Art of Conversation series 2, 2023. Image courtesy of Arts Out East.
Art of Conversation: Curated by Jennifer Cheuk
The art of conversation is back for 2024, with a third rendition of artists and venues. The Art of Conversation is a series highlighting artists who share connections to the East Auckland area. Each invited artist will talk about their work and their practice in their favorite local café. This free series aims to break the formal nature of artist talks and support local businesses. All we ask is that when you attend, you purchase a hot or cold drink to support the chosen local business. Think good vibes, great art chat, and supporting locals with a nice beverage. This will run throughout the months of November - December, 2024.
This years focus is underrepresented forms of artmaking, such as comics, animation and zinemaking with an aim to uplift BIPOC communities. The idea is to platform alternative ways of storytelling and thinking about arts beyond traditionally Western perspectives. The proposed artists will use different mediums of art to build connections, educate others and celebrate unique identities and experiences.
Check out the series, make sure the dates are in your diary.
Bareeka Vrede (Black Creatives Aotearoa)
Saturday 16 November, 2 pm
The Gallery Cafe35 Uxbridge Road, Howick, Auckland
Lindsey de Roos
Saturday 23 November, 1.30pm
Daisy Chang31 Picton Street, Howick, Auckland
Shruthi Priya Balaji and Anndivya Ram (Migrant Maharanis)
Sunday 24 November, 1.30pm
Gorkha Eastern beach1 Eastern Beach Road, Auckland.
Hannah Ireland
Saturday 30 November, 12pm
Te Tuhi Cafe21 William Roberts Road, Pakuranga, Auckland
Allan Xia
Sunday 15 December, 1pm
Rombus35 Cook Street, Howick, Auckland 2014
About Jennifer Cheuk
Jennifer Cheuk is a researcher, editor and curator. She is the Founder of Rat World magazine, a research archivist for Satellite's Aotearoa Asian Arts Archive and is highly involved in the theatre community as a reviewer. Overall, Jennifer is passionate about community arts practices, alternative forms of storytelling, and curating more accessible spaces for people to experience arts and writing. She has previously worked as the Guest Curator for the New Zealand Young Writers Festival and the Programme Manager for the Auckland Writers Festival.
This year’s artists include: Shruthi Priya Balaji and Anndivya Ram (Migrant Maharanis), Lindsey de Roos, Allan Xia, Bareeka Vrede (Black Creatives Aotearoa) and Hannah Ireland. Dates and East Auckland locations to be announced.
About the creatives
Bareeka Vrede (Black Creatives Aotearoa)
Bareeka Vrede, on behalf of Black Creatives of Aotearoa (BCA), is a community arts facilitator. As part of BCA, she has been a part of teams that have created writing workshops with acclaimed international and national authors, lead the BLM archive, hosted BCAs bookclub,co-curator for the Black Ink book stand at Auckland CBD library, Co-edited the Black Ink Zine, and more recently spoken about the history of black literature at the Auckland Writers Festival.
Lindsey de Roos
Lindsey de Roos is an artist and arts worker based in Tāmaki Makaurau, originally from Cape Town, South Africa. She employs a multidisciplinary approach with a variety of materials, focusing on social activism and exchange. Alongside her artistic practice, she is an art documenter and writer. Recent works include Defining the Means at Window Gallery, and What Are You?, a co-authored contribution to Everything That Moves, Moves Through Another. Through her work, Lindsey aims to engage with complex narratives and foster dialogue around identity and equity.
Shruthi Priya Balaji and Anndivya Ram (Migrant Maharanis)
Migrant Maharanis is a zine collective and activist community that creates zines and digital content focused on empowering South Asian voices to share their cultural experiences in a space that promotes progressive ideas, self-expression and individuality.
Hannah Ireland
Hannah Ireland (Ngāti Hine, Ngāpuhi) is a Tāmaki Makaurau-based artist who came to prominence for her portraits reversed-painted on glass and has since worked on salvaged windows, translucent silk and stitched canvas to produce captivating and elusive portraiture. Ireland uses paint as a mode of storytelling; her practice playfully narrates a personal theatre reflective of different social arenas. Ireland holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Hons) from the University of Auckland. Hannah Ireland is represented by Laree Payne in Kirikiriroa (Hamilton) and Jhana Millers Gallery in Pōneke (Wellington).
Allan Xia
Allan Xia is an 1.5 generation Chinese New Zealand visual storyteller whose work span a broad spectrum of creative mediums and disciplines such as illustration, comics and game development. Outside of his creative practice, Allan is also the founder and director of Chromacon – a biennial Indie Arts Festival based in New Zealand.