Tag: Nigel Borell

Artwork for Sale, Events, Exhibitions, VV First Fridays

A mild wintery update from Vunilagi Vou!

To Live + Die in South Auckland was an exhibition that lived and died at Fresh Gallery Ōtara. It was an eye-opening and sadly, heartbreaking experience, but still a milestone.

  • Check out a full archive of exhibition photography by Sam Harnett here and photos from the opening by Sait Akkirman for Arts Diary here.

Making an exhibition for Fresh Gallery Ōtara felt important, like a full-circle moment taking me back to where my curatorial practice began, and inhabiting the space as an artist. My dear friend Nigel Borell filled in some of the curatorial gaps of producing this show, and is credited as ‘Curator Tautoko’, a term we devised to perhaps describe what it is when two artist-curators muddle around wearing different hats!

With Nigel Borell in front of Southside Calling (2024)

My favourite times during the exhibition involved talanoa and connection with people looking at and beyond the work on the walls. Those who travelled from far and wide to help open the exhibition blew me away; I was overwhelmed with love and support.

I also loved the opportunity to discuss my practice for the Arts Out East 2024 dialogue series, the Art of Conversation curated by Felixe Laing. Artists are invited to nominate a local eatery to hold an artist talk in, and whilst I have some firm favourite spots here in the South-Eastside, most of them have got small spaces with limited seating. So, I nominated Columbus Cafe at the Botany Mitre10 Mega, which has a massive window looking out at Puke-i-Āki-Rangi, a former Pā site on a magnificent hill covered in native bush in what is known as East Tāmaki Heights.

Photo by Stacey Leilua.

The public programme events at Fresh Gallery Ōtara during the exhibition were supported by Ōtara Papatoetoe Local Board. In my artist talk held in May, someone who has been familiar with my practice as a gallerist and curator for many years, commented that it was like I was ‘coming out as a Fijian’, which made me giggle. The comment reminded me how little of myself I bought to the act of working in service to other artists.

Photo by Nigel Borell.

Cultivating my own voice as an artist has been a bold step towards being known, being seen. In the second public programme event, we set up a drop-in collage making space, building page works and revealing stories of ourselves. I loved it so much, especially reconnecting with local artist and activist, Monica Fa’a’lavaau.

The third public programme event was a Fresh Gallery Ōtara witness seminar, an event format I had learned about from visiting Swedish curator, Maria Lind. At Tensta Konsthall, a Stockholm gallery where she was Director, they held witness seminars to understand and archive more about the social histories of the building and environment the gallery inhabited.

I put together a panel of speakers for the Can I get a witness? event we held at Fresh Gallery Ōtara on 7 June, each chosen to help build a story of social impact, innovation and creativity generation from Fresh Gallery Ōtara’s first chapter from 2006-2012. From artists who made shows at the gallery during that time to perspectives from Manukau School of Visual Arts (later MIT Faculty of Creative Arts) from Grant Thompson, and Nicole Lim, the gallery’s longest serving gallery assistant and later gallery coordinator.

(L-R) Tanu Gago, Nigel Borell, Nicole Lim, Vasemaca Tavola, Grant Thompson, Leilani Kake and Czarina Wilson.

It was a gorgeous night of storytelling, reflection and deep acknowledgement of the time and space we had all shared in what felt like Fresh Gallery Ōtara’s golden age. It was also the last official ‘VV First Fridays’ event, which focused on talanoa and opportunities for Moana Pacific artists to connect. Vinaka vakalevu to Creative New Zealand for supporting that event series.

I’ve really enjoyed building an archive of writing and commentary on Patreon and growing a community of patrons committed to small monthly donations to support my practice. I’ve enjoyed sharing insights into my creative thinking and planning, inspirations and seeing the value system of my practice reveal itself in the process. Returning to my art practice has been the most wonderfully rewarding decision of my life.

