Fashion stylist, writer and educator Lou Heller reflects on the trends of 2020 and predicts what’s going to be hot in 2021.

The trends to watch in 2020 quickly re-navigated during what was a dynamic and exciting year for fashion. The fashion set can spend months pre-empting trends and colours. This can all change in a split second when something trends on social media, a celebrity wears something we have never seen, or a designer decides to show something revolutionary the day after creating it.

In New Zealand, we are great at setting trends and sitting alongside the rest of the world with ease. We have our own style. We are small, we are punchy, we are edgy, we are in packs. One minute we’re wearing plain white tees with black strappy dresses, the next we’re in beautiful oversized pussy bow blouses. This can work in our favour in a lot of ways… or against us. I’m reflecting on my top 2020 trends and where our fashion ended up, and making some predictions on what will start to make its way here in the next year.

2020

High volume – puff sleeves anything High volume is all about accentuation of that arm area; it’s all about the puff. It really stands out visually, and came through very strong for the whole year. You’ve got Aje and Ganni, and also places like Country Road and H&M that are bringing the puff.

Cardigans in general started to be really big in 2020 and I think that’s because people got over thicker knitwear. We’ve had cool cropped cardigans and really long ones, down to almost knee length. These grandad-folk-style items are great for layering under jackets and wearing with dress pants, skirts or shorts – the cardigan is a trans-seasonal hero. The traditional cardi colours are quite neutral, and on the flipside I’ve seen great lilacs and punchy greens.

Square-toe shoes These may have been around in the ‘90s, but there’s something super modern about this extra-functional trend. Pointy toes can be a bit of a one-look wonder, but the square toes carry a bit of a pared-back look that can be edgy and dressed up or down. Square-toes are about the open toe – they’re comfy and easy to throw on, and they fit well on wider feet. Brands that are hitting this trend well include By Far (very cool), Senso, Mi Piaci, and Christopher Esber.

Going green As in environmental, and as in colour. Eco-conscious fabrics and production practises are in. I do feel like the environmental buzzwords get a bit overused by companies that perhaps aren’t walking the talk, but there’s a real consciousness around now around hiring clothes, borrowing from friends, and hitting the thrift shops. Some businesses, like Maggie Marilyn, have scaled back and become very aware of what they’re putting into earth, and what’s coming out. Kate Sylvester has a ‘Reloved’ system where people can sell their Kate Sylvester pieces to a new home. Max is doing great things now with sustainable fabrics, and I know H&M has its own sustainability and social responsibility programme too. In terms of the colour green, everything from sage to emerald, forest and khaki just absolutely exploded in 2020. Lots of people think they can’t wear green, but they forget there are thousands of different shades to try.

Tan tan tan – anything tan Tan’s been around. It’s a timeless colour used in classic pieces – Burberry always has a quintessential tan trench coat. 2020 emphasised the utilitarian style and we saw a lot of things like boilersuits in this colour, as well as suits for women, t-shirts and cardigans. Every trend I’ve mentioned so far is available in
tan or camel.

What’s on the 2021 horizon

Mood dressing Think about waking up and dressing for your mood. Mood dressing is about being aware of how you can change your mood, or how your clothes can reflect your mood. Studies have shown that using colour affects how you feel, and high-volume colour lifts your mood. Uplifting colours like tangerine, lilac, pastel yellow and magenta have been around in the past but we haven’t seen them working together in a way I’m hoping to see in the coming year.

The daytime clutch – intense colours and fabrics Everyone is used to wearing handbags – they’re a safe option. We don’t necessarily think about carrying a clutch during the day because it’s considered a high-event night-time accessory. Daytime clutches take advantage of the light to show off interesting fabrics, designs and bold colours – forget about the night and use them any time.

Versatile power suits The power suit carries a sense of empowerment, and women are ready to stand in their power. A suit represents an element of androgynous sexuality that’s very strong at the moment. The versatility comes with the ability to pair the suit jacket with jeans or a skirt, or pair the pants with sneakers and a singlet or blouse. Make it your own. Go for colour: green, pink, gold, silver, anything you want, anything that works with your lifestyle. ZARA is always a good place to start because it’s cost effective, and you don’t have to put a lot of money up to try out a new style.

Modern folk Folk and boho styles have been around a while, but modern folk is a bit dressier, a bit more refined. Think structured dresses with embroidered handbags in cool designs and a bit of leather. Flirtatious, flowing shapes, cardigans, leather skirts with flowing white shirts and a fringe cardigan or scarf.

The horse trial look Anything that resembles something you could wear riding a horse or turning up to polo. Hats, riding boots, velvet blazers and tailored shirts with jeans, and high-necked shirts done all the way up. It’s that kind of paradoxical, beautifully structured, tailored relax wear. Think of the Hamptons, and bringing a bit of high society
to real life.

louhellerstylist.com

A relative newcomer to the Christchurch street art scene, Jacob Root uses stencils, screens, acrylic and aerosols to create works scaling from small canvas to massive murals.

Tell us a bit about your Audrey Hepburn mural – why Audrey?

The Audrey Hepburn mural I designed to bring a bit of colour pop and inspiration to the corner of St Asaph Street and Manchester Street. I wanted to paint Audrey as she is a well-known figure in history, known for her glamour, acting, and what stuck out to me is that she was a major humanitarian. She was out to help improve the welfare and general happiness of people. I found that this made her really fitting for the subject of my mural because I really love to try inspire people to be happy, keep their heads up and ‘shine so bright’.

What’s the story behind the vibrant yellow? I chose yellow as it is generally associated with happiness and joy, which is the main point of this mural.

And the message, ‘Shine so bright’? With a lot, if not all of my art I love to put quotes on them to match the mood of the painting. With this one I really wanted the painting to be happy and uplifting, so I spent a while going through quotes, listening to music and watching movies to try and pull out anything that gave me that 'feel good' feeling. So in the end I found ‘Shine so bright’ which I feel is a motivational and uplifting quote that most people would be able to connect with and hopefully take something from.

READ MORE: Street art in Christchurch

How did you get into creating street art? I got into making art when I was 17. I was really into graphic design and all of that but the thought of office work was pulling me away from it. Later that year I went on a family holiday to Los Angeles where I saw street art and amazing galleries everywhere, which gave me inspiration to have a go at it when I got back home. From there I just invested all my time into it, practicing and trying to further myself so I could one day make a career out of it.

What was the first bit of street art you created, is it still there, and was it any good? The first piece of street art I made was a single layered stencil of Han Solo from Star Wars on a tiny electricity box on the corner of Madras Street and Edgeware Road. It was awful. I went back a few months later after I'd gotten a wee bit better and painted Marilyn Monroe which is still there today. It’s pretty cool to drive past it sometimes and see how far I've come since then.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. One piece that I can think of in Christchurch was Owen Dippie’s Elephant mural on Manchester Street. I'm not sure why, though, I've just always admired the animals since a young age so I guess seeing them around in my home town is pretty cool.

