News
We have our finger on the arts pulse of the Coromandel Peninsula and Hauraki rohe.
Learn all about the local creative community through our news and interviews.
Silent Movies Live: A Performance to Remember!
I grew up watching Mad Movies, which featured snippets of many great silent films – so I had early exposure to the genre. As an adult, I’ve watched a few complete Charlie Chaplin movies, but I’ve never had a chance to experience one in a theatre with a large audience.
Ahi Kaa: Rekindling Connections as Māori Clay Artists Return to Driving Creek
In early November, Driving Creek welcomed Ngā Kaihanga Uku (The Māori Clay Artists Collective) & Friends back to Kapanga for their first visit in almost ten years.
December 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
Celebrating 10 Years of Steampunk The Thames!
Join in the delightful madness of the 10th annual Steampunk Festival, running over four days from November 6th to 9th. Come and enjoy the fun, entertainment, competitions, dancing, prancing, games, and gadgets. The perfect opportunity to unleash your creative side and get amongst it! Bring the family, there’s fun for everyone.
November 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
True Tales – Stories from Coromandel Hauraki
If the skeletons in the closet are something that interest you, you should get your hands on some of the ‘True Tales’ publications, written by locals and often with some unexpected surprises!
October 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
My Month In Puebla, Mexico
I’ve just returned from one of the most colourful and inspiring experiences of my life — a month-long art residency in Puebla, Mexico. From the moment I arrived, Puebla felt alive.
Coromandel Open Studios Arts Tour
For the first two weekends this month, 4-5 Oct, and 11-12 Oct, Coromandel will be buzzing with art enthusiasts eager to explore the latest creative work during The Coromandel Open Studios Arts Tour.
September 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
The Nukes Launch The Artbeat Spring Festival!
The coromandel artbeat spring festival is just around the corner and is launched this year by West Auckland ukulele legends The Nukes in a free-to-everyone concert on Friday 5 September.
Silent Movies Live: Chaplin Returns to the Big Screen
In response to the renewed appetite for live entertainment following Covid restrictions, and originally performed outdoors, this silent movie project has since moved into theatres, reviving the magic of 1920s picture houses – where silent films were brought to life with live musical accompaniment.
Ngā Kaihanga Uku Returns – Driving Creek Pottery, Coromandel 2-9 Nov
Ngā Kaihanga Uk uwānanga at Driving Creek from November 2 – 9, including daily public workshops and talks, plus Ahi Kaa Exhibition Opening Sunday November 9
Spring Time – artbeat Time!
Spring is almost here, and that means the start of the 3rd coromandel artbeat spring festival! Yes, it’s hard to believe, but we’re in round 3 already! Woop-woop!
Mapping Colour: An Exhibition and Residency Adventure
In her solo exhibition of retrospective and contemporary work and aptly subtitled ‘A Textural Exhibition of an Exploration of Plant Dyes’, the artist wants to show the vast range of colour that can be obtained from plant dyes and earth pigments…
Sofia Tekela-Smith & The Arts Of Oceania Exhibition in NY
Sofia Tekela-Smith is a New Zealand-Rotuman artist specialising in jewellery and body adornments. Many may recall her stunning garland in the Art is Identity exhibition in Kūaotunu and Kapanga this past January. Sofia just returned from New York where her work is on show at the Oceania Gallery in the MET.
August 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
July 2025 Pānui/ Newsletter
News from around the rohe on what’s been happening in the creative industries!
Mana Mātātahi: Divine On Every Level
It was a great joy to experience Mana Mātātahi at their Matariki concert at St. George’s Church in Thames. The energy, complexity of harmonies, and interaction between the vocalists in this youth-driven chorus were outstanding.
The Kiribati Mamas: Louisa & Kaetaeta
Over the coming months, we’ve decided to share the enthusiastically received exhibition, Art Is Identity. Our first choice is a long-held historical and collaborative pair: the delightful, talented, and humble Louisa Humphry and Kaetaeta Watson.
