Event Location: Viaduct Events Centre

This tour opens up a conversation to consider how harmony takes form in contemporary art through rhythm, material, gesture, and composition. Across the fair, we’ll look at works that reveal beauty not as decoration, but as evidence of deeper coherence.

Smuts-Kennedy’s practice is focused on a research based investigation into fields of energy as they engage with conceptual thinking both within an art based language and other intuition driven modes of enquiry.

Her art practice synthesises broad research territories that integrate restorative horticultural and esoteric knowledge. Over the past decade she has been able to test these out at both a social sculptural scale across New Zealand, and her studio based practice. These projects have enabled her to develop embodied knowledge that has culminated in delivering large scale energy installations both within community, landscape and contemporary art contexts. The foundation of her practice centres around performing the possibility of healing with the outcomes of this performance (her life) giving form to artefacts that vibrate the qualities of joy, the vibration when experienced in the bodies of biological life occur as aliveness, balance and peacefulness.

Please arrive at 2:15pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

Associate Professor Caroline Vercoe (Samoa, Aotearoa New Zealand) teaches Global Art Histories, Pacific Art Histories, and Contemporary Art in Aotearoa New Zealand at Waipapa Taumata Rau The University of Auckland. She specialises in contemporary Pacific art and performance art, with a particular interest in issues of race, gender and representation, and has been teaching, curating and researching in these areas for thirty years.

Please arrive at 12:45pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

This year, Artspace Aotearoa asks: “Which history?” Join Kaiāwhina Whakaaturanga Assistant Curator Matthew Hanson to explore the artists and artworks at the Fair that Artspace Aotearoa has championed and collaborated with over decades.

Please arrive at 11:15am to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

Join Becky Hemus, editor of The Current and curator of the Horizons sector, for an exclusive tour of the fair, uncovering the freshest emerging talent and some cutting-edge contemporary art. Get insider tips on who to watch, what to buy, and how to navigate the art world …..

Please arrive at 2:15pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

Step into the vibrant world of contemporary art with First Time at the Fair, a guided tour led by renowned New Zealand art historian, curator, and academic Linda Tyler. Whether you’re an art fair first-timer or simply curious to see things through expert eyes, this tour offers an engaging, insightful, and welcoming introduction to navigating the fair.

Please arrive at 12:45pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

A Mandarin-language guided tour led by Meijing He, inviting you to experience the art fair from a broader perspective and gain a clear understanding of its overall structure and highlights.

This tour offers a professional, contextual approach to the fair—covering how to navigate it, the positioning and characteristics of different galleries, and key artists within Aotearoa’s art ecosystem. With Meijing’s guidance, you will develop a deeper understanding of the local art landscape and find your own pathways and points of interest.

Meijing He is a cultural leader who has a strong interest in contemporary and experimental art. Meijing is known for supporting diverse artistic voices while helping connect Aotearoa’s art scene with wider international conversations.

由何美婧带领的普通话导览，诚邀您从更开阔的视角走进艺博会，轻松理解展会的整体结构与亮点。

这场导览将以专业视角为您解读艺博会本身——包括如何逛博览会、不同画廊的定位与特点，以及新西兰艺术生态中具有代表性的画廊与艺术家。在何美婧的引导下，您将更清晰地建立起对本地艺术界的整体认知，也更容易找到属于自己的观看路径与兴趣点。

何美婧是一位文化领域的领导者，对当代与实验艺术充满热情。她长期致力于支持多元艺术声音，并积极推动新西兰艺术与国际艺术语境之间的交流与连接。她的分享将以亲切、易懂的方式展开，帮助您在有限的时间里获得更有结构、更有收获的观展体验。

Please arrive at 11:15am to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

This tour offers a curated view of the fair through the lens of a practicing contemporary artist and McCahon House Alumni, Steve Carr. Focusing on experimentation with materials, humour, and conceptual strategies, it highlights works that push the boundaries of form, function, and audience expectation. Participants will gain insight into the processes and ideas shaping some of today’s most inventive art.

Steve Carr works across sculpture and lens-based practice. His work employs acts of material and conceptual transformation that unsettle the stability of familiar objects and images, often using humour to shift expectations of authorship, function, and meaning. Carr completed an MFA at Elam School of Fine Arts in 2003 and is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Canterbury’s Ilam School of Art. He is represented by Gow Langsford Gallery (New Zealand) and STATION Gallery (Australia).

Please arrive at 2:15pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.

Graeme Douglas will lead a guided tour of six dealer booths, pausing at each to share one of his key collecting principles in the context of a specific artist or gallerist. His aim is to broaden your thinking around the acquisition process – and to build or reinforce your confidence as a collector.

Graeme Douglas produces a podcast, The Good Oil, dedicated to long form conversations with Aotearoa artists. He is also an avid collector, motivated by a want to support the important role that artists play in reflecting who we are, and the unique experience that comes with living with art works.

Please arrive at 12:30pm to receive your headset.
Entry to this tour is on a first come, first serve basis and there are 20 spots available. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this tour.