Arts and Culture

Waitakere has always had the reputation as an artist's hideaway, many finding inspiration in the Waitakere Ranges and the wild coastline. Today, the Bohemian image has been replaced by that of a strong and vibrant arts population, spread throughout the whole city. 

Waitakere City is home to many of the country's finest professional painters, photographers, sculptors, writers and musicians, and to a wide spectrum of recreational artists working in every medium. 

The Council is an active patron of the arts, organising community arts events such as the Going West Books and Writers Festival, the Trash to Fashion Awards and assisting Lopdell House Gallery.  This community is supported by a strong arts infrastructure centred on Lopdell House, and around two active Community Arts Councils serving the Henderson and Titirangi areas.

Rewarewa Bridge

A new arts hub for the Henderson area and wider is being developed at the Corban Estate on Great North Road.

In 2001 the Council received a special acknowledgment from Creative New Zealand, for its “ongoing commitment to the arts”.

Partnerships with the Tangata Whenua (indigenous people of the region) are reflected in projects such as the Arataki Centre carving and in the roles taken by Maori in City arts events. 

The gallery at Lopdell House in Titirangi features a number of exhibitions throughout the year. On the last Sunday of each month, an arts and crafts fair is held in Titirangi Village where the region's craftspeople gather to socialise and sell their wares. The strong focus on the local crafts community is emphasised by the range of pottery and other handcrafts offered for sale in shops throughout the City. 

The weaving and carving skills of the Polynesian people, the culture and folklore of the Asian and Indian communities, and the music and dance of the Croatian, Dalmatian and Dutch settlers, provide a rich cultural background for the numerous events held in the City. 

The Council's commitment to the arts received national recognition in July when 1999, Creative New Zealand's annual Creative Places Awards presented the Judges Citation for the Rewarewa Footbridge. 

Arts/Design practice

Waitakere City wrote its first arts policy in 1991 and subsequently employed an arts administrator and community arts co-ordinator. 

This policy is being revisited and revised over the this year.

In 1994, a one-day seminar on Sustainability and the Arts brought forward the notion of ‘the artist as visionary in creating public space’. 

It was followed in the summer of ‘94/95 with a sculpture symposium called The EcoArt Symposium. 

In 1998 the city, in partnership with Creative New Zealand, hosted the Sites Pacific Symposium; a national event which focussed on the role of the arts/design collaboration process and its impact on shaping the city.

These events cemented a new focus for the Council on the artist as collaborator in designing a sustainable city. 

From this point, there has been a consistent arts advocacy voice in Waitakere City Council’s decision-making about the potential for collaborative arts participation in all city development projects. A strong practice of involving artists in all city projects is now in place.