Fine Arts

Elam alumna Dame Robin White was the recipient of the 2012 University of Auckland Distinguished Alumni Award. She studied at Elam in the late 1960s where she was mentored by Colin McCahon and completed a Diploma in Fine Arts in 1967. She became one of the most prominent New Zealand painters of the 1970s and is recognised as a key figure in the development of the New Zealand 'regionalist' style. Linda Tyler spoke with Robin White at Elam on March 9th, 2012. (Download MP3, 60 MB, 1 hour 02' 32"). License:

Professor Jonathan Mane-Wheoki (Ngāpuhi, Te Aupouri, Ngāti Kuri), of Elam School of Fine Arts, The University of Auckland. This lecture considers the roles played by pioneering Māori artists who first engaged with international modernism and positions them as foundational figures in today’s dynamic contemporary art movement. (Download MP3, 55.5 MB, 1 hour 0' 35"). License:

Tessa Laird – Doctor of Fine Arts candidate at  Elam School of Fine Arts. A personal polemic on the potential for colour to be a weapon in the cosmological battle between monoculture and plurality. 

As part of The University of Auckland’s Postgraduate Week, the National Institute of Creative Arts and Industries presented a lively evening of presentations, showcasing the research interests of our current staff and postgraduate students.  Presentations were presented Pecha Kucha-style where each speaker must present their topic using 20 slides, with only 20 seconds of speaking allowed for each slide.
 (Download MP3, 15.6 MB, 6' 50"). License:

projectspace B431 functioned as a pop up reading room and temporary extension of The University of Auckland Fine Arts Library, a result of a survey of the entire collection of artists’ books in the Library.

The books on display were considered, through this discussion, as artefacts; as an agency for conveying knowledge; components of themes in the library collection; and encouraged thinking about the multiple functions that books occupy and contribute to creative practice. (Download MP3, 62.9 MB, 1 hour 8' 41"). License:

Artist and musician Michael Morley (Gate/The Dead C) responds to the Julian Dashper exhibition with a talk about the use of records in his own practice, his connections to Julian Dashper’s record-making, and relationships between painting and music, image and sound. (Download MP3, 65.3MB, 1 hour 11' 21") License:

As part of its Jubilee festivities marking 60 years since Elam School of Fine Arts became part of The University of Auckland, Jonathan Mane-Wheoki discussed Elam's history of painting with Don Binney, Denys Watkins, Sarah Hughes, and guests. (Download MP3, 56.5 MB, 1 hour 1' 45' 39") License: 

Curator, critic and self-styled music aficionado Andrew Clifford leads a discussion of art-music connections and unearths a roll-call of Elam’s noisier graduate projects, from Split Enz and the Suburban Reptiles to the Mint Chicks. (Download MP3, 46.2MB, 50'25") License:

Assessing the boundaries of printmaking as a medium and methodology, through an expanded conversation of New Zealand print histories. Panellists included: Jonathan Mane-Wheoki (Ngapuhi/Te Aupouri/Ngati Kuri), Peter Simpson, Jonty Valentine, Steve Lovett, Tracey Williams and Taarati Taiaroa; with Fiona Jack (Chair). (Download MP3, 76.9 MB, 1 hour 23' 56"). License:

Max Gimblett is Honorary Visiting Professor at Elam School of Fine Arts. In this recording from March 18th, 2010, he discusses his practice from 1963 to 2010. (Download MP3, 36.1MB. Running time 39'25") License: