A new community space – with a vision to help make Southland’s art scene more visible, valued and vibrant – is now open in Invercargill, thanks to Arts Murihiku.
Arts Murihiku chair Rebecca Amundsen says Whare Taupua – The Rest Room Community Arts Space in Invercargill will provide a dedicated space where the arts can grow in Southland.
Whare Taupua, located at 34 Forth Street, will be a dedicated arts place for community exhibitions, meetings, workshops, small gigs and performances, practice and rehearsal space, short-term working artist space, storage, temporary office use and more. It will be available for use by people and groups across the sector and will be low-cost, ensuring there are as few barriers as possible.
“Opening the community arts space has been a long time in the making, but our team is hugely excited we are now able to offer arts practitioners here in the south a space in which they can continue to grow and build upon their creativity,” she says.
The project began in 2022, but faced delays including the Covid-19 pandemic and challenges associated with renovating the space.
The initiative was given a huge boost in the form of a successful application to Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage’s Regeneration Fund.
Arts Murihiku received $448,000 in funding from the ministry, with the money earmarked to support the organisation’s Pathways For the Arts in Murihiku initiative. Pathways For the Arts in Murihiku comprises three interlinked components to build the capability of the arts sector in Murihiku, with an aim to develop a framework that supports the long-term development of the capability of the arts sector over 18 months.
The three components are:
- An arts incubator programme
- Resourcing and activating the new community arts space in Invercargill
- Record the journey to show the impact of these actions
“By having a dedicated space for all of the arts, we can help arts practitioners from all around the south not only grow their skills and passions but connect with one another. We know there are many artists in our region doing amazing things, and Whare Taupua will help in making their creative endeavours more visible within our region,” Amundsen says.
“Our hope for Whare Taupua is also to have a positive impact on access and participation in the sector, and build a ripple effect that will support the development of arts within the wider Southland region.”
The funding will allow Arts Murihiku to staff Whare Taupua and open it to the public, enhancing opportunities for its use.
Objectives of the Community Arts Space:
- A place the arts can grow from the ground up
- A place to bring the arts community together
- A place to build excitement for the arts
- A place to enable the arts
- A place to build momentum
- A place to build capability
If you would like to book this space please get in touch. Email kiaora@artsmurihiku.co.nz
Ki te mea ka taka te kākano ki te wāhi e tika ana ka tinaku, ā, ka pihi ake he tipu hou.
If a seed falls in the right place it will germinate and a new seedling will sprout.
