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Whau Arts Festival 2026

*** EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST NOW OPEN! ***
Submissions close 13th September 2026

There are spots for gathering, making, reflecting all along, and on, the Whau River, and for this year’s festival we’d like to celebrate these!

Submit your idea

Details

31 October – 1 November 2026
Archibald Park, Kelston

Elements

  • The main event: A festival event at Archibald Park; think performances, an arts market, boats, collaborations across art forms, parades, things we haven’t even thought about. 
  • Satellite events: Smaller, discrete events happening at other places around the Whau awa. These could happen at different times across the festival weekend. You wanna project your artwork onto trees in one of the parks at 5am? Let’s try and make it happen.  

Support?

We can offer a small budget to support your work; we want to pay artists! Budgets can also support materials and equipment needed to present your work. Please bear in mind we are a small community festival that is also run on a lot of volunteer labour so we do not have the budget of a big arts festival. We can help find spaces, resources, and people to make your work happen. We would love to make you a cup of tea and talk over your idea.

Submissions close 13 Sep

Some important things to think about – your project/event should happen somewhere around the Whau awa as that’s our focus for this year. 

Whau areas​ include:
New Lynn, Green Bay, Kelston, Rosebank, Avondale, New Windsor, Blockhouse Bay, Glenavon.

A special thanks to the Whau Local Board for supporting this mahi and the creative force of the Whau.

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