Main Gallery/2009

Reveals the hand of private collectors, what and why they collect the objects they own. The exhibition features selections of works from 18 collections; cars and contraceptives, tools and jewels, toys and tiki, handkerchiefs and designer sunglasses. The motivations of the collectors are as diverse as the objects they collect and range from motives including devotion and fashionability, saviour and sentiment, patronage and philanthropy, amusement and reference. Contending that collectors deserve to be acknowledged as more than just object consumers, Curator Philip Clarke notes that these 18 collectors demonstrate that "collecting is a cultural practice that enlarges and enriches public life."

The word 'Designer' is a loaded term which for most of the population inspires visions of glamorous personalities, high fashion and covetable objects. Let's face it, the glossy and multifaceted world of design has held us enthralled for decades. Within the varied sub-industries of design however, there are numerous career pathways that garner relatively little public acclaim, despite occupying important roles within contemporary society. Type design is one of these roads less travelled and 'Printing Types: New Zealand Type Design Since 1870' is a new exhibition which directly addresses this important field.

Twentieth century German conceptual artist Joseph Beuys famously proclaimed "every man is an artist" and it seems that we have built upon this notion to include craft. It is perhaps easy to utilise statements like this as truths, yet for artists engaged with craft practice, this type of belief does not accommodate the important idea of skill. In from the Garden showcases the practices of four establishing contemporary artists with feet firmly in the skilled terrain of craft practice.

New Threads showcases a selection of male New Zealand weavers and aims to dispel long held misunderstandings about the role men have played in the history of weaving. Although the makers in New Threads reference techniques and materials from the raranga traditions of Maori, not all the makers are Maori. Irrespective of their background their works demonstrate a contemporary and dynamic balance between the conventions of the indigenous peoples of New Zealand and ideas and materials from further afield.

A captivating and significant exhibition of works by contemporary jeweller Kirsten Haydon, Ice Terrane is inspired by the untamed Antarctic landscape and the history it has engendered in New Zealanders' hearts and minds. Haydon has been making work about Antarctica since 2005, when she was New Zealand Antarctic Arts Fellow and travelled to the continent.

Best In Show 2009 was Objectspace's fifth annual exhibition in a series which showcases a handpicked selection of outstanding craft and design graduates. The Best In Show format has proven itself to be an important event within the New Zealand craft and design exhibition calendar and Objectspace is proud to have represented a range of new voices over the last five editions of Best In Show. The fourteen exhibitors in the 2009 edition encompassed the exciting and varied terrain of spatial, graphic and textile design along with ceramics, jewellery and object art installation.