Faculty of Arts and Education, University of Auckland

03/06/2026

🎙️New episode of Research and Reason is here!

Dr Ritesh Shah specialises in education in conflict and disaster zones and the politics of foreign aid. He sits to discuss his work with the Centre for Asia Pacific Refugee Studies (CAPRS), including their latest project: giving voices to the teachers on the frontline in Gaza.

🎧Listen now: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/uoa-arts
💻 Watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/JzjsUVKvUOo

28/05/2026

Congratulations to Fine Arts doctoral student Brittany Walker Smith on this incredible achievement!

What if failure became something to celebrate?

A huge congratulations to Fine Arts doctoral student Brittany Walker Smith, the first recipient of the Collin Post Sculpture Award and Longveld Plinth Award. Her winning concept "One Foot in the Grave, the Other on a Banana Peel", will be transformed into a bold yellow steel sculpture and installed in the Elam gardens.

The award also includes a residency with UAP in Brisbane, where Brittany will develop her design alongside leading experts in public art and fabrication, before the final piece is brought to life by Longveld in Hamilton.

Combining humour, glamour and a nod to everyday mishaps, Brittany’s work celebrates the inevitability of failure and the creativity that comes with it.

With thanks to Longveld and UAP (Urban Art Projects) and ‘DMC Art’ for their partnership in supporting emerging artists.

Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/29/snazzy-steel-banana-peel.html

20/05/2026

📢 New podcast episode is here! 🌳

Senior Lecturer Dr Simon Ingram is here to discuss how he created an immersive installation that combines bird recordings, LiDAR scanning, mathematics, ecology and digital technology to recreate a living New Zealand native forest.

🎧 Listen now: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/uoa-arts

💻 Watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/nPs3jOpuEzo

14/05/2026

When Cyrus Meredith Melhuish, 23, crossed the stage, it marked a journey shaped by the legacy of his great-grandparents.

Born and raised in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Cyrus is of Sāmoan, Tokelauan, Portuguese and British heritage, with family connections to the villages of Togafuafua, Fuipu’a on Upolu, and Leone on Tutuila.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Politics and International Relations, and Asian Studies; a milestone he once doubted reaching.

He started his degree during the Covid-19 pandemic which intensified a sense of isolation. Classes moved online, opportunities to connect slipped away, he took a semester off and contemplated dropping out altogether. But his family encouraged him to keep going.

It wasn’t until he encountered Pacific Studies in his final year that something shifted. He found a learning environment that not only centred his interests in geopolitics, but also a community with shared connections.

Cyrus works as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in Pacific Studies at the University, a role he describes as unexpected yet transformative. Supporting Māori and Pacific students, helped him recognise the value of his own journey and voice.

No longer questioning the point of an education, Cyrus is grateful to the village that helped him cross the finish line, including his family.

“I especially want to thank my great-grandparents for giving us such a privileged life, for having the vision and courage to leave everything they knew to provide us with a strong start.”

Read more of Cyrus’ story here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/10/graduate-comes-home-to-pacific-studies.html

08/05/2026

Dame Alison Paterson went back to studying at 85 and graduated with a Master of Arts in Art History (First Class Honours).

Dame Alison Paterson is used to breaking barriers. In 1976 she became the first woman appointed to a New Zealand producer board, and in 1979 the first woman to sit on the board of a publicly listed company.

A pioneering business leader whose career spans more than five decades across finance, agriculture and public governance, she says she had no interest in being “a lady who lunches” on retirement at 85.

But while business has been her career – her original qualification was in accounting – history, she says, is her first love, which led her to enrol at Auckland for a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in history and art history.

And that led to the masters, with a dissertation on the Gibbs Farm, the extraordinary 400-hectare sculpture park north of Auckland.

Created in 1991 by businessman and art collector Alan Gibbs, the park is known for its huge, eye-catching works by notable artists (Anish Kapoor, Neil Dawson), exotic animals freely wandering (giraffes, zebras), and the beauty of its rural setting with lakes and harbour views.

“My dissertation is the story of the conversion of a dry stock farm on the Kaipara Harbour into a sculpture park,” says Dame Alison.

“As a student, I've made a raft of new friendships from all walks of life, and benefitted greatly from exposure to the range of lecturers I’ve studied under, particularly Linda Tyler and Caroline Vercoe, who are truly inspirational. I believe the University invests considerable resources to ensure students 'get through'.”

“Above all,” she says, “I’ve continued to learn and to exercise my brain. Hopefully there will be useful lessons for others considering this path, communicated from a different perspective.”

Dame Alison graduated in absentia and continues to make her husband, the Honourable Barry Paterson, a retired High Court Judge, three stepchildren and seven grandchildren very proud.

Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/07/the-fine-art-of-keeping-on-learning.html

Image credit: New Zealand Herald Photograph by Richard Robinson

29/04/2026

🤔 What can tiny fragments of ancient bird bones and DNA reveal about the past?

In this episode, Anthropology doctoral candidate Patricia Pillay's research uncovers how humans and wildlife in the Marquesas Islands have interacted over the past 700 years. 🪶

Patricia also shares how tiny bird bones and Indigenous knowledge tell big stories about history, culture and conservation.

🎧Listen now: https://bit.ly/3PJOoUr

📺 or watch on Youtube: https://bit.ly/4cS6GuG

27/04/2026

Recently awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award, we are thrilled to welcome back Reuben Paterson, internationally esteemed contemporary artist and alumna of Elam, for his Making Spaces seminar!

On 6 May, Reuben will be giving a public lecture on campus in the B201 building, where he will discuss the evolution of his practice in recent years, and how his experiences relocating overseas have further informed his art.

This lecture is open to everyone with a limited number of seats, don’t miss out!

https://bit.ly/4vIkCzP

Join Making Spaces with artist and Elam alumnus Reuben Paterson, recently awarded the University of Auckland Distinguished Alumni Award.

20/04/2026

Can't wait for the doors to open at Aotearoa Art Fair this year? The Sculpture Trail is now available to the public, and free to attend!

Come down to the Viaduct Harbour and surround yourself by works of some of our very own Elam alums, including Lisa Reihana, Reuben Paterson, Sione Faletau, Gregor Kregar, Hye Rim Lee and Peata Larkin - don't miss out!

https://bit.ly/4mBYWRQ

18 ARTISTS - 24 ARTWORKS Viaduct Harbour Presents the Aotearoa Art Fair Sculpture Trail At the Aotearoa Art Fair, art doesn’t stop at the doors! Free and op ...

15/04/2026

Despite making up at least half of the workforce, women in 115 countries are missing out on power, pay and visibility in creative industries.

They also face systemic bias in generative AI, barriers in tech-heavy fields like online game development and increased online violence, a 2026 UNESCO report has found. One of the report's co-authors is Bridget Conor, an associate professor of communications in our faculty.

Read more here:

‘Could do better' is the verdict on gender equality in creative areas across 115 of UNESCO's member states, according to a new report.

13/04/2026

🎉 Congratulations to Anto Yeldezian and p.Walters who are among the eight early-career artists, curators and writers selected to participate in the inaugural Learning from Venice professional development programme, taking place during the 61st Venice Biennale.

Anto is a Master of Fine Arts graduate and we are proud to support p.Walters' place on the programme as our current student in Master of Fine Arts at Elam.

Read more here: https://bit.ly/4cnDcoa