Auckland Council has selected Kate van der Drift as the 2024 Artist in Residence, she will take up her residency in Waitawa Regional Park later this year.
The Artist in Residence programme has been running since 2008 and is an opportunity for artists to live and work in an Auckland regional park for eight weeks, while creating art to highlight the incredible and sometimes overlooked natural world around them.
A multi-disciplinary artist, Kate van der Drift’s work focuses on the ecological impact of humans both on farmland and wetlands, using image, sound and video as part of her practice.
Kate often opts for a camera-free’ approach to get ‘readings’ or recordings of the land and water. Her unique style sometimes excludes light so that chemicals, sediment, bacteria and algae record the context for her.
The glowing images that result from this process have an other-worldly quality and Kate likens her process to eavesdropping on the environment, revealing some of the hidden interactions of nature.
Kate van der Drift with Auckland Council parks ranger Bryan Dowdle
During her residency, Kate will make images or ‘prints’ from wetland locations to record their character and composition to capture the essence of Waitawa.
“Wetlands are dynamic, uncertain, and exciting places with important cultural, spiritual and biodiversity values,” van der Drift says.
I’m really looking forward to my upcoming residency at Waitawa Regional Park where I will get to work with the newly regenerating wetlands and bush”.
The Artist in Residency programme takes place from October – November 2024, and Kate’s work will be exhibited both on the park and at a nearby gallery once the residency ends.
About Kate van der Drift:
Kate van der Drift has a Master of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Arts. She has taught at Elam for the past few years and works as a photographer while pursuing her own art practice. She lives between Whāingaroa / Raglan and Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland.
Her work has been displayed at Sanderson Contemporary, Pah Homestead and RM Gallery, and has featured in CIRCUIT, Art Paper and My Art.
Drawn to waters fresh and salted – she is a keen kayaker, surfer and free diver, skills that come in handy when she ventures into and along waterways.
About Waitawa Regional Park:
Waitawa Regional Park is made up of three small peninsulas, located 50 kilometres from central Auckland on the south-eastern coast.
Full of recreational opportunities, Waitawa Regional Park has beaches, picnic areas, two disc golf courses, trails and accommodation available for all to enjoy. Walking, horse riding and mountain biking tracks have been created throughout the landscape of the park.
Waitawa is of great importance to Māori as it is located upon a traditional boundary line between Te Urikaraka (Ngāti Paoa) and Ngāti Kohua (Ngāi Tai ki Tamaki/ Te Waiohua). The area has a long history of human occupation, which is reflected in the numerous archaeological sites on the park and in the wider area.
To visit, or stay at the park, head to the Auckland Council website.