On Patreon, I share a mix of content for paid members, content for free members, and content accessible by non-members. This is the lastest post accessible by anyone:

If supporting my work is something you’re interested in doing, this is a great way to make easy donations. There are two membership tiers at present:

Outside of my art practice, I’ve been working on a project with Dr Sereana Naepi and illustrator, Marc Conaco for a year now – this is us on 2 July 2023! Good things take time, patience and dedication. It is such an immense privilege to be working alongside the eye-wateringly talented Marc Conaco and the academic leadership of Dr Sereana Naepi! So much exciting news to share in the coming months!

I’m currently re-thinking the Vunilagi Vou showroom and returning a lot of work I’ve held over Vunilagi Vou’s tumultuous five years as an on-again-off-again gallery space. Like many in the retail / small business space, attracting sales and spending in the nice-to-have market is pretty rough-going in this economic climate.

With a room to play with, that’s separate from the studio, I’ve had the chance to hang and present my own work, playing with context and story.

I made a series of Fijian salusalu (garlands) for the witness seminar at Fresh Gallery Ōtara and really loved the process. Synthetic felt is such a fun, malleable material, and the colour combinations give me such an energy boost! I wrote about the process on Patreon here (paid content, apologies!) and I’m now making these on a commission basis.

Nigel Borell was at the Venice Biennale when we opened To Live + Die in South Auckland in May, so my sister Mereia read his small speech:

I’ve thought a lot about life and death over the last few months, making and presenting this show, but Nigel reminded me about the absolutely intoxicating energy of re-birth, an energy that has fuelled Vunilagi Vou since 2019!

In May, the fifth anniversary of Vunilagi Vou quietly rolled around. The show at Fresh Gallery Ōtara absorbed any energy for celebration. I had spent the previous day making a one-day-painting to exercise support for the national day of activation called by Te Pāti Māori to stand solidly in support of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and our obligations as Tangata Tiriti. And then on 31 May, exactly fives years since Vunilagi Vou first opened in Ōtāhuhu, I watched the sun rise behind Puke-i-Āki-Rangi here in East Tāmaki, where Vunilagi Vou has lived, died and been re-born.

Grateful for patrons, supporters… those who are still moved by art histories and storytelling, and those who have the means to keep supporting art and artists, in recession times.

vinaka vakalevu

Community, Events, Exhibitions

Vunilagi Vou: A Spring Update

Spring was welcomed perfectly at Vunilagi Vou with Niu Lemalu’s solo exhibition, Let’s Play Outside, a suite of six new paintings made throughout 2023 with support of the Two Solos crowdfunding effort of late 2022. The exhibition’s opening in late August launched Vunilagi Vou’s revised and necessarily re-scheduled public programme after an unplanned hiatus in June/July.

Let’s Play Outside is Niu Lemalu’s second solo exhibition after his first 13 years ago at Fresh Gallery Ōtara. In this body of large-scale acrylic paintings on canvas and board, Lemalu has experimented with different painterly perspectives and techniques in studies of obscure internet meme culture and the virally bizarre.

Hasbulla’s Katon (2023), 1100x800mm, acrylic on board

Visitors to this exhibition have been painting enthusiasts, those intrigued with Lemalu’s obscure internet interests, and Vunilagi Vou supporters keen to see and experience a room full of new paintings made here in South Auckland.

For Niu Lemalu works available in the Vunilagi Vou Stockroom – get in touch for a works list.

In July, I delivered a paper entitled, Holding space for decolonisation in South Auckland at the Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Arts Educators (ANZAAE) Conference in Wellington, check it out here:

Also in July, I had the opportunity to visit Tonga-based artists Serene Tay and Visesio Siasau, who are building an incredible space for Moana Pacific art and talanoa in Haveluloto. It was the most inspiring two weeks of deep dives into Tonga-Fiji histories and connections, Lapita pottery, curating and holding space, socio-political dynamics of art and arts appreciation, galleries and gallery culture. I am deeply grateful and can’t wait to return in 2024!

