New Zealand is wholeheartedly placing art and public art at the centre of a lot of very important civic projects,” Deborah enthuses. “This idea of ‘a per cent for art’ model is brilliant in terms of bringing sustainable funding. It’s a model that’s been implemented to great success overseas, most notably in Australia and in America.”

Two years ago the council realised they needed to rethink how public art was working – or rather not working – in Tauranga. The solution was the Public Art Framework, which includes a ‘Per Cent for Art’ funding model. As the name suggests, this model allocates one per cent of the budget for any above-ground council-led capital project, to a dedicated public art fund. The independent Public Art Panel provides advice to Council on which projects should receive funding. The Council is staging the implementation, starting at 0.25 percent this financial year, and growing to one percent over the next four years.

Stay by Antony Gormley.

“This sits alongside council and development regulations and creates
a whole industry for the arts that sustains itself with jobs, fabricators, consultants and design experts,” Deborah explains. “There’s a wonderful opportunity to build all of that alongside this ‘Per Cent for Art’ model and for Tauranga to become a hub for public art and creativity.”

“People come to cities to see things. That’s why public art is so important.

If we want to build cities that are livable and that people want to explore, spend time and linger in then we need to get that human connection back and provide really exciting public space,” she continues. “With good architecture, good landscape design and public art as the jewel in the crown, Tauranga will become a place that people will want to visit as a destination and come back to. Public art needs to be a layer we build the aspirations and plans of the city upon. Part of my role will be to understand how the public art vision of the group aligns with where the city is going.”

It’s hard not to get caught up in her enthusiasm. It’s fair to call her a passionate evangelist. But that’s exactly the qualities you want in someone who is going to play a key part in steering the look, feel and vibe of our city moving forward.

“There are many purposes to public art, including well-being and connection,” she says. “Public art brings people together. It stimulates learning and thought and connects people to art concepts. It’s about creativity and creates opportunities to push boundaries and challenge perceptions.”

Since being appointed a month back the panel has already met and begun work. While it’s too early for Deborah to share any details or timeframes, she’s itching to get works underway. 

Watch this space. 

Deborah is joined on the panel by Darcell Apelu, Shea O’Neill, Kereama Taepa, Alice Tyler and Arohanoa Mathews, who represents Te Rangapū Mana Whenua o Tauranga Moana. 

tauranga.govt.nz/exploring/arts-and-culture/public-art 

Windows to history

The CBD is getting a much-needed glow up, courtesy of acclaimed artist Sara Hughes, the council and over 250 local children.

WORDS Karl Puschmann | PHOTOS Katie Cox

Anyone who’s ever watched a home renovation show knows that a well-chosen artwork hung on an otherwise plain wall will elevate an entire room. Extrapolate that arty truth to encompass the drab vacant storefronts in Tauranga’s city centre and you start to see the genius of the new public art initiative, Reimagine Tauranga.

Envisioned by renowned artist Sara Hughes and created in partnership with the Tauranga City Council, the exhibition has taken over the windows of eight prominent shops in the CBD. These otherwise standard storefronts, transformed by creativity, imagination and generous dollops of Sara’s unique style of vivid colours and embrace of bold patterns, tell the story of Tauranga’s rich history. 

“That’s a really important aspect of this project,” Sara says. “I’m fascinated with the history of a place, so I really wanted to bring that in.”

Banish any thoughts of dusty old black and white history lessons. Hughes also reimagined how to bring the past into the present while keeping true to her acclaimed style and the project’s vision of light, colour and creativity. With assistance from Tauranga Museum’s curator Fiona Kean, Sara worked her way through the Tauranga Museum collection, a vast archive of treasured items from our collective past that includes everything from beach balls to surfboards to newspapers. 

“It’s a way to celebrate some of the lesser-known objects, but things that particularly relate to the important beach culture of Tauranga,” Sara explains. “Things like beach balls and parasols or a particular swimming tog pattern. It’s to celebrate and draw attention to these special things that are held within the Tauranga Museum collection.”

The idea was to use the patterns and colours of these everyday objects as inspiration. They may be of historical value and from a museum’s curated collection but these artworks encourage you to look at common items in a new way, to find the artistic hidden in things people don’t usually look at twice, to reimagine the every day. Like, for example, the window given over to celebrating the patterns on beach parasols.

Sara also reimagined what this project could be on a fundamental level. She didn’t want it to be all about her, and her take on Tauranga’s history. Instead, she wanted to bring in the community, particularly children, and have them contribute in a tangible and very real way. 

After viewing the museum collection with Fiona and selecting the items she then ran a series of art workshops at Tauranga Art Gallery and ran classes in different schools all over Tauranga. Around 250 children of different ages, schools and backgrounds all took part and now find themselves contributors to a major public art project. 

