Collecting Childhood is a Te Papa project focused on children growing up in New Zealand today, but it’s not just about the kids. They are central, and the aim is to represent their daily lives and key moments through objects, photographs, and their ongoing stories, but also of interest areRead more
Te Papa turned 150 years old on 8 December 2015. To celebrate 150 years since the opening of the Colonial Museum in Wellington, the exhibition ‘You called me WHAT?!’ is open on Level 3 until the end of 2016. The exhibition, and this series of blogs, explore the history ofRead more
Our national museum’s third director was New Zealand’s first Rhodes Scholar, but was cut down in his prime. Te Papa turned 150 years old on 8 December 2015. To celebrate 150 years since the opening of the Colonial Museum in Wellington, the exhibition ‘You called me WHAT?!’ is open onRead more
Last year, thousands of bronze quatrefoils transformed the exterior of Auckland’s St David’s Presbyterian Church in Khyber Pass (see detail here). This was Max Gimblett’s World War One commemorative project ,‘Remembrance’. The connection between the church and war remembrance has a long history. In 1920, parishioners decided to replace theirRead more
Our national museum’s second director was an ethnologist with broad interests in natural sciences. Te Papa turned 150 years old on 8 December 2015. To celebrate 150 years since the opening of the Colonial Museum in Wellington, the exhibition ‘You called me WHAT?!’ is open on Level 3 until theRead more
Dr Chris Pugsley, the Historical Director of Gallipoli: The scale of our war provides some background as to why he stood by the use of the original official figures to calculate a 93% casualty rate for the NZEF on Gallipoli: As Historical Director of the Gallipoli: The Scale of ourRead more
This Sunday marks Fashion Revolution Day. Any one can take part. All you need to do is ask one simple question: ‘Who made my clothes?’Read more
Through military nursing, a group of more than 500 New Zealand women participated directly in the Great War, including Lottie (Charlotte) Le Gallais, who is our seventh larger-than-life figure in Gallipoli: The scale of our war (above). This blog is about her war and the impact it had on the LeRead more
Today we unveil a new glass step in The Mixing Room timeline, acknowledging the first major arrival of Syrian refugees to New Zealand as a result of the crisis which began five years ago. Te Papa has worked with the New Zealand Red Cross to make this step possible, andRead more
In April 2017, Myriad Faces of War: 1917 and its legacy, a unique international, multidisciplinary symposium showcasing academic and creative work on the year 1917 and its myriad legacies, will be taking place at Te Papa. The symposium is being organised by colleagues from the WHAM (War History Heritage Art & Memory) ResearchRead more
On Monday 21 March, I eagerly read the results of an intensive research project that gives us the clearest indication, to date, of the number of New Zealanders that served on Gallipoli. This research, undertaken by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and the New Zealand Defence Force, reveals thatRead more
Among the most recent additions to the art collection is an extraordinary set of etchings representing the five senses. Made by the brothers Jan (c. 1618/22 – 1652) and Andries Both (1611/2 – 1642) at the height of the Dutch Golden Age, these five comic allegories illustrate the senses –Read more
On Friday March 18 Te Papa opens a new exhibition on Level 6:- Inspired: Ceramics and jewellery shaped by the past. The exhibition draws on contemporary and historic objects from Te Papa and considers how objects can be connected across time. The phrase ‘thinking through time’ relates to an importantRead more
I recently delivered a paper on the New Zealand sculptor Margaret Butler (1883-1947) at the University of Otago conference, ‘Making Women Visible’. Although one or two of her sculptures are occasionally exhibited, she is next to invisible to the wide public, certainly far more obscure than her older contemporary FrancesRead more
Over the following six months, My Little Pony collector Tanya Marriott will be sharing her passion, and knowledge about her collection with us. Part of Tanya’s collection is currently on display at Te Papa in the Inspiration Station Discovery Centre on Level 4. My Little Pony has been around for thirty three years,Read more