How does your process work? An idea can come at really strange times, like I could be walking down the street, be at a party or anywhere that's really inconvenient and think of something that would look cool and have the deeper message I try to portray on walls or in my canvas work. This is why I've now started going everywhere with a tiny notepad and pen, so if I do have an idea I can quickly scribble it down and get back to it at a better time. Usually I'm contacted by building owners that want me to have a crack at brightening up their walls, but if there's one that I have an idea for I'll design up a concept then go and get in contact with the owner to see if they'd be keen for me to paint it.

Talk us through the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most. I think my favourite at the moment would be the Shine so Bright mural, but every time I paint something new, it becomes my favourite. This, I think, is because every mural I do, my detail starts getting more intricate and I just keep pushing myself to make my next mural better than the last.

Where’s your favourite place to go in Christchurch for a:

Morning coffee? I don't actually drink a lot of coffee, but my favourite café would have to be Lemon Tree.

Post-painting beer? If not just going to mates’ flats and cruising there, I'd go to The Avonhead Tavern.

Hit of creative inspiration? Being with friends, going to the movies and especially just driving around pointlessly tend to give me the best inspiration. Or, most annoyingly, when I wake up at 3am with a new idea for something.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? I'm not sure if this is good advice, but it's something I tend to tell people: I think that people can do whatever they want in life. If you have a passion for something, the only thing that will stop you from making it happen is yourself, and listening to others’ negativity. A lot of people tell you that there's a 'correct' way of living life and that you should stick to that, and I know a lot of people listen to that advice. You've only got one life, so don't waste it doing something that other people expect you to do. Be you.

distrangeddesign.com

For everyone who’s ever sat bored through the sports or ancient history part of a pub quiz, Nomi Cohen is bringing us a thigh-slapping, head-scratching, sing-a-long musical quiz, What The Quiz is This?!

What’s What The Quiz is This?!

A live performance-style pub quiz. So instead of having general knowledge rounds or questions, we perform a medley of various songs and it’s the teams’ jobs to tell us what the name of the song is, who the artist is and – if it’s from a show – which show. There’s a whole bunch of rounds and categories, with a few extras on the side.

How do you rate your singing ability?

My mum says I’m pretty good!

What’s your favourite song to sing at the top of your lungs in the car?

‘No Air’ by Jordin Sparks. I absolutely love it – it’s my absolute jam – and made better if there’s someone in the car with me who can do the second part of the duet.

What do you hope fans take away from your Buskers Festival performance?

I hope fans have a really good time. Maybe they’ll get a little bit frustrated with not being able to get a song – I hope it’s not too easy – and I hope they walk away feeling like they enjoyed the entire pub quiz. I don’t want people to think, for example, “Oh, I didn’t know the sports questions” – there AIN’T NO SPORTS in What The Quiz is This?! – I can tell you that right now.

What type of preparation goes into your shows?

Pretty extensive preparation goes into each show. Caelan (my pianist) and I always discuss which songs we’d like to do – we gravitate towards songs we enjoy performing. We then decide what makes it too easy or too hard, what kind of fun bits we can make out of the songs. And then, of course, we discuss the secret other bits, which people just have to come along and experience!

What’s the best thing about your job?

I get to make people smile, or laugh, or even cry sometimes, if it’s really sad. I love giving people a space and an opportunity in which they feel like they can let go of emotions and escape the real world for a little while.

What’s the worst thing about your job?

Eyelash glue. Fuck that.

How did you get into this type of industry?

I was always a very loud child who loved attention. There wasn’t really another option. I was the type of kid who’d create costumes out of scarves and parade them around the lounge, basically being, like, “Look how good I am, look how fabulous I am.” And here we are.

Fave place you’ve performed at?

Q Theatre in Auckland, the Rangatira. It’s a really cool and interesting space. I love all the different levels, and what you can do with it is really exciting.

What’s a highlight of your career so far?

Creating this quiz. It’s different every time, it’s super fun, I really enjoy creating it, people love coming to it, and I can do whatever the fuck I want, which is also really fun.

Best way to relax and unwind?

I love Netflix. I really do. I love watching TV shows. I love that we live in an age in which I can just open my laptop and relax to that. I also love a good whisky at the end of the night.

Are there any other Buskers Festival acts you’re hoping to catch?

Because I am performing in Jersey Boys at the Court Theatre, for what will pretty much be the entirety of the Buskers Festival – other than the two nights I’ll be performing What The Quiz is This?! – I won’t get to see a lot of the things in the evenings, so I’m planning on heading out during the day and catching as many street performers as I can. I love Jess The Mess – she’s super fun and I always have a really good time at her shows. I am also really hoping to catch Laser Kiwi. They’re one of my favourite acts and I’m so glad they’re back this year. And the Biggest Little Circus. I also think they are amazing and I can’t wait to go and support them and all the other artists who are hitting Christchurch this summer.

Who’s a comedian who gets you rolling on the floor?

Michelle Wolf – I think she’s so intelligent and so funny, and absolutely my style of comedy.

You’re closely involved with The Court Theatre and Blackboard Theatre Collective – what cool stuff is happening in the theatre scene this summer?

I’m a proud founding member of Blackboard Theatre Collective (follow us on FB and Instagram!). It’s an absolute dream to be part of something we’ve built. I’m in Jersey Boys at the Court Theatre. Definitely book your tickets if you haven’t already because it’s legitimately selling out and is a super-fun show. With the Blackboard Theatre Collective we have some amazing things coming up in the new year. The first is a show called UGLY, which is a new musical written by a young NASDA graduate called Nicky Douglas. It’s the untold story of the stepsisters of Cinderella – so it’s kind of like an origin story. We’re really looking forward to developing that and sharing it with Christchurch on 23 and 24 January. The next thing after that is our annual Severely Queer cabaret as part of the Christchurch Pride Festival running from the 10th to 14th March. Both will be at Little Andromeda which is one of our favourite theatres.

What’s your go-to spot in Christchurch?

It has got to be The Last Word. I love a good whisky, and it has an absurd range. It’s super cosy. They’re really, really nice people, and their cheese toasties are unreal. If you haven’t been, you must.

What’s the best thing about the city in the summer?

The Botanical Gardens. I love going to visit all of the beautiful, beautiful trees and we have so many there. I’m looking forward to exploring it more as the weather gets nicer.

breadandcircus.co.nz

Christchurch-based illustrator Jacob Yikes is a staple of the city’s street art scene, and also illustrates and paints in his home studio. He’s a member of the prolific DTR street art crew.

How is the Christchurch art scene different now from how it was ten years ago? There are more public artworks than there has ever been.

How did you get into creating street art? I grew up painting graffiti and have always been into art as a kid. I began painting large works after the earthquakes in 2011 due to the high level of spots and walls to paint.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. That’s a tricky one, I wouldn’t say looking at street art inspires me to paint it, to be honest. My good friend and crew mate Dcypher has always inspired me though, as he is constantly taking it to another level and is just a boss in general.