It was a privilege to speak at two Moana Oceania Pacific art exhibition openings in September; Alteration by FAFSWAG at Māngere Arts Centre, and Straight from the Horse’s Mouth by Czarina Wilson at Celebrate Aotearoa in Glen Innes, East Auckland.

Alteration is a 10 year retrospective of the award-winning collective, FAFSWAG, symbolically delivered in South Auckland, where their story began. As I noted in my speech, this 10 year milestone is testament to FAFSWAG’s awe-inspiring dedication and continuous commitment to improving our world. Not just for Pride Festivals, or as commissioned entertainment at art industry events, not just in art and exhibitions, but as a continuously visible, active community of care and change-making. FAFSWAG has evolved our world. It was a privilege to speak alongside my dear friend and fellow South Auckland-based artist-curator, Nigel Borell to help open this important exhibition that runs until 28 October 2023.

Photo by Sam Hartnett

Tongan artist and creative entrepreneur Czarina Wilson made a beautiful solo exhibition to mark the first anniversary of her gift shop, Celebrate Aotearoa in its current site on Apirana Avenue in Glen Innes. Celebrate Aotearoa is an amazing retail environment that also holds space for workshops, pop-ups and gatherings.

Having taken a small hiatus from making to get Celebrate Aotearoa off the ground, Czarina Wilson returned to her practice to make a new body of work expanding on her signature style of woven textiles, appliqué and couture statement-wear. Straight from the Horse’s Mouth explores the quilting technique known in Tongan as monomono pani, a form of puffer patchwork that lends itself beautifully to geometric design. Observed and learned from the matriarchs of Wilson’s famili, this quilting technique is used to make blankets and bedspreads that become koloa – items of cultural value gifted and received within the Tongan community.

Central to this body of work is a three-piece collection originally made for the 2023 Hokonui Fashion Awards. Produced after a break from fashion design, the collection represented a triumphant return to the catwalk after almost a decade. The garments are detail-driven, labour-intensive, and hark back to Wilson’s passion for urban Polynesian streetwear and popular culture.

The two wall works in this exhibition speak to the ways the artform of monomono connects across generations, from the cradle to the grave. They remind us that blankets hold us and wrap around us, make us feel safe, and protected. Fabrics carry story, memory, sensory nostalgia; they exist next to our skin, absorbing our tears, fears and energy. 

It was another privilege to speak and write about another Moana Oceania Pacific art practice that I’ve appreciated for such a long time.

This month, I’ve been busy making artwork again as a recipient of Tautai Trust’s annual Fale-Ship residency programme:

https://fb.watch/nFE1y5iPr5/

More about the outcome of this small residency opportunity coming soon.

And later on this month, we open our last exhibition for 2023, Muscle Memory – a solo exhibition by Genevieve Pini!

Muscle Memory will take Vunilagi Vou’s programme out for 2023. It has been a rocky year with an unplanned closure, a stop-start momentum, and losing out on multiple applications for Creative New Zealand arts grant investment. As a result, 2024 will bring around another neccessary shapeshift.

More to say, watch this space.

vinaka vakalevu

Artwork for Sale, Events

VV x Aotearoa Art Fair

With support from Creative New Zealand, Vunilagi Vou presented a salon of South Auckland at the 2023 Aotearoa Art Fair (2-5 March) at The Cloud on Auckland’s waterfront.

It was a privilege to present new, recent and archival work by Nigel Borell, Dr Sione Faletau, Leilani Kake, Niu Lemalu, Genevieve Pini and Leilani Kake, alongside an historic portrait by Johanna Van Massop.

From opening night through to pack-down, we had a steady stream of visitors – many visiting the Aotearoa Art Fair for the first time, lots of artists, arts workers and appreciators from the Moana Pacific arts sectors and social networks, and a lot of new faces – folks encountering Vunilagi Vou for the first time.

It was great to be present in this space as a first-time booth-holder, and fascinating to see the working cogs of the Aotearoa art market through the lens of the Fair.