“They’ve all come together through art, which was also an important part of this for me. Reimagine Tauranga is less about me – it’s not so much my artworks in the eight windows – instead the children created either the objects or the imagery that will be in the windows,” she explains. “I am running it, and the concept of this project is mine, but it’s not my artwork as such.”

She sees herself more as the curator and exhibitor. In fact, when UNO calls she was getting ready to spend a week in the different window locations, installing, hanging and displaying the eight works. All of which will have a plaque detailing the inspiring piece or item and its historic relevance to the city.

A neat twist is that the art will look different depending on when you see it, with Sara calling on famed lighting designer Richard Bracebridge to illuminate the different works.

“The night aspect of it is very important,” she says. “Because light has such a strong effect in how a city centre looks when it’s lit at nighttime.”

There is one question that’s been niggling; how on earth did they persuade eight shops to give up their window space for an entire year? The short answer is, they didn’t.

“They’re being put into shop fronts that are currently for lease,” she explains. “It’s been great to have the support of the shop owners who believe it’s a good idea to have public art and artworks created by children in the city centre.”

She’s excited about the public finally seeing the project she’s worked on for the past few years. It’s been a massive undertaking, but one that more than lives up to its ambitious title.

“Hopefully it will be something people will be excited to come and see,” Sara says. “I want people to be really intrigued and curious.”

Then she smiles and says, “I think they'll come away feeling joy and excitement, and that will really positively impact their day or evening.”  

tauranga.govt.nz

Still evolving

Judy Bailey reflects on purposeful ageing, what brings her joy, and her feelings of imposter syndrome ahead of her Tauranga literary festival debut.

WORDS Monique Balvert-Connor

A serendipitous call from Harper Collins publishers sparked a new chapter in Judy Bailey’s illustrious career.
New Zealand’s beloved former broadcaster, once affectionately dubbed “Mother of the Nation”, has penned a book that’s now whizzing off bookshop shelves.

This exciting opportunity came after Judy had been contemplating the ageing journey and its challenges. “When the chance to write about it arose, I embraced it wholeheartedly – just as I’ve approached life’s adventures throughout my years.” Her book, Evolving, is set to be a focal point at Tauranga’s literary festival, Escape, where Judy will be speaking later this month. Between engagements, she might even squeeze in a visit with her former TV news anchor colleague, Richard Long, now based in Tauranga.

As for the title, Judy laughingly confesses she “stole” it when tennis great Serena Williams served it up in a quote. “People were constantly asking her how retirement was. She said, ‘I am not retired; I am evolving.’ That’s how I feel about it.”

Retirement is such a hideous word. Look in the dictionary. It means things like ‘to go to bed’. “Evolving is what we are doing – from one stage to another – and that can be equally rewarding and fulfilling, as we still have a contribution to make,” says Judy, who will turn 72 the day she presents at Escape’s morning tea event on October 18. 

In a sense, the book has enabled her to champion the cause of the elderly, whom she feels often get “a really bad rap”. “Older people are sometimes dismissed; considered past their use-by date. They shouldn’t be lumped into a universal aged category. The over-60s age group is enormously diverse, and this age group has an enormous amount to offer still. Many remain vibrant and intelligent, contributing members of society with a lot to offer. We need to think proactively about our ageing and not just let it happen to us. It’s not all downhill to the zimmer frame.”

Judy says writing Evolving has been an exploration of her journey and a discovery of how she can live her best life after 65. There’s much that many people will relate to, with learnings aplenty. Personal experiences and science are melded with the subjects tackled including taking care of your body and mind, navigating health scares, dealing with dementia, grieving loved ones, Botox, organising finances, wills, power of attorney, end-of-life care and enjoying the finer things. 

Readers are enjoying simple messages and a few surprises in this ‘dip in, dip out’ book, she says. “There are things we instinctively know to do to take care of ourselves – common sense things involving sleep, fresh air and good diet. But there are some helpful tricks along the way. For example, foregoing the sunnies on the morning walk so we can get some UV rays on our eyes. Things like the importance of going to bed and getting up at the same time, even on weekends, to maintain our circadian rhythm. “What I have discovered along the way, really, is the people who should be reading this book are those in their 40s and 50s, as what you are doing then has a huge bearing on how you age.” 

One ‘big, big thing’ of concern is alcohol consumption in New Zealand and the fact that it’s increasing among the older population. Many drink as a stress release, but alcohol actually increases stress and is really bad for the heart and brain, Judy informs. Far from sanctimonious, Judy says she’s the first person to enjoy a glass of something. While she keeps herself fit and healthy and eats reasonable food, she does have “a big hankering” for blue cheese and chocolate. Life’s too short to not enjoy those things, she smiles.

