Artists Directory
Artists Directory
Discover talented artists from across New Zealand. Browse by region, discipline, or search for specific artists.
Showing 14 artists
Ceramics & Pottery
Briar Monro Pottery
Whangarei, Northland
Briar Monro designs and produces beautiful, hand-crafted pottery in her studio in Parua Bay, Whangārei. Her work is inspired by our incredible natural environment, Japanese wood-firing techniques and mid-century aesthetics. Described as ‘elegant and earthy’ her teapots, bowls, vessels, cups and other functional forms capture the layers and alchemy of our ever evolving planet. “The greatest influence on my work is our natural environment. Everything comes back to this. I’m interested in how my work can bring our awareness to this – to how inseparable we are to our planet, that ceramic materials are the same building blocks as our bodies, and that if we listen to these natural processes we will better understand our place, our lives”. Briar opens her studio to the public during the Whangārei Heads Arts Trail each Easter and over summer. If you would like to visit outside these times please contact her in 027-295-8384. Briar's work is also available for sale through the Quarry Arts Centre, Tutukaka Gallery, Black shed Gallery (Waipu), the Hangar Gallery and on her website www.briarmonropottery.com
Sculpture
Carol Armitage
Whangarei, Northland
Atelier @ Tealbay: Tealbay provides a backdrop and inspiration for my work that embodies the land, sea and sky. Carol is a local resident of Tealbay / Helena bay where she lives with her partner John and their Beagles:Puku and Ruru.
Painting & Drawing
Crystal Love
Whangarei, Northland
My name is Crystal Love. I have been an artist since I was eighteen years old. I am now in my forties. I have a Level Four Certificate and a Level Five Diploma in Art and Creativity. I am currently working toward achieving my Level Six. Artworks done by myself which are one of a kinds.
Painting & Drawing
Jocelyn Friis
Kaipara, Northland
Jocelyn Friis is a New Zealand-based painter creating semi-abstract land and seascapes from her coastal studio in Mangawhai. Working in acrylic and encaustic, she explores the tension between nature’s resilience and vulnerability, reflecting our relationship to it. Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Jocelyn draws on her Steiner education and deep connection with nature to inform her art. A four time award-winning artist and CreativeNZ grant recipient, she has exhibited widely across New Zealand and more recently the UK. Jocelyn is also a qualified facilitator for Art & Creativity for Healing and holds workshops both in person and online.
Textiles & Fibre Arts
Karen Williamson
Kaipara, Northland
Karen is a textile artist working with natural dyes and botanical contact prints on fabric. She is the sole creator and owner of Ake Ake Shrouds, Aotearoa's first and only artisan shroud making business. Using plant dyes and natural fibres, Karen creates bespoke funeral shrouds with a sustainable kaupapa and as an ex palliative care nurse also provides a wrap around service to help whānau navigate their funeral planning. She advocates for natural burial and family led death care. Her shrouds can be bought online, or personalised by commission using plants that are significant to the client. Enquiries and studio visits are always welcome. Shroud purchases are made through the Ake Ake Shrouds website
Painting & Drawing
Kellie Edwards
Far North, Northland
Kellie Edwards is a figurative and landscape artist based in the Far North of New Zealand, working primarily in expressive oils and pastels. Since childhood, Edwards has been curious about the universal traits we share: belonging, family, community, love, curiosity, memory, storytelling, voice, purpose, and creativity. Core to her art making is recognizing that these qualities link us, and through her expressive oil and pastel paintings, she shines a light on and celebrates our shared humanity, creating a dialogue that resonates with the heart and mind . Through her mastery of oils and pastels, Edwards reveals the sacred within the ordinary, transforming hands into vessels of story, landscapes into theatres of emotion, and figurative works into windows of shared experience. This interplay not only enhances the visual experience but also evokes layers of meaning that provoke thought and emotion for her viewers. Studying Art & Design full time at Auckland Technical Institute in the early 1990s, Edwards finished top of her class under the tutelage of Nancy de Freitas. She then took up a scholarship offered by the Auckland Society of Arts, majoring in painting with critique from Sylvia Siddell, Ian Jervois, and Sue