Stories of Place – Three Artists in Conversation
Caroline Vercoe | Moderator
Salome Tunuvasa | Speaker
Zhu Ohmu| Speaker
Tania Major | Speaker
Caroline Vercoe, Associate Professor (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.
Zhu Ohmu is currently based between Auckland, Melbourne, and Paris. Her work has been exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria as part of Melbourne Now (2023) and the Rigg Design Prize (2018). She has presented solo exhibitions at Shepparton Art Museum (2019), McLeaveyGallery (2025), MARS Gallery (2024), and Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert (2022). Her work has also been included in group exhibitions at Bunjil Place Gallery, Craft Victoria, JamFactory, Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery, McLeavey Gallery, and Sarjeant Gallery. She has also participated in the art fairs Melbourne Art Fair, Sydney Contemporary, and Aotearoa Art Fair. In 2024, Zhu was awarded an Emerging Artist Grant from the Ian Potter Cultural Trust, which supported a three-month residency at POUSH in Paris. From 2025 to 2026, she undertook a five-month residency at Cité Internationale des Arts, awarded by the Art Gallery of New South Wales. In 2026, Zhu will participate in Aotearoa Art Fair in New Zealand and Art Paris at the Grand Palais.
Tania Major is a Kokoberra artist and prominent figure from Kowanyama, Cape York in Far North Queensland, Australia. Major came to national prominence as an advocate and activist dedicated to improving the lives and educational outcomes of Cape York First Nation’s peoples. With a background in criminal justice, she was the youngest elected regional councillor in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) and Youth Ambassador at the Cape York Institute for Policy and Leadership. Major used her platform to draw national attention to the realities of life in remote communities and engage mainstream Australians in acknowledging and addressing the challenges facing these communities, particularly those in Cape York. In 2007, in recognition of her significant contributions Major was awarded Young Australian of the Year.
Let’s Talk Art presented by Aon, brings together 30 artists, curators, designers, and collectors for 10 compelling talks over three days.
Entry to Let’s Talk Art is on a first come, first serve basis. There is no RSVP.
A valid ticket to the Aotearoa Art Fair 2026 is required for entry to this talk. Buy tickets online.