READ MORE: Street art in Christchurch

How does your process work? For works that are not commissioned I generally just find a spot and suss out whether it can be painted without any problems. Then I pretty much just freestyle whatever is in my head at the time. It’s different for larger walls or commissioned pieces, in which I usually come up with a concept.

Talk us through the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most. Perhaps the Alice in Videoland wall. I have switched up my style over the last wee while and have been working in my studio more than the street, but I have some big works lined up for the new year that are a lot different from my older ones and I like the direction they are heading. But yeah I dunno, I’m my own biggest critic I guess.

Where’s your favourite place to go in Christchurch for a:

Morning coffee? Taste@Twenty in Cashmere. Super friendly staff and good coffee.

Post-painting beer? Not a huge drinker, but Smash Palace is always a rad spot. Anywhere where they don’t try and make me remove my hat.

Hit of creative inspiration? Inspiration comes when it wants to, I usually find it hits me late at night in my studio but generally music is what gets me inspired.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? To never get complacent, always try to do better than the last work and to not listen to people’s opinions too much. Not everyone will like what you do but that’s ok.

planetyikes.com

Melbourne artist Rone’s Worcester Street artwork on the side of Cathedral Junction is one of our faves.

Can you tell about how the Worcester Street piece came to be? It was part of a festival curated by George Shaw.

Who is the model? Teresa Oman.

What inspired the work? I wanted the raw brick to blend with Teresa’s beauty. To show a contrast of beauty and decay. The fern is a nod to New Zealand’s history.

READ MORE: Street art in Christchurch

How did you get into creating street art? I started after being inspired by others. I started to put works up as I would skateboard around the city.

What was the first bit of street art you created, and was it any good? I think it was something skateboard related. It’s long gone; it would have been very average.

How does your process work? Every single work is different. In early 2012 I invented a method for doing huge works that I have since shared with other artists. I call it the ‘overlay method’. It’s similar to the grid method used to scale up designs, but it’s faster and leaves less room for error. I overlay my design onto a photograph of the surface I want it on and let the surface become my reference point. If the surface doesn’t have any markings already on it, you can make marks on it before taking the photo. I use random lines, some other people use symbols, numbers or letters. I send the overlaid photo to my smartphone and check the reference points as I paint, painting over the markings as I go.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? Character is measured by the way you treat those who offer you nothing.

r-o-n-e.com

Artist Gill Gatfield’s works are exhibited around Aotearoa and the world, including her work Suffragette on display in Christchurch at SCAPE’s Studio 125 Gallery. She sculpts a narrative of feminism, activism and art with What's Hot New Zealand.

Can you tell us about Suffragette and the time it alludes to? The Suffragette sculpture reflects the power and poise of 19th Century activists who won the vote for women and the right for women to be legally described as a ‘person’. Up until then, women in New Zealand were more or less the legal property of men. There is added meaning in showing this work in Christchurch with its deep history and strong leadership in the women’s suffrage movement. It holds the gaze and initiates the conversation, like I imagine Kate Sheppard and her colleagues did.

You seem to have an affinity for the letter ‘I’ – what does it mean to Suffragette, and your art in general? For some time now I’ve been fixated on ‘X’ too, and there are other letters I’m drawn to. An ‘I’ asserts human presence; it’s a marker of identity. In the Suffragette sculpture, the I-figure is human-like and asserts the first person pronoun. It highlights a central tenet of feminism, that the personal is political. It is also a Roman numeral meaning ‘one’ or ‘first’, and in this sense, Suffragette commemorates New Zealand’s leadership as the first nation to grant women the right to vote.

You’ve displayed art in Christchurch before and after the earthquakes, and recently visited the city. How do you think it has evolved, physically and artistically over that time? When I’m in Christchurch I see a city of warmth, resilience, and creativity. Like others from out of town, I kept getting lost after the earthquakes in the unrecognisable built landscape, and I’m still confused by the one-way streets. But the heart of Christchurch for me feels strong and intact. There is a clear sense of direction and community in the creative work here.

How is the Christchurch arts scene different to other cities? There’s something special in the air in Christchurch, a sophisticated rawness, like the old refuses to stifle the new. In a small radius, there’s real depth and range in creativity and conversations. I love visiting the galleries and catching up with art friends. For a sculptor, it’s like cloud nine, there’s an abundance of international quality public art, deftly placed. Christchurch is lucky having SCAPE Public Art and visionary city leaders. SCAPE’s collaborations with local industry and iwi underpin many of these big art projects. It’s a formula for success that other cities across the motu could adopt.

What do you like to get up to in Christchurch? There are amazing trees beside the Avon and in Hagley Park that create patterns in the sky when lying underneath them, and unexpected treasures in the Canterbury Museum that set my imagination into gear.

How have international audiences responded differently when you display your art overseas? In Europe, audiences tap into a different art history to ours, and tend to bring that ‘reading’ to the work. Audiences in the USA are more inclined to start with minimalism and situate my work in a lineage of conceptual practice. Wonderfully, kids anywhere enjoy the work without needing more. Regardless of place, people want to touch and circle the work.

How did your experience as an equality and diversity lawyer shape your art? That work grounded me and made me acutely aware of the impact of systems and biases on people. As a result, my artwork, consciously or unconsciously, often includes a strong focus on the first person as a building block of humanity. This comes out in individual strength works like Suffragette, and can manifest in collective strength monuments like Glass Ceiling (NZ Aotearoa) and Zealandia.

Can you have art without activism, or activism without art? Art can be politically neutral in terms of the artist’s intentions, yet be ascribed with political content or context. It depends on the eye and mind of the viewer, and shifts over time. And activism exists without art, but thinking of the posters and slogans of 1960s black American and 1970s feminist movements, art was the imagery that drew people in, or out. Activism is more effective with art in the toolbox.

It’s been a big decade for women’s rights. What do you see as the let-downs of the 20-teens? Progress toward equality on a systemic level too often slips and slides in the wake of big events – wars, economic downturns, climate crises, and pandemics. Of the 11,000 New Zealanders unemployed as a result of Covid, 10,000 are women. We still seem myopic in terms of solutions and the infrastructure is too linear and last-century. Why not invest billions in STEM, creative and climate driven projects in which women are properly funded to lead and participate equally?

And what do you hope to see for women’s rights in the next decade? An end to violence against women and equal pay for work of equal value would be a good start. More women in leadership roles across all areas of society and governance, achieving 50/50 to reflect the population, and more youth and diverse leaders committed to equality of outcomes for all, ones which can be sustained and weather the big game-changing events.

What attracted you to art? Art is one of the few pursuits that let me work simultaneously with beautiful materials and philosophical or political ideas. To some extent, law reform does this too but in that field the creative tools are confined to words and the ideas need to fit a prescribed purpose. Art gives me immense freedom to explore, go off-piste, dream, invent, manifest, and share. The risks are high but there is reward in the making and in shaping the unimaginable.

