Fiordland art lovers will be spoilt for choice again this Labour weekend, with two art exhibitions hosted in the area.

The 16th Manapouri Art Group’s annual Labour Weekend exhibition will tonight (October 23) at the Manapouri Hall in View Street.  

The Group’s secretary, Ann Whatley said this year the exhibition would be bigger than ever, with a combination of painting, photography, sculpture, pottery and much more.

“We have 161 pieces on display this year, including 122 paintings, 90 of which are by local artists, members of the group and our theme this year is ‘flight’,” she said.

This year’s guest artists Ben Ho and Mary Mai will open the exhibition on Friday and judge the artworks grouped in six categories. A husband and wife painting team, Ben and Mary have been painting and tutoring for many years. Originally trained in China, Ben and Mary moved to New Zealand in 1988 to pursue their dreams and raise a family. Thirty-two years later they have built a reputation of quality craftsmanship and selfless teaching.

Other invited artists include Marie Reid, Margaret Palmer-McKenzie, Lisa Duncan, Kerian Gill, Wayne Edgerton, Russel Fredric and many more. Also on display will be art from Mararoa School new entrants, and local community art classes.

At the opening night of the exhibition at 7.30pm tonight, a light supper will be served and a bar will be operating (cash only). 

A classic cars “show’n’shine” display will be held on Sunday from 11am and Cloudbusters RC Air Club will be putting their model aeroplanes on display. Craft beers from Catlins Brewery will be available for tasting and purchase. Also back by popular demand are Devonshire Teas at the Manapouri Hall Café.

Admission on Saturday (24 October 24) and Sunday (October 25) is from 10am to 4pm and on Monday (October 26) from 9am to 2pm. Entry to the Opening Night and for general viewing is by gold coin.

For more information contact Ann Whatley on (03) 249 6622 or email [email protected] .

At the same time the Fiordland Arts Society is hosting its 39th Annual Multi Media Art Exhibition at the Real Journeys Fiordland Community Events Centre. 

The exhibition will feature the work of guest artists, metal artist Steve Rumore, Robert Westaway, a painter from Timaru, and William Patino, landscape photographer from Te Anau.

“We are thrilled to be able to showcase the work of William Patino, an outstanding international photographer based in Te Anau, Steve Rumore from Wanaka, who creates amazing sculptures out of metal and Robert Westaway, who mixes science and art to create glorious images on canvas,” Glenda Bell, the Fiordland Arts Society president said.

In addition to the guest artists, and 20 other artists from Fiordland and further afield will exhibit their work, which includes paintings, photography, ceramics, sculptures, woodwork, metalwork and more. A total of 135 artworks will be on display, including a number of lockdown-inspired works. Local farmer, Stephen McElroy will show a life-size sculpture of Haast Eagle made of scrap metal.

“On Saturday afternoon, we are open to anyone coming along to busk and or perform; be it to play guitar, recite a poem, or to sing a song etc. The society is all about supporting the arts, both visual and performing, so for this exhibition we would like to open it up to both, to give all interested artists an opportunity to express themselves. So please come along, and enjoy the art and the music!” Mrs Bell said.

General admission for the weekend is by gold coin donation (children free) and the opening hours are 10am to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 3pm on Monday.  

For more information visit the Fiordland Arts Society’s Facebook page or call Glenda Bell on (03) 249 8548.