Daly. Edwards' work has exhibited in national touring exhibitions, and she has won awards in national and international art exhibitions. She is a two-time winner of the National Exhibition for Pastel Artists of New Zealand, receiving the prestigious Unison Colour Cup in both 2013 and 2023. In 2019, she was juried as an Associate Member of the Pastel Society of America, an international distinction recognizing excellence in the medium. Edwards has held solo exhibitions and been selected as a finalist in numerous highly regarded art competitions. Edwards' work is collected internationally, with paintings held in prestigious private collections across New Zealand, the United Kingdom, America, and Hawaii. Her global reach demonstrates the universal resonance of her artistic vision. Commissioned pieces feature in esteemed collections, and her paintings are represented in galleries throughout Northland and Auckland. Edwards operates her studio and gallery at Whangaroa in Northland, where she continues to explore the profound connections that unite us all through her art
Sculpture
Kristin Kay
Whangarei, Northland
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Kristin moved up to Whangarei around 2001 and studied visual arts and obtained a bachelor degree specialising in ceramics, since then has evolved her practice to be a unique one. The studio is a place to strive, improve techniques, test my boundaries, limits, and as expected, to experience failures. My pieces tend to resonate with human behaviours in which the art almost creates itself, becoming unusual creatures telling their unique story. The deeper the better. Sometimes my purpose is to instil humour that creates a silent conversation between the viewer and the art.
Graphic & Digital Design
Liam Martyn Astbury
Whangarei, Northland
I was born in the United Kingdom in 1994. I immigrated to New Zealand in 2008, and I have been loving the lifestyle change since moving here from the United Kingdom. I have graduated with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Digital Arts. My main passions include photography, videography, illustration, moving image and graphic design. I have developed a passion for the arts since moving from the UK to New Zealand. Photography has been the basis of all my skills today, and I still make sure to continue my practice regularly. I work with portraiture, drawing, poster design, documentary photography, short films, projection, and GIFS. My main subject matter is people, animals, and cars.
Sculpture
Liz McAuliffe
Far North, Northland
Attracted to the plentiful, fecund/fertile shapes in nature I take delight in replicating and celebrating their unique and individual forms, imbuing them with my own aesthetic. Creating from and with nature has long been a way for me to stay connected to myself and my environment. I am drawn to the minutiae found in Nature, especially objects that are often bypassed or go unnoticed. Working closely from found objects so that when up-scaling these into ‘life-size’, I invite the viewer to re-examine their relationship with Nature. My artworks give a sensual experience as well as a visual one. Careful attention to detail, whether in form, surface or shadow is central to my practice and works. Born and living in New Zealand (Hokianga) I have always been intrigued by natural forms, I have an enjoyment of working with wood and a love and desire to work with my hands, this has been directed into my 19 year career as an artist, I participate in group and solo exhibitions regularly, my art is in national and international collections, including Italy, Germany, Spain, America, Denmark, England and Australia. In 2016 I had a 10 week artist residency in Denmark.
Painting & Drawing
LXM Artist
Whangarei, Northland
LXM Artist is Alex McPherson (BFA - Elam majoring in painting.) Alex's paintings are representative and express the enjoyment of nature and life. Trying to capture the universality of love through art, Alex’s work captures the essence of nature, celebrating the colours, forms, and emotions that make life beautiful. It is a sensory experience. There is a spirituality in the painting process, as she believes in the right to life and exist in this world and beyond. Alex captures more than just a likeness in my figurative paintings. The 'birdness' of a bird or the essence of a creature. The use of enhanced colour, like a cobalt sky and an ultramarine sea is evident in a landscape. Each brushstroke tells a story of resilience, wonder, and inspiration. Whether it’s the delicate petals of a hibiscus or a stunning New Zealand landscape, these paintings bring the world to life on canvas. I exist therefore I paint. It is my language, my craft.