And what draws you to the abstract? For me abstraction is where the fun starts. There’s poetry in geometry and physics.

How do you approach exploring detailed themes in a minimalistic way? Minimalism is an ideal conduit for de-tangling complexity. Layered narratives can be conveyed through singular materials and simple forms. I find these elements in different and unique combinations of materials, form, the process of making, artwork title, context, environment, audience and site. There’s no script but there is an endeavour to eliminate distraction and create space for sensory engagement, emotion or thought.

You’ve used some amazing materials including grass, glass, limestone, granite, and 45,000-year-old kauri. How do you choose your materials? At times I think it’s the other way round and my materials choose me. It becomes a bit of an obsession. Most of the materials I use are hidden or hard to find and definitely not easy to work with, needing lots of persistence and patience to wrestle into the shapes I see in them. It’s a difficult relationship. There’s a high level of trial and error. They don’t give themselves up easily until, like magic, at the end they claim their form and meaning as if that was always on the cards but I wasn’t in the loop.

What are you working on at the moment? I am experimenting with scale, from miniatures to monuments. I’m also exploring through my digital sculptures how the sense of touch might evolve when relocated to the edges of reality. I’ve been working in extended reality for several years now. My first augmented reality sculpture Native Tongue AR was demonstrated at the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale and launched with CODAworx in New York at A18. I’m expanding this work with the support of Creative NZ and will be presenting it at Sculpture by the Sea in Australia and other exhibitions through 2021.

What has been a standout moment of your career to date? Making my sculpture Zealandia was a recent highlight; and exhibiting this work in Venice in a park on the Grand Canal for six months. The light there is dappled and time goes slow. Zealandia celebrates the emergence and discovery of the eighth continent – a submerged landmass with small islands rising from the Pacific. It is carved from a rare indigenous rock over 100 million years old. I had a wild idea for the twin planes of striated stone to slice through each other, like clashing tectonic plates. In Venice, the sculpture’s geometry rewrites the ‘perfect proportions’ of Leonardo da Vinci’s Renaissance Vitruvian Man. Using new ratios, the upright figure outlines the chromosome X, the blueprint of life, DNA universal to all.

If you could invite any three people living or dead to a dinner party, who would they be? Mary Wollstonecraft, feminist philosopher and poetic writer; Eva Hesse, so we can discuss the ins and outs of sculptural minimalism; and Kamala Harris because the glass ceilings she has untangled make her a leader to follow and watch.

What’s your favourite guilty pleasure? I can’t go past Zen Sushi & Dumplings near The Arts Centre.

Is there anyone you would love to collab with? Where to start? Bridge builders, gardeners, sailmakers, weavers, filmmakers, space scientists. I relish working with technologists, craftspeople and creatives, and anyone open to breaking rules to build new things.

What are you reading or watching at the moment? The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix – can’t beat this strong, witty, and unapologetic chess player and her strategy to win. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante – her beautiful literary style and effortless command of words make books you can’t put down. Hunt for the Wilderpeople directed by Taika Waititi – brilliant, fun and inspiring, woven with threads of Te Ao Māori revealing the interconnectedness of all living and non-living things.

Who’s your personal hero? There are many and my list would start with the rangatira, men and women Māori leaders, who signed the Treaty of Waitangi to bring peace to this land. These and other acts of unrivalled generosity I hold in high regard.

What’s on the cards for 2021? I’m exploring new terrain for hidden gems – ideas and rocks for a solo exhibition in Auckland and for sculpture projects that might end up in the public domain. I’m thinking a lot about inclusive monuments and how these can cross borders, connect people and generate cultural exchange.

gillgatfield.com

Organic Matters, the work of Wellington-based artist Chimp, is one of the most striking features of Christchurch’s Justice and Emergency Services Precinct.

Given the history of street art and the law, did you think it ironic to be asked to paint on the side of the Justice and Emergency Services Precinct? Ha, yes, receiving the initial email was mildly concerning until I had taken in that it was about a potential commission. It was interesting talking to people while painting the mural, from people attending court, to police officers and lawyers and getting all their different perspectives on the project.

You seem to have a real thing for art featuring birds – can you tell us about that? Birds are so connected to our culture and Aotearoa, I think partially because they are our most notable life forms across the country other than us. Because of this they are a powerful subject to build a composition and artwork from.

What’s the significance of tūī and tītipounamu? I experimented with a few different species when creating concepts for Organic Matters but the tūī’s elegant elongated form complemented the long aspect ratio of the wall and its iridescent colours contrasted the rough concrete. I had never painted a tītipounamu prior to this, coming across the species while researching possible birds to include. The rounder form and more delicate feathers juxtaposed the tūī.

READ MORE: Street art in Christchurch

How did you get into creating street art? From making skateboard decks at about 13, I started painting graphics onto them. Lucky enough to have supportive parents, I started painting on the walls of the garage and I found that more satisfying than manufacturing the skateboards. At about 16 I put down the jigsaw and walked outside with spray cans.

Do you still paint skateboards? I just painted two Paper Rain Project decks – I believe they will be available online soon. Occasionally I produce a run of my own boards under my first project name Planetary Longboards.

What was the first bit of street art you created, and was it any good? The first paintings I did with spray paint on the street are long gone, thankfully, as they were terrible. But the important thing is to keep going.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. Seeing graffiti, everything from tags to well-executed detailed letters, I viewed these as abstractions of words into art forms, much harder to do well than you would think. I believe an appreciation for graffiti comes from trying to design and paint it yourself. BMD's work across Wellington city made me question everything, how did they get up there!? How did they think up these characters? Askew One's work has been an influence at different times from his graffiti to abstract portraits, and latest abstract form direction. A constant evolution, but all with hints of the same style.

How does your process work? Once a commission has begun my process is to design from the concept or idea and then develop that into the final. Usually, this takes about three rounds and then I can focus on the painting with a few visual decisions made during the installation.

Where’s your favourite place to go in Christchurch for a hit of creative inspiration? The various post-quake mural festivals and graffiti have made the streets an amazing source of inspiration to walk through, Fiksate gallery has work on show from great urban contemporary artists, and Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū always seems to have great shows - I’m gutted I missed the Bill Hammond exhibition last year.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? What's the harm in asking? Worst they can say is no.

chimpartist.com

After wowing punters on Wellington’s waterfront in August 2020, the wildly popular Van Gogh Alive exhibition is returning to Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch in 2021.

Make no mistake – this is no ordinary art exhibition. Van Gogh’s art has been enjoyed around the world for over a century, but you’ve never experienced Farmhouse in Provence, Wheatfield with Crows or The Starry Night quite like this. Setting aside traditions of walking silently through galleries and observing art in quiet contemplation, Van Gogh Alive is a multi-sensory experience designed to give the feeling of walking right into the Dutch master’s paintings. Visitors are surrounded by a vibrant symphony of light, colour, sound and even fragrance, indulging the senses and bringing visual masterpieces to life as never before.

