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Nau Mai, Haere Mai
Mā te pohewa mā te auaha hoki, ka whakapuaki ngā kura e huna ana. With imagination and creativity a hidden jewel can be revealed. Welcome to Toi Ōtautahi.

Nau Mai, Welcome to Toi Ōtautahi – The virtual arts office for Ōtautahi, Christchurch.

Christchurch has produced some of this country’s best known and most celebrated artists and artworks, and Ōtautahi continues to be a place where innovation and radical creativity flourishes. We are unapologetic supporters and champions for the significant role the city and its creatives have played, and continue to play in Aotearoa.

We want this site to celebrate all that is creative in the city and its wider environs and we want you to be part of it. Whether you’re a creative, an organisation, an audience member, a supporter or a visitor to this city, let us know what we can do to help make Ōtautahi the best city for creativity in Aotearoa.

Latest News

The Inaugural Ōtautahi Object Book Fair

For the first time, Object Book Fair travels south to Ōtautahi Christchurch to take residence in Sir Miles Warren Gallery. Join us for a satellite celebration of an object of design – the book.
Tiny Fest INTER x CHANGE Begins Today
From performances taking place aboard a Metro bus to activations unfolding throughout the Bus Interchange, TinyFest invites you to encounter…
Dance Cinema Headlines Matariki at The Arts Centre
The centrepiece of this year’s Matariki programme at Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre is an extraordinary live arts…
Events & Exhibitions | 19 June 2026
Tails from the Coasts – Canterbury Museum Pop Up
Enter a fascinating world of flying squirrels, bearcats that smell of popcorn, fish that can climb trees and the world’s…
Visual Arts
Exhibition | 3 June 2026
Bodega Mart by Isaac Tait Coming in June to The Shed Gallery
The Shed Gallery is set to transform into a surreal suburban dairy this June with Bodega Mart, a new solo…
Visual Arts
Workshops | 18 June 2026
Final Day to Register for Shifting the Stream: Rethinking Arts Investment
Shifting the Stream: Rethinking Arts Investment is a free forum and networking session in Ōtautahi Christchurch on Friday 3 July…
Calendar of Events
02.05 – 28.06 2026

Home Studio at Objectspace

10:00 AM
Home Studio explores the blurred boundaries between domestic and working spaces, bringing together artists who produce work from, within, or for…
Sir Miles Warren Gallery
07.06 – 09.07 2026

Art in Fashion – Rosalie Todd

10:00 AM
Art in Fashion is a celebration of the iconic and distinctive couture by local fashionista and legend Rosalie Todd. 
Chamber Gallery, Rangiora
22.06 2026

National Flash Fiction Day

5:30 PM – 7:30 pm
Ōtautahi National Flash Fiction Day is the local celebration of NZ National Flash Fiction Day – short fiction on the…
Tautoru TSB Space, Level One, Tūranga
23.06 – 25.06 2026

Wonder – Hagley Theatre School

7:30 PM
Funny, surreal and deeply moving, Wonder blurs the line between the magical and the real where everyday objects come alive,…
Iasaac Theatre Royal

SPOTLIGHT ON: Ōtautahi in the News

SPOTLIGHT ON: Ōtautahi in the News

The movie theatres of Christchurch, ranked and reviewed by Alex Casey of The Spinoff.

“From the cavernous multiplexes to the charming boutique offerings, Christchurch is a cinema-lover’s paradise. But which reigns supreme?

Not to gallop in on my high horse to ‘Conquest of Paradise’ like everyone else in this smug city, but Christchurch might just be the cinema capital of the country right now (stop screaming Wellington and let me explain). First of all, with 10 resplendent cinemas servicing a population of 410,000, Christchurch City boasts a rate of 41,000 people per cinema (PPC) – stronger than Auckland (52,000 PPC) and even Wellington (42,000 PPC). ”

Click here to read Alex’s (always) funny review of the Top Ten Cinemas in town!

Opportunities
Workshops | 18 June 2026

Final Day to Register for Shifting the Stream: Rethinking Arts Investment

Shifting the Stream: Rethinking Arts Investment is a free forum and networking session in Ōtautahi Christchurch on Friday 3 July 2026.
Funding | 15 May 2026
2026 CLNZ | NZSA Secondary School Leavers Scholarship Open Now
Applications for the CLNZ | NZSA Secondary School Leavers Scholarship are now open.
Casting Call for Fourth Year Honours Degree Student Film
Casting Call for Fourth Year Honours Student Film – Check out the roles available
Opportunities & Proposals | 6 April 2026
Expressions of Interest for Pasifika Production Internship Pilot
The Court Theatre and Creative NZ are calling for expressions of interest for the Pasifika Production Internship Pilot, running from…
Pasifika
Opportunities & Proposals | 31 March 2026
The Finding Persephone Poetry Competition
The Finding Persephone Poetry Competition is looking for poetry that explores what femininity means to you.  All gender identities are…
Poetry
Opportunities & Proposals | 31 March 2026
Changing Threads | Contemporary Textile Fibre Art Awards
Entries for inclusion in the Changing Threads National Contemporary Textile and Fibre Awards are now open until the 23rd April.
Textile
Education and Courses
Courses and Classes | 24 May 2026

Mythical Ceramic Plate Painting

Come and learn how to paint on ceramic plates inspired by mythical creatures at Blooms and Brushes art studio in Rangiora.
Workshops | 17 May 2026
Toi Ōtautahi Wednesday Workshop – Creative Copyright, IP & AI 
Who Owns Your Art? Creative Copyright, IP & AI with Karen Workman from the New Zealand Copyright Commission – Free…
Education & Courses | 14 May 2026
Writing for Children and Teens Workshop
Risingholme’s upcoming two-day introductory course is for anyone who wants to write books and stories for young readers.
Literature
Courses and Classes | 8 April 2026
Genius Textural Canvas Art
Immerse yourself in this 2-session course on textural painting at Blooms & Brushes art studio in Rangiora.
Visual Arts
Courses and Classes | 5 March 2026
Circability Circus Classes
Join a weekly circus class and discover the delight in the joy and connection circus brings to people’s lives!

The Big Idea’s Toi Ōtautahi Dispatch – May

The Big Idea’s Toi Ōtautahi Dispatch – May

Toi Ōtautahi Dispatch is a new monthly column and partnership with The Big Idea. Each month we will bring you a roundup of what’s happening in the arts across Christchurch.  What’s going on, what’s been going on, and what’s coming up in our awesome city this month!

Click here to read the May edition!

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