Category: Guide To Auckland

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Caretaker, Photo: Chad Konik

After a day of exploring the Aotearoa Art Fair, where would you go for dinner and drinks to continue the evening?

If I’m with a group of friends, I love going to Caretaker. After meeting so many people and taking in so much art, it’s the perfect environment. You don’t have to make any decisions, just trust the bartenders and lead with feeling. You also can’t go wrong with a big bowl of pasta at Amano, especially if the evening calls for something comforting yet lively. For a more intimate night, dinner at Gemmayze St always feels special.

Artspace Aotearoa, After the Undercurrents –  Gordon Bennett and Emily Karaka

What exhibitions coincide with the Aotearoa Art Fair that you recommend to someone visiting the city?

During the fair, there’s always a strong wave of satellite shows around Auckland that mirror its creative energy. At Artspace Aotearoa, After the Undercurrents brings together Gordon Bennett and Emily Karaka. Te Uru in Titirangi is showcasing works by Ammon Ngakuru and Kahurangiariki Smith, both of whom explore themes of place, storytelling, and belonging in distinct ways. Over at Two Rooms, Tira Walsh’s New Level is worth seeing — bold, emotional, and textured, it captures the rhythm of contemporary painting in Aotearoa right now.

Blue on Tāmaki

If you have friends visiting from outside of town, what are you adding to their itinerary?

Breakfast at Blue on Tāmaki and a slow stroll from Ponsonby all the way to Karangahape Road. It’s a walk that really captures the feel of the city – a bit urban, a bit gritty, full of small discoveries. The park near the Auckland Art Gallery is one of my favourite quiet spots. Grab a sandwich from Remedy Coffee or Scarecrow and sit by the fountain. If time allows, take the ferry to Waiheke and have lunch at Tantalus or Casita Miro; it always feels like the perfect exhale after a busy few days.

The Lighthouse, Michael Parekowhai

Do you have a favourite public art installation or mural in the city? What makes it special?

Michael Parekowhai’s The Lighthouse on Queens Wharf always pulls me in. It’s quietly monumental, both intimate and public.

Föenander Galleries

A gallery, studio or space that shouldn’t be missed right now?

Gow Langsford Gallery is a staple; they consistently ground the city’s art scene and bring important conversations to the forefront. Objectspace is unmissable for how it bridges design, craft, and art with real thoughtfulness. Föenander Galleries in Parnell has such a welcoming energy, Elle Föenander has an instinctive approach to artists and curation that makes every visit feel personal.

A hidden gem?

There’s a small second-hand bookshop on Ponsonby Road that I absolutely adore. It’s easy to miss, but you can find rare design and photography books tucked between shelves that feel like they’ve travelled through other creative hands. Time slows down there.

Photo by Scott Hardy.

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After a day of exploring the Aotearoa Art Fair, where would you go for dinner and drinks to continue the evening?

The team at Gilt Brasserie know how to take care of you after a day immersed in the best that the Aotearoa Art Fair has to offer. A table by the window, a view of the world drifting past, and a well-made dirty martini set the tone for an easy, unhurried wind-down.

From there, head to Juno in Ponsonby for a fried chicken sandwich and a few more cocktails, before taking a leisurely stroll toward Karangahape Road to catch some fresh air. To finish, settle in at Frog Bar for a relaxed nightcap – the perfect final note to a full day of art, food, and wandering.

Juno, Ponsonby. Image courtesy Juno.

What exhibitions coincide with the Aotearoa Art Fair that you recommend to someone visiting the city?

I’d make the short trip from the CBD to the tranquil surrounds of Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery to see Kalisolaite ‘Uhila’s exhibition Koe tenga tete to tete utu pe koia (on until May 16), thoughtfully curated by Anja Lückenkemper. It’s a deeply personal and quietly moving body of work, reflecting on his formative years in Mildura—where themes of labour, identity, masculinity, and care unfold through performance, sculpture, and shared storytelling.

Back in the city, Tim Melville Gallery also has a compelling line-up, including Te Hiringa o Matiti – a vibrant presentation of new work by Ngatai Taepa (Te Arawa, Te Āti Awa) and Saffronn Te Ratana (Ngāi Tūhoe), partners in life as well as in art, whose collaborative energy brings a warmth and vitality to the space.

Kalisolaite ‘Uhila, Koe tenga tete to tete utu pe koia at Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery

If you have friends visiting from outside of town, what are you adding to their itinerary?

Some of my essential recommendations include spending time with a few special galleries – like the Bergman Gallery for a considered overview of Pacific art, or heading south to Ōtara to visit Fresh Gallery Ōtara, followed by something soulful and satisfying from the iconic Ōtara Markets nearby.

If you have time, drive west to Karekare for a hike – it’s a beautiful way to immerse yourself in the coast’s wild, windswept terrain. On your way back, a steak and cheese pie from Beabea’s Bakery; it’s the perfect post hike treat.

For shopping, stop by iconic local menswear store Strangely Normal on O’Connell Street, then head to Parnell at Tala for dinner, where Henry Onesemo is serving up one of the most exciting menus in town.

Do you have a favourite public art installation or mural in the city? What makes it special?

As a kid, I was always enamoured by Richard Deacon’s Nobody Here But Us (1991), located beneath the glass and steel canopy of the Federal Street forecourt at 135 Albert Street. A continuous loop of boxed aluminium that can almost be mistaken for tangled bronze, the work was commissioned by ASB Bank for its new headquarters, and I’ve always loved the way its meandering, organic form contrasts with the surrounding hard-edged 1990s architecture.

I remember passing through that space and thinking about power dressing, tailoring, and presence – and for someone with a soft spot for rigorous tailoring, the sculpture still feels like a quiet reminder of that idea.

I also love The Lighthouse by Michael Parekowhai, the life-sized 1950s-style house on Queens Wharf that you can explore from the outside and through its windows, revealing a luminous interior filled with reflective surfaces and constellations of neon light.

Michael Parekowha, The Lighthouse

A gallery, studio or space that shouldn’t be missed right now?

I’m always impressed by the cross-disciplinary and immersive approach at Objectspace, and I think it’s another great gallery space that always deserves a visit.

Objectspace, image courtesy Neat Places

Best place to get a sense of Auckland’s landscape or light?

Head up to Michael Joseph Savage Memorial Park at Bastion Point, a beautifully elevated spot just above Mission Bay where sweeping, iconic views stretch across the Waitematā Harbour. It’s a place I love for its calm, open atmosphere – perfect for pausing, taking in the landscape morning or afternoon, and briefly feeling like you’ve got your life in perspective – ideally with a ham and cheese baguette from L’Atelier du Fromage in hand.

A hidden gem?

Not exactly hidden, but definitely not the first place people think of –  and remember from my uni days. Old Government House and its surrounding parklands have a quiet, old-school charm that I really love. It’s my go-to spot for a cup of tea and a toasted sandwich, where you can sit among the trees and feel, at least for a moment, vaguely academic without actually having to do any of the reading.

Photo by Scott Hardy.