Emerging creatives on show at annual Exposure He Kanohi Kitea exhibition

Exposure He Kanohi Kitea features innovative and inspiring exhibits from students studying at Toi Rauwhārangi College of Creative Arts. 

The exhibition showcases the work from soon-to-be graduates in design (fashion, textiles, industrial, concept, integrated, spatial and visual communication design), fine arts, photography, screen arts and commercial music.  

Exposure has historically been the launching pad for many careers in the creative sector, and features work by students in their final year of study in programmes across the School of Art Whiti o Rehua, Wellington School of Design Ngā Pae Māhutonga and the School of Music and Screen Arts Te Rewa o Puanga.

Exposure runs from 9-22 November on Massey’s Pukeahu campus in Wellington. 

Toi Rauwhārangi College of Creative Arts Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Margaret Maile says Exposure is an annual highlight on Wellington’s creative calendar. 

"Exposure provides a platform to highlight the remarkable achievements of our graduating students. Through interdisciplinary learning and real-world projects, they graduate with strong critical thinking, entrepreneurial mindsets, and innovative problem-solving abilities. Our graduates thrive both in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally, and Exposure offers the public a chance to witness their talent and explore our exceptional facilities." 

Exhibitor examples

Elise McIntosh, Spatial Design
Deep In Time - investigates the relationship between geology and architecture. The vacant Reading Cinemas on Courtenay Place compresses and constructs a filmic terrain. Time moves imperceptibly slowly – inwards, downwards – unearthing the quiet rumbling, watching the change between silt and steel. The architecture is the earth. And the earth is the architecture. 

Francesca Ramdhanie, Music Practice
Runway Rhythm - an event that brought together a range of local Wellington fashion companies to show off their range, with local musicians performing alongside the showcase. Francesca came up with the concept, event managed, designed the lighting and sound and managed to sell out the venue. 

Keelin Bell, Photography
Wūru Paraikete - responds to an examination of 19th century portraits of Māori and reflecting on their intentional exoticisation for western audiences. The constructed photographs show the relationship between people, the landscape and growing colonial disruption. Manipulation of the whenua and the implementation of non-native plants and invasive species have reformatted the landscape making the people appear distant from the context in which they exist. Wūru Paraikete unites the series in a specific context, that of the trading era. 

Michael Madden-Smith, Photography
Square Eyes – reflects on a childhood set at the dawn of the smartphone era. A childhood that floated seamlessly between physical and digital experiences. This project acknowledges the pervasive role of technology in children’s lives and the connections forged with transient play-scapes; particularly as their memory begins to fade in the wake of digital obsolescence.

Scarlett Forrester, Fine Arts  
She has her Mother's eyes and blue - guided by art as a form of play, this intuitive painting practice seeks to prompt a personal response from the viewer, a response often rooted in their personal memories, experiences and nostalgia. ‘She has her mother’s eyes’ and ‘blue’ explore methods of layering, reproduction and scaling to contemplate the relationships and bonds daughters form with their mothers, while simultaneously reckoning with potential futures as mothers.

Micah Fitisemanu, Textiles 
Lalaga | Fanua - a collection of woven and screen-printed materials that speak to how Pacific people are able to continue making traditionally in the diaspora, through the use of contemporary materials, techniques and technology. This collection uses motif, pattern, process and colour to tell the story that tradition can be kept alive through modernisation and shows how cultural identity can be found and upheld in today's world, even outside of our homeland.

Georgia Thompson, Fashion
Red Proletariat - a collection inspired by the intricate relationship between brutalist architecture and Soviet fashion design during the mid-20th century. The collection aims to capture the stark, repetitive uniformity characteristic of this era. Each piece is a tailored uniform made from wool blends and cottons, designed for interchangeability, emphasising both functionality and aesthetic coherence.

Angus McKinnon, Visual Communication Design
Where to Next? - a series of digital interactive books that can be found on a reading platform app. It gets kids to read for enjoyment by adding gamification and animation to the reading experience. The books follow a pick-a-path structure that allows readers to be actively involved in the narrative.

Emma Stein, Visual Communication Design
She’s Mad! - a public awareness campaign highlighting the history of female healthcare. It challenges myths created by (historically male) figures in the medical sector over almost 5000 years and prompts people to consider their impact on daily life. The project aims to spark conversation between members of the public and help us break away from outdated practices.

Eleanor O’Connell, Screen Arts
Voice of the Void - the goal of this project is to immerse participants in a speculative future shaped by artificial intelligence (AI), offering both a reflection on its potential benefits and a critique of the concerns it raises. At the core of the installation is an interactive AI-driven face that engages with participants' questions, highlighting the ways in which AI could become a guiding force in society.

Benji Stewart, Integrated Design
The Champ - a tramping pack designed for people who work full-time in the city but love to get outdoors on the weekend. This is a pack that’s aim was to question the contemporary tramping pack design. Why can’t a pack transform to fulfil different roles during a hike? Why be content with the ways a bag is packed?

Event details

Exposure He Kanohi Kitea. 
Open to the public from Saturday 9 - 22 November. 
Massey University, Entrance C, 63 Wallace Street, Mt Cook, Wellington. 
Open daily from 10am – 4pm. 
Free entry. 

• Block 12 – Design 
• Block 2 – Fine Arts, Photography 
• Block 1 – Commercial Music and Screen Arts
• Engine Room – Fine Arts