Joost de Bruin and Larissa McMillan are urging locals to visit the Hundertwasser Art Centre and the Wairau Māori Art Gallery with the introduction of discounted ticket prices.
Photo / Tania Whyte
Joost de Bruin and Larissa McMillan are urging locals to visit the Hundertwasser Art Centre and the Wairau Māori Art Gallery with the introduction of discounted ticket prices.
Photo / Tania Whyte
The Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Māori Art Gallery is offering discounted ticket prices for Whangārei locals as it strives to regain its community connection.
Locals can visit Wairau Māori Art Gallery and the Afforested Roof for $5 - half of the $10 visitor fee.
The ticket price for the whole facility remains $20 for locals and $25 for visitors.
“I find that very important, to give Whangārei residents a discount because we are part of the Whangārei community,” new Hundertwasser Art Centre director Joost de Bruin said.
“We want to invite the locals to come and visit us.
“Also, the [Whangārei District] Council has been very supportive of this project, in terms of financial contributions, so I think there should be something in it for Whangārei residents.”
The new tickets were introduced after feedback from guests, asking for separate tickets for the roof “because people see it as part of their cityscape”.
“We are most thrilled about this ticket price, that we can offer a more accessible experience for locals and families to come see our exhibitions more often. We are not just for international tourists.
“Sometimes, I fear that is what people think – that we are a museum for international tourists. But we are much more than that.”
De Bruin wants to introduce more public programming - such as seminars and workshops - to allow people to do art and learn about the environment.
Joost de Bruin wants the Hundertwasser to live up to its potential. Photo / Tania Whyte
The role has been quite a career change for de Bruin, who was an Associate Professor of Media and Communications at Victoria University in Wellington for 18 years.
Two years ago, de Bruin moved to Whangārei because the mother of his children is from here.
“I was a volunteer here before I even applied for the role [of director]. And there was no plan behind that.
“It was a new hobby for me. I was interested,” he said.
“When the opportunity arose for this job, it allowed me to turn my hobby into my full-time job.”
There are several touchpoints connections between his new role, and past experiences.
When de Bruin was president of Dutch Communities New Zealand, he was involved in the establishment of the Te Awahou Nieuwe Stroom community hub in Foxton.
This was a partnership between the Dutch migrant community and the local Māori community.
“All these professional-personal connections meant that the stars aligned for me in this job.”
He sees his new role as making sure the art centre lives up to its potential – especially after its rough start with Covid-19 and weather events.
“I believe that potential is enormous.”
Director of the Wairau Māori Art Gallery, Larissa McMillan, said the ticket initiatives showed the centre was agile and adaptive to community feedback.
De Bruin and McMillan thought having separate tickets for Wairau Māori Art Gallery and Afforested Roof, and a discount for locals, were good ideas.
Larissa McMillan outside the Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Māori Art Gallery. Photo / Tania Whyte
The Wairau Māori Art Gallery opens its Lisa Reihana exhibition - He Wai Ngungara – Nomads of the Sea - today. It runs until November 5.
Reihana is one of New Zealand’s leading contemporary artists. Her work has been displayed at the Venice Biennale, which McMillan describes as the “Olympic Games of art”.
As part of the exhibition, the public will get a sneak peek of the Matariki Puanga Dawn event, which will run between 6am and 9.30am today. The event is an opportunity to showcase all facets of the iconic building.
