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President’s Column: March 2018

President’s Column: March 2018

Kia ora,

What’s waiting on the Other Side? Only a few more sleeps before the opening of Toi Art! We are looking forward to seeing you at the Friends preview on Thursday 15 March, from 3pm – 8pm. Te Papa is celebrating the opening of the spectacular new art gallery with a whole weekend of exciting activities. On Saturday the museum will stay open until 10.00pm, with fun, music and dance that all ages will enjoy, programme here. So, bring along your family and friends and join the celebrations.

Te Papa’s much-loved natural history exhibitions (Awesome Forces and Mountains to Sea) will be the next area to be refreshed and will close on April 2, so come in for a last look and say your farewells. Te Papa is farewelling the exhibitions in style with a Family Farewell Day on Monday 2 April, and for the grown-ups a late-night party on Friday 23 March!

The end of the Friends financial year is coming up and we are looking ahead to our AGM and committee renewal.  The committee meets on the second Tuesday of the month at Te Papa. To make it easier for those that work we have recently moved the meeting time from the morning to 4.30pm – 6.30pm in the evening. Being a committee member brings the special opportunity of getting to know the museum behind the scenes, and interaction with its amazing staff, management, curators, collection managers. If you would like to know more about what is involved, please get in touch with the office as we would love to hear from you.

We have a very exciting and diverse programme planned for 2018. The local gallery tours team have more wonderful visits to artists and local galleries coming up, and with the opening of Toi Art we are pleased we can plan more events in the new galleries at Te Papa. So, look out for our e-news and make sure you book early. And remember to keep watch on our web-site, as sometimes a special opportunity comes our way at short notice.

Membership renewal makes March a busy time in the office. We are delighted that so many of you have renewed so promptly and thank you for your continuing support of the Friends.

See you soon at Te Papa

Nga mihi nui

Elizabeth Kay