Wellington: TSB Arena, Tuesday 12 - Thursday 28 Jan

Christchurch: Air Force Museum of New Zealand, Friday 19 Feb - Thursday 11 Mar

Auckland: Spark Arena, Thursday 15 Apr - Thursday 6 May

livenation.co.nz

Witty, naughty and razor-sharp, Jarred Fell is coming to Christchurch to premiere his new show, Again. He talks street magic and sleight of hand with Cityscape.

How did you get into magic? I was 11 years old in Las Vegas, with my parents of course! We saw a magician foot a dollar bill in a magic shop in The STRAT Hotel and I was hooked from then, making my parents take me to David Copperfield and buying every magic book under the sun. My first lesson in magic was from a cross-dresser in Charing Cross station at one of the oldest magic shops in London.

Tricks or illusions? Oooh, I’m more of a trick kinda guy. This show will be tricks, but mainly tricks of the mind. I love to watch illusions but I believe, with magic, you should be able to pick up anything around you and perform an impossible effect. It’s hard to lug around illusions and assistants all the time.

What can we expect to see at your Again performance at the Buskers Festival? Again will be full of post-Covid ideas with a sprinkling of old classics.

What do you hope fans take away from your performance? I truly hope people walk away from this show with a different and positive outlook on the world today as it is, but also with a sense of wonder. We all need a smile and a good laugh, and I aim to give them just that.

What type of preparation goes into your shows? Well, thanks to Covid, I have had a lot of time to prepare and practise sleight of hand. This show will be very rehearsed as I truly have had nothing else to do.

What are you planning for your free time in Christchurch? I’ll be filming around the city landmarks – street magic-style – for my social media, but mainly to explore and see how far Christchurch has come. I love this city.

What’s the best and worst thing about your job? The best thing is most definitely making people laugh and wonder. The worst part is when it’s over.

How did you get into this industry? It was a street comedian magician, Nick Nicholas, who introduced me to the comedy scene. He dared me to get on stage at The Classic in Auckland and, once I hit that stage, I never looked back.

Fave place you’ve performed at? I have loved performing in Christchurch in past years and festivals, but my absolute favourite places would have to be Las Vegas, Los Angeles and my number one - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

What’s a highlight of your career so far? Appearing on NBC’s Bring the Funny on US TV in 2019, getting to meet so many amazing people, and filming at Universal Studios. Second would have to be working the VIPs at Guns N’ Roses’ NZ tour in 2017.

Best way to relax and unwind? I love rock music – any live bands, I’m all about. I also love running and hitting the gym to clear the head.

Are there any other Buskers Festival acts you’re hoping to catch? I love Paul Klaass! He is a hidden gem in circus entertainment in New Zealand – that boy has skills.

Who’s a comedian who gets you rolling on the floor? So many great acts to name. The last people to make me fall off my chair laughing were Rhys Darby and Grant Lobban. More recently, I’ve really been enjoying Kevin Hart’s latest stuff.

Fri 15 - Sun 17 January, Sixty6 on Peterborough, Christchurch Casino
breadandcircus.co.nz

The depictions on Christchurch’s exterior walls are a massive part of the city’s post-quake identity. What's Hot New Zealand talks to a few of the artists who have marked our streets and watched the city evolve.

Christchurch’s rejuvenated inner city has become one of the world’s best canvases for street art. Pulling a positive out of the dramatic and earthquake-forced transformation of the city landscape, the resulting abundance of large-scale art has made Ōtautahi a gigantic outdoor gallery that’s crammed with photo ops. And it’s not just random tagging, either. The city’s transformation of blank walls into stunning works of art has featured a veritable roll call of world-renowned street artists alongside local legends and urban creatives from around Aotearoa.

GEORGE SHAW

George, originally from the UK and having come to Christchurch via Nelson, is one of the masterminds behind street art organiser and commissioner Oi YOU!

How is the Christchurch art scene different now from how it was ten years ago? The property developers are seeing there’s an advantage to having beautiful murals around the city, because it brings people in.

How does Oi YOU! work? Where my skills lie is in the organisational and design side. We work very closely with the artists in the city, like Dcypher and Jacob Yikes. For example, the Riverside mural: the idea came from looking at the wall and thinking about what could go there. Then we talk to the artists.

How did that mural come together? The Riverside mural is an interpretation of a Mondrian painting. I saw the ASB cash dispenser in the bottom right corner of the wall. We couldn’t move that, so we used it as inspiration. We wanted to use that word, ‘resilient’, and the clasped hands show the unity that the city has shown over the last few years. Dcypher and I designed it, then he did the art – I put a bit of block colour on the wall, but Dcypher’s got the technical and artistic skills.

Tell us about some street art that’s inspired you. I think my favourite piece is one from the first Spectrum festival, the Tilt mouths on the back of the casino. I also love [Owen Dippie’s] Ballerina and I love the SALT mural. The Rone piece is just gorgeous, the one on the brick wall. We placed that for one of our first events and I still adore it.

Read our full Q&A with George here.

Joel Hart

Joel is a Christchurch graphic designer and urban artist with a proclivity for creating art around the themes of beauty and decay.

What are the inspirations for your art pieces featuring faces? A lot of what I paint has been influenced from my past work in graphic design and commercial art. I fuse a lot of found photographic elements of texture, shapes, patterns from all things that I am interested in like architecture, design, typography, nature, sports and urban decay, usually collaged together around a human form, that again is collaged together from a mixture of different sources.

Talk us through the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most. One piece I am really fond of is a piece out in Kaiapoi, just over the railway tracks. I really enjoyed working on this piece.

How did you get into creating street art? I was always into drawing as long as I can remember. The style and nature of my work now lends itself to going large. It just came out of wanting to challenge myself to paint larger and larger, really.

Read our full Q&A with Joel here.

Wongi 'Freak' Wilson

Wongi Wilson is a street artist with a reputation for high-quality, large-scale works in prominent positions around Christchurch. He’s a member of the prolific DTR street art crew.

What motivates DTR? Our motivations have changed over the years but for nearly 15 years we've pushed graffiti art productions.

How did you get into creating street art? It started as an interest in the subculture and trying to mimic what I'd seen in magazines, documentaries and movies. Along the way there were a few opportunities to develop, namely through Project Legit but besides that, it was self-motivation.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. The internet wasn't what it is now, even in the mid 2000s, and magazines and books were the main source. I first saw Maclaim Crew in The Source magazine and it blew my mind to see you could use spray paint to create artworks that looked like a photo. I couldn't pick just one work but I've been hugely influenced by Tasso Maclaim and Case Maclaim.

What's the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most? My favourite piece is of my friend who passed away, the whole crew painted a production in his memory and I painted his portrait. It's in the city on Pilgrim Place, best viewed up close but visible from the Colombo Street bridge.

Read our full Q&A with Wongi here.