In writing Evolving, Judy has referenced Harvard University longitudinal studies and spoken to geriatricians and gerontologists and other academics. It’s reassuring, she says, that they are saying similar things, so the research is robust. She’s heartened by the fact there’s “amazing” research being conducted in New Zealand around ageing and that we have a professor of ageing.

Judy’s own evolving continues to involve some paid work. Since reading her final TV news bulletin in 2005 she’s enjoyed other broadcasting stints, some promotional work and she continues to write about inspirational women and travel. She loves Africa, “with a passion.” Botswana (the Okavango Delta) is one of her favourite places. Paris and Italy also get a mention. A wonderful amount of time is also spent with family – she and her husband Chris have three children and eight grandchildren who all live near their Auckland home. Judy and Chris also
enjoy being at their Flaxmill Bay property. 

Anywhere with a good book is also a very happy place, Judy says, citing Where the Crawdads Sing, Lessons in Chemistry, and The Axeman’s Carnival as much-enjoyed reads. Escape will be Judy’s first time presenting at a literary festival. With that comes a massive sense of impostor syndrome, she confesses. She’s not sure she’s sufficiently “literary”. Neither, she says, is she totally comfortable with being called Mother of the Nation. “So many other people would wear that title so
much better than me. I’ve been called it for decades and always feel embarrassed by it.” As for Judy’s own longitudinal, constantly evolving journey, she says she hopes to have “a couple of decades of useful life” left in her.  

Judy’s visit to Escape has been sponsored by Craigs Investment Partners.

taurangafestival.co.nz

Bird’s-eye view

Julian Godfery’s unique interpretation of the world is captured in his intricate artworks.

Artist Julian Godfery happily admits his biggest source of artistic inspiration is his mum.

He has been making art since he was five years old and actually inspired her to begin painting again 20 years after she graduated from art school. His mum is well-known artist Jane Galloway, whose work can be found on greeting cards, paintings and prints in galleries around New Zealand. Her full-time artistic career began 25 years ago after she was inspired by art Julian made for a kindergarten fundraiser. Now their work is displayed together in the same Waikato galleries.

Here, UNO talks to Julian about his passion for art.

UNO: What drew you to your particular style of art?
I like doing detailed drawings in pen and ink. I have been inspired by watching mum do realistic watercolours, which she used to paint on paper stretched over the dining table. She would cover the work with blankets and a plastic sheet whenever we wanted to have a meal. I got to see what she was making up close. I always carry a sketchbook and pens with me when I go to my day base at Enrich Plus in Hamilton.

What’s it like to grow up in an artistic household?
From when I first started school, my parents always worked on a daily diary with me and I got to illustrate the stories of what happened each day. I was obsessed with the Home Alone movie series for a long time, so a lot of my drawings were about designing traps to catch the robbers. I still have most of the diaries 30 years later.

Who or what are your greatest inspirations?
My mum did a series of paintings called “There Is No Planet B”, which showed New Zealand birds flying over motorways and cities. They inspired me to do drawings of towns and birds too. I have done a lot of owl paintings and some of chickens because I like drawing the feathers. My mum’s favourite is called “Midnight Morepork”.

What has been your favourite piece to make and why?
Because I love owls I think “Night Owls” is one I still really like. Also, over the Christmas holiday, I spent weeks drawing a big piece on watercolour paper. It was called “Invisible Magic” and was what you can see in water when you use a microscope. Mum is always getting me to look for new subjects for drawings on my tablet. I entered it in the IHC Art Awards a few years ago and it won the People’s Choice Award. Then I sold it at the auction, which was really exciting.

How long have you been living in the Waikato and what do you love about it?
I lived in Raglan until I was 21. Mum’s house is next to the estuary and harbour so I get to see herons, tui, spoonbills and fantails flying very close by all the time. I moved into supported living in Hamilton but I still come home regularly and I always bring my sketchbook to show mum what I’m working on (and to watch the All Blacks games).

What are your future plans in terms of your art?
I would like to have another exhibition at my Mum’s gallery in Raglan. It’s called Artists at Work and sometimes I go there to draw while she works
in the gallery. At Labour Weekend in October I always take part in the Raglan Arts Weekend where I show my latest drawings. We used to have an open studio at home and heaps of people would come to look at our work but now we can have it at the gallery. I look forward to it every year because I get to talk to people about my art. I’m working on a playlist of music for the weekend but mum says she wants to ok it first.

