08 Jun Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery announces a new biennial exhibition series called Ināianei | Current launching in November 2026 and generously sponsored by Craigs Investment Partners Whanganui.
MEDIA RELEASE
Monday 8 June 2026
Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery announces a new biennial exhibition series called Ināianei | Current launching in November 2026 and generously sponsored by Craigs Investment Partners Whanganui.
Zac O’Brien and Charlotte Falloon of Craigs investment Partners, and the Sarjeant Gallery’s head of development Christine Brabander and director Andrew Clifford.
Zac O’Brien and Charlotte Falloon of Craigs investment Partners, and the Sarjeant Gallery’s head of development Christine Brabander and director Andrew Clifford.
A new biennial exhibition series will launch at the Sarjeant Gallery in early November 2026, further strengthening the gallery’s commitment to uplifting artists living and working in the Whanganui region.
Titled Ināianei | Current this exhibition series will bring together works from selected practitioners from the Whanganui region and provide audiences with a vivid snapshot of the artistic practice in Whanganui – and by extension Aotearoa New Zealand – as it exists today.
The title of the exhibition series indicates the intention: to showcase contemporary, exciting and electric new work, from the Whanganui region. Grounded in the idea of the present moment, each edition of Ināianei | Current will present a small group of artists whose work reflects the ideas, relationships, mediums and creative dialogues occurring in contemporary practice in New Zealand today.
From emerging to established artists, Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery and Craigs Investment Partners aim to support artists to flourish, and by bringing different generations and disciplines into conversation, the series will strengthen the region’s creative ecology and highlight the exceptional depth of talent that exists here.
Zac O’Brien, Investment Adviser from Craigs says they are delighted to support Ināianei | Current, an initiative that invests in the cultural capital of the region and its people. “At Craigs, supporting the wellbeing and vitality of our region is central to what we do. The arts are one of the defining strengths of Whanganui and an important part of what makes this community such a special place to live. Partnering with the Sarjeant Gallery to produce this biennial series Ināianei | Current is an extension of our commitment to the region, its wellbeing and to the institutions and organisations who enrich our community. We are proud to partner with Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery as it continues to deliver such exciting programming”
The introduction of Ināianei | Current also marks an evolution in the gallery’s wider programme structure. The exhibition will alternate years with the long-running Whanganui Arts Review, which will become a biennial event with the next one scheduled for the first half of 2027. This programming change allows the gallery to further develop its support for local artists and create a strong rhythm between the open-access community model of the Arts Review and the curated framework of Ināianei | Current, in which artists will be invited to show a body of work.
Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery director Andrew Clifford says the establishment of Ināianei | Current reflects the gallery’s ongoing commitment to the artists of the region. “Whanganui has an extraordinarily rich artistic community and has a reputation as a place where creativity is embedded in everyday life. Ināianei | Current will explore the depth of practice that currently exists here, while also supporting the next generation who will shape the region’s artistic future. We are very pleased to work alongside Craigs who are widely applauded for their local and national sponsorship projects in the arts, education and community spaces”.
Senior curator and programmes manager Greg Donson says Ināianei | Current has been developed to highlight the vitality and diversity of artistic practice occurring across the Whanganui region. “Ināianei | Current is about creating visibility for the artists working in Whanganui at this moment in time. The exhibition acknowledges the creative strength in Whanganui while offering audiences the opportunity to encounter practices that are experimental, innovative and thoughtful. Craigs supported our collaborative project ‘Joanna Margaret Paul: Imagined in the context of a room’, which we produced with Dunedin Public Art Gallery, and it is wonderful to continue to work with them again to so meaningfully invest in Whanganui, its rich artistic legacy and future”
The inaugural Ināianei | Current exhibition will open in early November 2026 at Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery, with exact dates and participating artists to be announced.
Media contact and enquiries
For any further information please contact: Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery: Jaki.Arthur@sarjeant.org.nz, Communications Lead (027 5774923)
Notes to Editors
Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery
One of New Zealand’s oldest purpose-built galleries and home to a nationally significant permanent collection, Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery reopened in November 2024 after an extensive redevelopment, it is now recognised as one of New Zealand’s best collecting and exhibiting institutions. The Sarjeant Gallery is free to enter.
Gallery hours: 10am–5pm
Café: 10am–4pm
Library: Fridays & Saturdays 1–4pm
Sarjeant.org.nz
Craigs Investment Partners
Craigs Investment Partners is one of New Zealand’s largest investment advisory firms, offering bespoke solutions to both private investors and corporate clients. Craigs provides the complete breadth of private client and wealth management services including investment advice and management, securities trading, research, cash management, institutional dealing, and investment banking.
Craigs has over 190 qualified Investment Advisers, servicing over 70,000 clients across over 20 locations in New Zealand. Craigs has a team of 650 employees, over $35 billion in funds under management.
craigsip.com