Dcypher

Another DTR mainstay, Dcypher cut his teeth in Canterbury before spending a decade in Los Angeles working as a freelance artist and developing mural art for TV shows like Sons of Anarchy, Silicon Valley and NCIS.

How did you come up with the name Dcypher? The name came about when I was a teenager. It’s super cliché in hindsight, but once you’ve chosen a name you kinda have to stick to it. Graffiti can be difficult to decipher to the general public so at the time it felt like a good fit.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. There wasn’t a lot of murals, graffiti or street art up in the beginning that was massively inspiring to me, but being a dedicated skateboarder for half my life I was heavily influenced by skateboard graphics. Although, there were a few really talented German graffiti artists that visited Christchurch in the early 2000s that definitely gave me a very different perspective of how far the art of graffiti could be developed in style and technique.

How does your process work? There are obviously different levels and forms of creating graffiti and street art legally or illegally, but from a commercial perspective the process of developing an artwork always varies from client to client. The client usually has input into the design’s outcome. I’ll create a mock-up of what the artwork will look like for the proposed wall, that's it in a nutshell. I won't go into the unsanctioned side of things, although that is a huge part of my development and freedom as an artist over the years.

Talk us through the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most. The latest piece that DTR painted as a crew in the South Frame would be my favourite wall this year. It’s a timeline depicting the development of graffiti and street art with influences of the last four decades as markers of time.

Read our full Q&A with Dcypher here.

Jacob Root

A relative newcomer to the Christchurch street art scene, Jacob Root uses stencils, screens, acrylics and aerosols to create works from small canvases to huge murals.

Why Audrey? The Audrey Hepburn mural I designed to bring a bit of colour pop and inspiration to the corner of St Asaph Street and Manchester Street. I wanted to paint Audrey as she is a well-known figure in history, known for her glamour, acting, and what stuck out to me is that she was a major humanitarian. She was out to help improve the welfare and general happiness of people. I found that this made her really fitting for the subject of my mural because I really love to try inspire people to be happy, keep their heads up and ‘shine so bright’.

How did you get into creating street art? When I was 17, I was really into graphic design and all of that but the thought of office work was pulling me away from it. Later that year I went on a family holiday to Los Angeles where I saw street art and amazing galleries everywhere, which inspired me to have a go at it when I got back home.

What was the first bit of street art you created? The first piece of street art I made was a single-layered stencil of Han Solo on a tiny electricity box on the corner of Madras Street and Edgeware Road. It was awful. I went back a few months later after I'd gotten better and painted Marilyn Monroe which is still there today.

Read our full Q&A with Jacob Root here.

Jacob Yikes

Another part of the DTR puzzle, Christchurch-based illustrator Jacob Yikes is a staple of the city’s street art scene. He also illustrates and paints in his home studio.

How did you get into creating street art? I grew up painting graffiti and have always been into art as a kid. I began painting large works after the earthquakes in 2011 due to the high level of spots and walls to paint.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you. That’s a tricky one, I wouldn’t say looking at street art inspires me to paint it, to be honest. My good friend and crew mate Dcypher has always inspired me though, as he is constantly taking it to another level and is just a boss in general.

How does your process work? For works that are not commissioned I generally just find a spot and suss out whether it can be painted without any problems. Then I pretty much just freestyle whatever is in my head at the time. It’s different for larger walls or commissioned pieces, in which I usually come up with a concept.

Talk us through the piece you’ve done in Christchurch that you love the most. Perhaps the Alice in Videoland wall. I have switched up my style over the last wee while and have been working in my studio more than the street, but I have some big works lined up for the new year that are a lot different from my older ones and I like the direction they are heading. I’m my own biggest critic.

Read our full Q&A with Jacob Yikes here.

Rone

Melbourne artist Rone’s Worcester Street artwork on Cathedral Junction is one of our faves.

What inspired the work? I wanted the raw brick to blend with Teresa Oman’s beauty. To show a contrast of beauty and decay. The fern is a nod to New Zealand’s history.

How does your process work? I invented a method for doing huge works that I have since shared with other artists. I call it the ‘overlay method’. I overlay my design onto a photograph of the surface I want it on and let the surface become my reference point. If the surface doesn’t have any markings already, you can make marks on it before taking the photo. Use random lines, symbols, numbers or letters. I send the overlaid photo to my phone and check the reference points as I paint.

Read our full Q&A with Rone here.

Chimp

Organic Matters, the work of Wellington-based artist Chimp, is one of the most striking features of Christchurch’s Justice and Emergency Services Precinct.

Given the history of street art and the law, did you think it ironic to be asked to paint on the side of the Justice and Emergency Services Precinct? Ha, yes, receiving the initial email was mildly concerning until I had taken in that it was about a potential commission. It was interesting talking to people while painting the mural, from people attending court, to police officers and lawyers and getting all their different perspectives on the project.

You seem to have a real thing for art featuring birds – can you tell us about that? Birds are so connected to our culture and Aotearoa, I think partially because they are our most notable life forms across the country other than us. Because of this they are a powerful subject to build a composition and artwork from. I experimented with a few different species when creating concepts for Organic Matters.

How did you get into creating street art? From making skateboard decks at about 13, I started painting graphics onto them. Lucky enough to have supportive parents, I started painting on the walls of the garage and I found that more satisfying than manufacturing the skateboards. At about 16 I put down the jigsaw and walked outside with spray cans.

Do you still paint skateboards? I just painted two Paper Rain Project decks – I believe they will be available online soon. Occasionally I produce a run of my own boards under my first project name Planetary Longboards.

What was the first bit of street art you created, and was it any good? The first paintings I did with spray paint on the street are long gone, thankfully, as they were terrible. But the important thing is to keep going.

Where’s your favourite place to go in Christchurch for a hit of creative inspiration? The various post-quake mural festivals and graffiti have made the streets an amazing source of inspiration to walk through, Fiksate gallery has work on show from great urban contemporary artists, and Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū always seems to have great shows on.

Read our full Q&A with Chimp here.

What has Oi YOU! been up to in the last few years? We organised Rise in 2014 and Spectrum in 2015 and 2016. They were absolutely huge festivals, we worked too hard and we burned out. We did some more stuff around the country including a smaller festival in Tauranga. A few years ago Christchurch Airport approached us to do several artworks over a few years. We also did the 3D-style mural in SALT District, the one that says ‘SALT Ōtautahi’. We’ve done some Antarctic-themed murals with the Antarctic Centre and a couple of works at Riverside Market. Ōtākaro Limited got one in the south frame on Durham and Mollett Street which talks to the development of graffiti into street art. It depicts trains in New York and the four decades of becoming what we know as street art.

What does that involve? A lot of people don’t know all this lovely street art wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for a bunch of young people in New York graffiting on trains back in the day.

How is the Christchurch art scene different now from how it was ten years ago? The street art in the city is starting to appear and not be replaced. The property developers are seeing there’s a huge advantage to having beautiful murals around the city, because it brings people in.

