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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
Events & Exhibitions, Festival | 21 June 2026

Lyttelton Arts Festival Lights up the Dark this July

Returning to bring some joy and inspiration this winter, The Lyttelton Arts Festival, presents a programme that spans: laugh-out-loud comedy, bold new theatre, contemporary dance, live music, spoken word and poetry, hands-on workshops, films and family-friendly shows.
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.…
Events & Exhibitions | 21 June 2026
Graffiti Art Walking Tour With Ikarus
Street Art
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
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
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
07.07 2026

Happy Moments by Len Lye Book Launch

5:30 PM – 7:00 pm
Scorpio Books, the Len Lye Foundation and Atuanui Press warmly welcome you to the launch of Happy Moments by Len Lye, edited by Roger Horrocks.
Scorpio Books

SPOTLIGHT ON: Ōtautahi in the News

SPOTLIGHT ON: Ōtautahi in the News

The Press’s Victoria Meakin reports that it’s the final curtain call for Christchurch’s Blue Ballerina mural.

Christchurch residents have just weeks to catch a final glimpse of the Blue Ballerina – one of the artistic symbols of the city’s early post-quake resurgence, on the back of the Isaac Theatre Royal.

Painted by Kawerau-born artist Owen Dippie for the inaugural RISE street art festival in 2014, the artwork is already partially obscured by The Piano performing arts centre, but will be completely covered over due to essential building work.

While it will remain intact on the concrete stage house wall of the theatre, it will disappear behind cladding, needed as part of repairs following water ingress.

Opportunities

Colours of the Wind – Art Workshop at The White Room

In this workshop you will create artworks with coloured pencils in a calm space with Peter Rees.
Opportunities & Proposals | 21 June 2026
Get Your Work on Photosynthesis’ Walls
Photosynthesis is seeking photographic projects for our two upcoming exhibition seasons.  
Photography
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…
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.
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
Education and Courses
Courses and Classes | 21 June 2026

Paper Craft Workshop: Bookmaking Surprises!

In this creative workshop we will take inspiration from the artefacts in the UC Teece Museum and design our own books full of surprising design features. Learn how to create fold-outs, lift flaps, and cut-outs to your own accordion hard-cover book
Workshops | 10 June 2026
Mahi Ngātahi – Navigating Cultural Engagement in the Arts – A Toi Ōtautahi 2026 Arts Workshop
July’s Toi Ōtautahi Arts Workshop provides practical guidance on how to respectfully engage with mana whenua and tangata whenua in…
Workshops | 21 June 2026
Natural Dye Workshop
This workshop allows you the opportunity to dip your toe into the world of botanical dyes and learn about the…

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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