Music
NZTrio He Taonga Wairere
North Shore, Auckland
NZTrio He Taonga Wairere is a dynamic force in New Zealand chamber music, featuring violinist Amalia Hall, pianist Somi Kim, and newly appointed cellist Matthias Balzat. Each year, the trio curates a fresh programme series, sharing captivating performances with audiences across Aotearoa. As musicians, they're always pushing themselves to go further—crafting experiences that are not only enjoyable but also surprising, thought-provoking, and deeply moving. Their aim is to offer new perspectives on music that people may already know, while opening ears and hearts to works that are less familiar. They masterfully bridge the gap between classic repertoire and the contemporary landscape, bringing an innovative and uniquely Kiwi voice to their concerts. The trio's commitment to pushing musical boundaries is also evident in their collaborations. NZTrio regularly joins forces with musicians and singers both in and outside the classical music sphere, along with visual artists and dance companies. These partnerships showcase their versatility and dedication to presenting chamber music as a living, evolving art form, with recent projects including the "Four Last Songs" 2025 CMNZ Tour with soprano Emma Pearson, The Veils and Finn Andrews at WOMAD 2025, Black Grace at Auckland Arts Festival 2025, and BalletCollective Aotearoa at Wānaka Festival of Colour 2025.
Painting & Drawing
Oracle Art
Whangarei, Northland
Julia always expressed herself creatively in one medium or another but didn't get creative guidance until she did the “Learning Connexion” Art and Creativity foundation Course in 2010. She has produced a lot of ceramic and sculptural work as well as painting, and has studied under many tutors at the Quarry Arts Centre in Whangarei. She has also produced larger works in ferrocement and has an interest in beautiful natural buildings. She has sold work at the Kaipara Sculpture Exhibition, Quarry Arts Gallery and Helena Bay Art gallery. Julia currently lives in an eco-village in Matapouri with her husband Chris. In the winter she goes to Greece to run a Holistic Education centre and paints there too. She says "For each piece in my current series of paintings I start by painting a strong background colour. The background is painted following the order of the rainbow or chakra colours, i.e. The first one was red. Then I throw paint covered cloths or pour paint on the canvas. Always with a blank mind and without any expectations. I sometimes use some additives to the acrylic too. Sometimes I drip wax or put sand on the wet paint, I do whatever comes to mind but with no expectation of it meaning anything. When the paint has dried, I observe the canvas from different angles to see what I can see emerging and then once I see an image I outline it in charcoal or chalk. When I am happy there is something that is going to create a whole picture, I continue to outline and colour in the shapes to identify the story. As I started the series at the beginning of lockdown. After a while of working on the series of paintings I observed that the works were personal to me in that some aspect of my life were reflected in them. I saw in the initial works my personal journey through this period of Covid as I was trying to understand what was really going on globally and often aspects of my relationship. Something about my current life experience, society or my personal nature is always evident in the paintings. I felt inspired to photograph beautiful leaves and stick them onto the first image. To keep consistency especially initially, I usually added some small multimedia aspect. This often had a repetitive theme. After a while I started noting down my interpretation of what I had painted when I finished and what I was experiencing at the time of painting. I am also interested in the themes that other people see or intuit, and I am interested in that feedback. As the themes that emerge are relevant to all humans, I have thought that they might make good oracle cards.
Painting & Drawing
Silke Hendel
Whangarei, Northland
I'm a contemporary artist based in Northland. I grew up exploring the coast and the water, and that's where all my colour comes from. My work is big, bright and full of light - the ocean, the landscapes, and the birds and wildlife of Aotearoa, from kea to fantails to dolphins. I don't paint things the way they look so much as the way they make me feel. It's about hope and joy, and a bit of a lift every time you walk past it. My paintings have been exhibited nationally, and are collected in homes across New Zealand, Australia, Europe, the UK and USA. Originals, prints (framed and unframed) and commissions are all available - I'd love to hear which piece speaks to you.
Painting & Drawing
Vera Andrews
Whangarei, Northland
I am a Swiss artist based in Northland, working between abstract expressionism and ecological intuition. My paintings explore the emotional landscapes of nature through layered textures, sweeping gestures, and luminous colour, creating immersive works that unfold like weather. Alongside painting, I create sidereal lunar gardening calendars that merge art, astronomy, and horticultural wisdom, dabble in pottery, metal work and stained glass. Across all my work, I’m guided by a desire to attune to the rhythms of land and sky, inviting a slower, more intuitive way of seeing and connecting with nature.