Gratitude to Mereia Carling, who spent a day transiting through Auckland, working the Vunilagi Vou booth! And to dear friend, exhibiting artist and non-stop Vunilagi Vou supporter, Nigel Borell, for working, talking, networking and Instagramming the booth for the duration of the event!

Last year we set the wheels in motion to present solo exhibitions by two South Auckland-based artists, Niu Lemalu and Genevieve Pini, here at Vunilagi Vou in 2023. Through the BoostedxMoana initiative (a partnership between Boosted [The Arts Foundation] and Creative New Zealand), we crowdfunded $10k to support the artists and the presentation of their new work.

Presenting work at the Aotearoa Art Fair was part of the process of preparing for their solos; we got to expand awareness for their practices, and gauge the ways audiences responded to their ideas. One of the best outcomes of the whole project was that both Niu and Genevieve sold their work at the Fair – an excellent endorsement and motivation in preparation for their solos.

Genevieve Pini + Nigel Borell
Niu Lemalu + Marilyn Kohlhase + Nicole Lemalu

It was also really wonderful to host members of both Niu and Genevieve’s families at the Fair. I’ve always enjoyed the ways family members talanoa about the artists in their lives. It’s gratifying to present the work of these artists within a wider context of the art market to illustrate a value system that they sit within.

Lemalu aiga
Genevieve Pini + Niece

The Art Fair was a great focus for the first quarter of the year and at the end of April, we launch a season of solos at Vunilagi Vou that will take us through to October!

Vunilagi Vou’s stockroom is currently being re-hung to accommodate for some of the unsold works from the Art Fair, including some of Nigel Borell’s gorgeous works on paper, one of which was the Atomic Coffee Roasters annual commission.

Whilst the exhibitions programme doesn’t kick off until the end of April, the VV Stockroom is open Thursday – Saturday, 10am – 2pm, or via appointment.

Community, Events

Dissecting Diversity in the Southside

We held the first of the Southside Talanoa Series events last month in Ōtāhuhu, a series of events Vunilagi Vou is producing with support from Auckland Council as part of the Pacific Arts Programme.

The panellists were facilitated by Yolande Ah Chong in a discussion around the complexities of working in the ‘diversity space’, sharing insights from both within and outside of the arts and cultural industries.

Nigel Borell
Kolokesa Uafā Māhina-Tuai
Guled Mire
Barbara Makuati-Afitu
Patrick Thomsen

The open forum enabled audiences to pose questions, make commentary and further dissect the idea of diversity from functional, philosophical and realistic angles. The full talanoa has been recorded by noted South Auckland-based sound artist and producer, Faiumu Matthew Salapu aka Anonymouz; the podcast will be available in the coming weeks.

The panel sat on mats and ngatu kindly lent from local artists Leilani Kake, Vea Mafile’o and Czarina Wilson, beneath a crocheted artwork produced for the Crochet You Stay project by Lissy Cole in collaboration with Leilani Kake with funding from the Creative New Zealand Suffrage 125 fund.

The event was a success and we are hugely grateful to this excellent panel. We were particularly excited to have Guled Mire in this space; he added tremendous value and helped us broker new territory for Pacific arts discourse in Aotearoa. Vinaka vakalevu!

The Southside Talanoa Series rolls out another event this month, For My Father’s Kingdom: For The Community, a free public screening of the new documentary film, For My Father’s Kingdom directed by Papatoetoe-based filmmakers, Vea Mafile’o and Jeremiah Tauamiti, followed by a panel discussion with Siniva Vaitohi (SAY Money Transfer) and Sarah McRobie (counselling specialist) in conversation with Vea Mafile’o.

This event is family friendly and open to the public; doors open at 3.30pm on Saturday 21 September at the Ōtāhuhu Leopards Rugby League Clubrooms in Bert Henham Park, 645 Great South Road, Ōtāhuhu.

For more information about the Southside Talanoa Series, get in touch here:

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