READ MORE: Street art in Christchurch

What’s your art creation process? Where my skills lie is in the organisational and design side. We work very closely with the artists in the city, like Dcypher and Jacob Yikes. For example, the Riverside mural: the idea came from looking at the wall and thinking about what could go there. Then we talk to the artists, make up some designs and take it from there.

How did that mural come together? The Riverside mural is an interpretation of a Mondrian painting. I saw the ASB cash dispenser in the bottom right corner of the wall. We couldn’t move that, so we used it as inspiration. We wanted to use that word, ‘resilient’, and the clasped hands show the unity that the city has shown over the last few years. Dcypher and I designed it, then he did the art – I put a bit of block colour on the wall, but Dcypher’s got the technical and artistic skills.

Tell us about a piece of street art that’s inspired you.I think my favourite piece in the city is one from the first Spectrum, the Tilt mouths on the back of the casino. I also love [Owen Dippie’s] Ballerina and I love the SALT mural. There’s so much good stuff in the city. The Rone piece is just gorgeous, the one on the brick wall. We placed that for one of our first events and I still adore it.

Where’s your favourite place to go in Christchurch for a:

Morning coffee? I love grabbing a coffee at Riverside, it’s just got such a good vibe to it.

Post-painting beer? Smash Palace for sure. It’s such an iconic Christchurch venue. That takes some beating, in my opinion.

Hit of creative inspiration? I’d love to say it’s while walking in the headlands around Taylors Mistake, but to be honest with you, my inspiration, the best ideas I have seem to arrive at 3:00 in the morning

streetart.co.nz

We round up great films, reads, shows to bingewatch, new albums to treat your ears to and a couple of decent podcasts to enlighten.

Watching

Film picks thanks to Lumière Cinemas' Nick Paris.

Misbehaviour Well-behaved women rarely make history, and in London 1970, Sally Alexander (Keira Knightley) is on the brink of misbehaving her way right into notoriety. Fed up with the constant disadvantages that come with being a woman, and sent into particular fury by the upcoming Miss World pageant, Sally and her friends in the newly-formed women’s liberation movement hatch a plan to disrupt the pageant and finally shake the world awake. A brilliant and witty true story.

The Dry Based on the bestselling novel by Australian author Jane Harper, The Dry follows Federal Agent Aaron Falk (Eric Bana), who arrives in his hometown for the first time in decades to attend the funeral of his best friend, Luke. It’s not a straightforward homecoming – Falk left Kiewarra under complicated circumstances. As the community struggles under severe drought, Falk and the local detective dig into the circumstances of Luke’s death.

Litigante Silvia is a lawyer and single mother in Bogotá, Colombia, struggling to cope with a dying mother and raising her son alone amid a developing work scandal. Litigante is a deeply personal work from director Franco Lolli, who cast his cousin (Carolina Sanin) as Silvia, and his own mother (Leticia Gómez) as Silvia’s mother. Gómez was in remission from her own battle with cancer while playing the role of a woman dying of lung cancer. A moving, observational-style film full of emotion.

Listening

Imugi 이무기 – Dragonfruit Auckland-based electronic-pop duo Imugi 이무기 have been making waves with their poetic stream-of-consciousness style, and have now finally dropped their eagerly-awaited second EP, Dragonfruit. Producer and synthist Carl Ruwhiu and singer Yery Cho have created a dreamy, urban sound that differs between each track and comes together to form an enthralling whole. Dragonfruit is an immersive and polished album that will make a first-class addition to your summer playlist.

Fat Freddy’s Drop – Lock-In We’re sure no Kiwi summer soundtrack would feel quite complete without a healthy dose of Fat Freddy’s, and this year we have a new taste of old classics from the legendary seven-piece Wellington band. Recorded in the Michael Fowler Centre during lockdown, this special documentation of a moment in time gives a new edge to classics such as ‘Soldier’, ‘Hope’ and ‘This Room’, and test drives some new material in the making. Lock-In is guaranteed to send us cruising and rockin’ into summer.

Sam Smith – Love Goes Known for rich, soaring vocals that hit you right in the feels, Sam Smith’s latest album is a foray into the pain of heartbreak, but not without its moments of joy and defiance. Melancholy, reflective piano and strings blend seamlessly with more upbeat, even cheeky lyrics, for a record that is sure to sweep you up in a wave of emotion.

Reading

Book picks thanks to University Book Shop Canterbury's Pene Whitty.

Llew Summers : Body and Soul by John Newton I’ve been a fan of Christchurch sculptor Llew Summers since the late 1980s, when I first started appreciating his sculptures around the city. This book takes us from Llew’s beginnings as a self-taught artist to a highly successful sculptor with works gracing many spaces around New Zealand. Illustrated with over 200 beautiful photographs, the book is a must-have for fans of New Zealand art.

The Tally Stick by Carl Nixon This is in my to-be-read pile, as my colleague has been raving about this since it came out. In April 1978, an English family on holiday in New Zealand crash off a treacherous West Coast road. The story is split into dual timelines: the immediate aftermath of the crash and the struggles of the children who survived it; and 30 years later, when the children’s aunt gets a call about remains being found. A compulsive and chilling novel.

All Our Shimmering Skies by Trent Dalton Having devoured Boy Swallows Universe, I have been looking forward to reading Trent Dalton’s new novel, which people say is imbued with just as much magic as his debut. Set in Darwin, Australia during World War II, it follows Molly, the young daughter of a gravedigger, running for her life as Japanese bombs rain down around her. She seeks a sorcerer to reverse a curse she believes he put on her family.

Podcasts

The Shit Show The world can be an absolute shit show. If you feel you need help understanding wtf is going on, tune in to The Shit Show for some real talk on navigating the madness, with laughs along the way from the straight-talking Kiwi lasses behind @shityoushouldcareabout.

Armchair Expert A weekly podcast by actor, director and writer Dax Shepard and Emmy-nominated Monica Padman, interviewing different experts each week, including celebrities, journalists and academics about the challenges and experiences that shaped them.

BINGEWATCHING

Ratched A prequel to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, telling the origin story of villainous nurse Mildred Ratched (Sarah Paulson) and her infamous rise to the top of the asylum food chain. Stylish and sumptuous, this chilling, noir-ish series shows us what made Nurse Ratched one of the greatest villains of all time. Watch on Netflix.

Equal This four-part docudrama series delves into landmark events and pivotal figures in LGBTQ+ history. Featuring members of the LGBTQ+ community, including Samira Wiley, Cheyenne Jackson and Anthony Rapp, Equal covers the dangerous lives led by activists who just wanted to be allowed to be themselves. Watch on HBO Max.

Adam Ruins Everything Ever wondered why people are so damn interested in ‘who’ a celebrity is wearing, or how the hell America’s Electoral College came about? Comedian Adam Conover is here to reveal how wrong we are about, well, everything. Watch on Netflix.

