An established writer with an affinity for the ocean is thrilled to have the opportunity to live at the idyllic seaside Barr Cottage in Huia, as Auckland Council’s regional parks’ artist in residence for 2025.
Michelle Elvy’s preoccupation with the sea and coastal places is clear in both her fiction and non-fiction writing. Author Witi Ihimaera considers her a “creature of the sea… a blue-water person” and indeed, her focus on exploring the sea, harbours and shorelines has taken her on long sailing journeys across oceans before landing in New Zealand by sailboat in 2008.
Michelle says the opportunity to live right on the southern coastline of the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park for the eight weeks of her residency aligns perfectly with her interests, instincts and goals.
“For me, the close view of nature afforded by this residency is a special opportunity. My project is focused on the intersection of what is naturally here, what we create from it, and how we preserve it,” she says. “I am grateful for the chance to work and produce new creative material about the park.”
From October 2025, Michelle will move into Barr Cottage to start writing from a desk overlooking the everchanging seascape. She says she can’t wait to immerse herself in the Little Huia lifestyle and small coastal community.
Regional Parks Manager Scott De Silva says the residency programme gives Aucklanders the chance to view specific regional parks through a creative lens.
“Our artists experience and reveal aspects of our parks that are unique. The works that have emerged from each park stay provide a rich and valued tapestry of perceptions on nature that visitors can enjoy for years to come. I look forward to reading Michelle’s wordsmithing once she’s completed her stay,” says Scott.
Michelle has already written work about a sea-facing place in the South Island and hopes during this residency to write a companion story, showcasing the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park cottage and its outlook over the Manukau Harbour.
She’s particularly interested in the juxtaposition of a park as a wild place, yet a space which is managed and has maintained edges; ‘a place that holds nature at its centre, yet a place that is curated, a place for community’.
Aucklanders will be able to read her poetry at Barr Cottage during the Waitākere Open Studios event in November 2025, and later at Arataki Visitor Centre.
To celebrate the natural beauty of Auckland’s expansive regional parks, the council has been offering the Artist in Residence programme to one lucky artist each year since 2008.
If you would like to learn more…
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See what previous artists in residence have created during their park stays
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Read Michelle Elvy’s published books and poetry, like the other side of better, or the everrumble.
