Te Papa is deeply saddened by the death yesterday of Ralph Hotere – one of the country’s greatest artists. Our thoughts go out to his family, his friends, and the arts community. Ralph once commented that ‘There are few things I can say about my work that are better thanRead more

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William McAloon with Colin McCahon’s 'Northland panels', 1958.

It is with great sadness that we share the news that our respected colleague and dear friend William McAloon passed away on Sunday 8 April. William has been Curator Historical New Zealand Art at Te Papa since 2005. A key member of the art team, William was a superb curator,Read more

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Sir Paul Callaghan 1947–2012 GNZM, FRS, FRSNZ Kua waipuketia te awa o Whanganui. Kua mahue pani te motu i te hinganga o tēnei tōtara haemata e te ringa kaha o aituā. Moe mai rā e te mata punenga. Nāu, nā te ihu atamai, nā te kanohi hōmiromiro te pūtaiao iRead more

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Artist Don Driver in his studio, New Plymouth, March 2004. Photo: Jim and Mary Barr, reproduced with permission.

The Art team here at Te Papa are saddened by the news that contemporary New Zealand artist Don Driver passed away yesterday morning in New Plymouth. Although Don had been ill for some time, this sort of news always catches you off guard. Te Papa has a considerable number ofRead more

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On Tuesday 20 July 2010 Gus Fisher ONZM passed away at the age of 89. While many people today recognise Gus Fisher as one of the country’s most generous and enthusiastic arts patron Gus first rose to national prominence in the world of high fashion. Gus Fisher was the creativeRead more

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Te Papa acknowledges the life and writing of poet, playwright, novelist, and memoirist Alistair Te Ariki Campbell. His work is noted for its attempts to reconcile the complexities and displacements he experienced as a result of his New Zealand/Cook Islands ancestry. Campbell was born in the Cook Islands and spentRead more

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Chief Executive Officer, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa 2003–2009. ‘What I’ve enjoyed most is developing the relevance of what happens inside the museum for the public.’ (Dr Bennington, 2003) E te Rangatira Seddon – He Poroporoaki He reo noa ka kore e rongohia e tangi ana i rotoRead more

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Joan Wiffen, who found hard evidence that dinosaurs had inhabited New Zealand, died this month aged 87. I’m not a scientist, but I do have an interest in the history of science, and even I can see that Wiffen made historically significant and far-reaching contributions to scientific thinking. First findings In 1975, Wiffen found somethingRead more

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