Appropriately themed ‘navigating love’, NZ Opera’s 2021 season is set to make us fall in love with opera all over again with a variety of operas in different sizes, styles and locations.

The big hits for the year are set to be Mozart and Da Ponte’s The Marriage of Figaro, and (m)Orpheus – a very Kiwi-Pasifika reimagining of the Greek tragedy Orpheus and Eurydice.

January and February will see a series of open-air operas in Wellington Botanic Garden, Auckland’s Glover Park, and Hamilton Gardens. NZ Opera will mark the start of the academic year with Opera in Schools performances of Don Pasquale – a classic tale of love, scheming and comeuppance.

In March, Tim Finn and Célestine Hitura Vaite’s Ihitai ‘Avei’a Star Navigator tells the story of two navigators from very different worlds – a Tahitian priest and a naval officer – comparing experiences aboard a cramped scientific vessel in the Pacific Ocean.

In April, the ultra-intimate The Human Voice returns for one last run, this time at the Dunedin Arts Festival.

June and July are all about The Marriage of Figaro, which will tour multiple dates in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Then in September and October, NZ Opera will perform (m)Orpheus in Auckland and Wellington.

nzopera.com

Benee and The Beths were the big winners on Sunday night, between them taking home the top prizes for Single of the Year, Best Solo Artist, Album of the Year and Best Group, and several other gongs.

With this wicked lineup of Kiwi artists on the loose, the all-Kiwi 2020/21 summer festival scene is looking very promising indeed.

Te Pukaemi o te Tau (Album of the Year): The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers

Te Waiata Tōtahi o te Tau (Single of the Year): Benee - 'Supalonely'

Te Roopu Toa (Best Group): The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers

Te Kaipuoro Takitahi Toa (Best Solo Artist): Benee - Stella & Steve

Te Kaituhura Puoro Toa o te Tau (Breakthrough Artist of the Year): Jawsh685

Te Māngai Pāho Te Kaipuoro Māori Toa (Best Māori Artist): Maimoa

Te Kaipuoro Arotini Toa (Best Pop Artist): Benee

Te Kaipuoro Manohi Toa (Best Alternative Artist): The Beths

Te Kaipuoro Awe Toa (Best Soul/RnB Artist): Haz & Miloux

Te Kaipuoro Hipihope Toa (Best Hip Hop Artist): Church & AP

Te Kaipuoro Taketake Toa (Best Roots Artist): L.A.B

Te Māngai Pāho Mana Reo Award: Mōhau

Te Kaipuoro Tāhiko Toa (Best Electronic Artist): Lee Mvtthews

Te Kaipuoro Rakapioi Toa (Best Rock Artist): City of Souls

Te Kaipuoro Kairangi Toa (Best Worship Artist): Mōhau

Te Kaipuoro Inamata Toa (Best Classical Artist): Andrew Beer & Sarah Watkins

Te Kōwhiri o te Nuinga (People's Choice Award): L.A.B.

Te Toa Hoko Teitei (Highest Selling Artist): Six60

Te Rikoata Marakerake o te Tau (NZ On Air Radio Airplay Record of the Year): Drax Project

Tohu Tutuki o te Ao (Recorded Music NZ International Achievement): Benee and Jawsh 685

aotearoamusicawards.nz

With The Sleeping Beauty arriving in Christchurch next week, we're amped on ballet and already looking forward to what next year will bring us. Luckily for Kiwi ballet lovers, RNZB has just announced its show schedule for 2021.

From February, Royal New Zealand Ballet will bring hope, magic, emotion and a little bit of mischief to theatres across Aotearoa - created by some of the country's, and the world’s, best-loved dance masterminds.

Giselle

May 12 – June 9

RNZB’s immensely popular production of Giselle, one of ballet’s timeless classics, returns. Stolen moments, secret passion, and innocence betrayed - former RNZB Artistic Director Ethan Stiefel and distinguished principal dancer, director and choreographer Johan Kobborg’s acclaimed production of Giselle first toured New Zealand in 2012 to sell-out audiences, returning in 2016 to great acclaim. Performed in China, the USA, the UK and Italy, and turned into a feature film by director Toa Fraser, RNZB’s Giselle has captivated audiences and wowed critics. Orchestra Wellington, the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra will accompany performances in these centres, with a recording by Orchestra Wellington accompanying shows in Dunedin, Napier and Palmerston North.

The Firebird and Paquita

July 29 – September 2

July closes with a powerful new double bill: a new commission from Choreographer-in-Residence Loughlan Prior of The Firebird, together with Russian classic Paquita.

The Firebird, first staged in Paris in 1910, changed the direction of ballet. The spine-tingling grandeur of Stravinsky’s iconic score, combining sinuous melodies spiked with orientalism and shimmering orchestration, created an exotic fairy tale universe full of wild enchantment that was worlds away from the classics of Russian ballet. Prior, with designer Tracy Grant Lord, has reimagined The Firebird for a different time: one in which the natural world is threatened, and humanity is staring into the abyss of extinction. As we all now know, humanity can rise from the ashes and forge a new world.

Paquita is a dazzling romp in which the dancers’ classical technique takes centre stage – sparkling tutus inspired by Russian master jeweller Fabergé, fleet footwork, soaring leaps, turns like spinning tops, and a finale which leaves the audience as breathless and exhilarated as the dancers themselves.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

October 28 – December 11

The Ryman Healthcare Season of A Midsummer Night’s Dream will transport audiences to a fantastical world of dazzling dance, music and enchantment. Lovers, fairies, mischievous sprites and moonlight conspire in Shakespeare’s classic tale. Created for RNZB by one of the most sought-after choreographers on the international stage, Liam Scarlett, A Midsummer Night’s Dream was an overnight sensation at its premiere, with capacity audiences on its first New Zealand tour.

The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra will perform Mendelssohn’s effervescent music live with the RNZB in Wellington and will tour with the company to accompany performances in Christchurch and Auckland, conducted by RNZB Principal Conductor Hamish McKeich.

Tutus on Tour

February 26 – March 11

The ever-popular Tutus on Tour, presented in association with Ryman Healthcare, is a chance for the RNZB to reconnect with ballet lovers all over Aotearoa. Picking up where the company left off when lockdown happened a year earlier, the dancers travel late at night and early in the morning to perform as far across the country as possible. There are 16 stops in 2021; the largest number since RNZB launched Tutus on Tour RNZB in 2017, and the production will once again bring some of New Zealand’s most beloved and historic theatres to life.

The stunning mixed bill of work will deliver two familiar favourites in 2021 – the ‘White Swan’ pas de deux from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and Jules Perrot’s Pas de Quatre. It will also feature two brand new ballets – Andrea Schermoly’s Within Without and Sarah Foster-Sproull’s Ultra Folly – both of which were ready to be performed in 2020’s cancelled Venus Rising season and which the RNZB couldn’t bear to leave behind.

rnzb.org.nz