Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery |
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| Former names | Lopdell House Gallery |
| General information | |
| Type | Art Gallery |
| Location | 420 Titirangi Road, Auckland, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 36°56′18″S 174°39′19″E / 36.938244°S 174.655171°E |
| Current tenants | Te Uru |
| Construction started | 2012 |
| Completed | 2014 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 6 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Mitchell & Stout Architects |
| Awards and prizes | NZIA Public Architecture Award 2015, Shortlisted for World Architecture Festival 2015 |
Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery, usually known as Te Uru, is a modern art gallery. It is located in Titirangi, Auckland, New Zealand. This gallery serves the West Auckland area. It first opened in 1986 inside a building called Lopdell House. Before its current name, it was known as Lopdell House Gallery.
A New Home for Te Uru
The gallery closed in 2012 to build a brand new space. The new gallery was specially designed by Julie Stout from Mitchell & Stout Architects. It officially opened its doors on November 1, 2014. People really liked the new building. It even won awards in 2015 for its design and how it fits into the area.
Andrew Clifford was the first director of Te Uru. He started in 2013 and led the gallery for 10 years. He moved on to a new role in March 2023. Ioana Gordon-Smith was the first curator for the gallery.
Why the Name Te Uru?
The name "Te Uru" comes from a Māori phrase. This phrase is "Te Hau a Uru," which means "wind from the west." It refers to the strong winds that are common in the West Auckland (Waitākere/Hikurangi) area. The gallery chose this name after talking with the local iwi (tribe), Te Kawerau ā Maki.
Exciting Art Exhibitions
Te Uru hosts many different art shows. One important event is the annual Portage Ceramic Awards. This is New Zealand's top award for artists who work with ceramics. Many guest curators have also put on their own shows at Te Uru. These include well-known names like Ron Brownson and Ian Wedde.
Since the gallery reopened in 2014, it has shown many amazing exhibitions. Some of these include HaPoom by Seung Yul Oh. There was also Janet Lilo: Status Update by Janet Lilo. Other notable shows were No Town by Caroline McQuarrie and The Model World by Judy Millar.
To celebrate Roy Good's 50 years as an artist, Te Uru held a big show. It was called Parallel Universe: The Art and Design of Roy Good. This exhibition ran from December 1, 2018, to February 10, 2019. It showed many of Good's artworks and designs.
In May 2023, the gallery featured a major exhibition by Andy Leleisi'uao. This show was called Unbeautiful Evening. It included some of his artworks that were damaged during the big 2023 Auckland Anniversary Weekend floods.
See also
In Spanish: Galería de arte contemporáneo Te Uru para niños