Where can we find your artwork?
Come and visit me over the Raglan Arts Weekend to see my latest
artworks at the Artists at Work Gallery. My work can also be seen in The Little Gallery, Tairua and Whangamata; Soul Gallery, Hamilton; Heritage Gallery, Cambridge; Artists at Work Studio and Gallery, Raglan.

Raglan Arts Weekend is a self-guided tour of artists’ studios being held from October 26-28, 10am to 5pm daily.

raglanartsweekend.nz

artistsatwork.co.nz

Find prints of Julian’s work at palmprints.co.nz

History in the making

After a couple of false starts, Tauranga is finally getting its very own museum in 2028. But what will it show and why do we need one?

words Karl Puschmann
photos Katie Cox + supplied

The grand opening of the new Tauranga Museum may still be four years away but director Greg McManus’ excitement has already well and truly arrived.

When UNO calls for a chat to catch up on how the project’s going he’s bubbling with enthusiasm and bursting with ideas for how he sees the museum benefitting and adding value to the community.

His energy towards the long-delayed project is infectious and leaves you wishing it was opening as soon as possible.

But alas, the museum doors won’t open until 2028. With construction on its prime inner-city site having recently started, it proves the adage ‘good things come to those who wait’. Greg is a 30 year veteran of museums around New Zealand, including stints as Director at Rotorua Museum and most recently as CEO of Waitangi Treaty Grounds where he oversaw the development of two new museums, and feels strongly about the importance of museums to communities

“I believe every community needs a museum,” he says. “Museums house our collective memory, they store and interpret the history of an area, not just for visitors from out of town or overseas, but also for ourselves. We need museums to help us better understand the stories of the place we live in, and also the stories of others who share the place with us. Museums encourage an understanding of diversity and the interwoven relationships we have as people living together in the same place and they play a huge role in inspiring children and young people to have an interest in art, culture, science and natural history.”

The future Tauranga Civic Whare, Exhibition Gallery and Museum.

Strengthening the connection between people and place is one of Greg’s big passions and is high on the priority list for the museum.

He says that people get a greater understanding and sense of belonging from knowing the history of where they live. Tauranga and its surrounding region is full of unique stories and significant sites that deserve our attention.

“When people drive down Cameron Road, they drive past the Gate Pā battle site,” he cites as an example.

“I suspect a lot of people don't know or don’t give it a second thought, but that battle was a really important event in the history of Aotearoa New Zealand, not just Tauranga. There are sites like that all through the region.”

He’s also keen to showcase the many innovations that have occurred here, including the first-ever hot water cylinder to be run off public electricity invented right here in Tauranga in 1915 by Lloyd Mandeno and in the museum’s collection.

In total the museum collection houses more than 33,000 objects in total, with most having never been seen publicly because, until now, there’s been nowhere to display them.

“Obviously, we're not going to have 33,000 objects on display in the museum,” he clarifies with a laugh. “But the permanent exhibitions will be rich with objects from our collection and other collections around the country. It will be a real weaving together of stories, objects and images into a broad, rich experience. Because that’s what museums are: places that tell stories.”

Along with the main, permanent exhibitions, there will also be two large galleries for temporary exhibitions. This, Greg says, will open up Tauranga to world-class exhibitions that we’d usually need to travel to places like Auckland or Wellington to see. He talks about partnering with other museums to bring exhibitions from overseas but also about leading the charge and bringing international exhibitions exclusively to Tauranga. This would enrich our cultural exposure and also encourage people from other parts of New Zealand to visit the region.

“There's a huge circuit of exhibitions travelling around the world all the time,” he says excitedly. “We'll be able to tap into that and bring exhibitions to Tauranga. People love coming to the Bay of Plenty year-round and if we have fantastic exhibitions it will encourage them to stay longer and contribute more to the local economy.”

But all that is secondary to his first objective of telling Tauranga’s stories and encouraging locals to feel a connection with their shared history. He wants residents to have free entry to the core museum experience and, to encourage engagement and a sense of ownership, is starting a Friends of the Museum programme. The idea is to keep people informed about what’s happening as well as provide exciting opportunities and benefits to members.

“It really will make people feel a part of the museum as we build it and make that connection so much stronger,” he smiles.

And that’s what the new Tauranga Museum is going to be all about. Greg says he wants people to come to their museum and see themselves reflected in the stories it tells and perhaps learn a little more about the place they call home and the people they share it with. It's all about providing the opportunity for gaining an understanding of the richness of living in a place.”

He pauses for a second and then laughs and says, “Tauranga’s not just about going to the mall or going to the beach. There's a lot more to it than that and our museum will reflect that!”

letstalk.tauranga.govt.nz/projects/tauranga-museum