Source: New Zealand Governor General
Rau rangatira mā, e huihui nei, tēnei aku mihi nui ki a koutou. Nau mai haere mai ki Te Whare Kawana o Te Whanganui-a-Tara. Kia ora tātou katoa.
It’s my great pleasure to welcome you all to Government House Wellington. I specifically acknowledge: Her Worship Tory Whanau, Mayor of Wellington; Her Worship Janet Holborow, Mayor of the Kāpiti Coast District Council; Mr John Pearson, Deputy British High Commissioner; Angela Green, Executive Director of the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts; Sarah Kemp, Chair of the Tāwhiri Board; Mere Boynton, Director Ngā Toi Māori; and Ben Ngaia, Kaumātua on behalf of Tāwhiri. Tēnā koutou katoa.
As Governor-General, and patron of the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts, I’m so pleased to have this opportunity to celebrate the success of these past four weeks, and to acknowledge all those who have made this event possible.
Wellington is a city that has long held the mantle of New Zealand’s cultural capital. However, there has been a particular, additional magic in the air over this past month.
Dr Davies and I had the great pleasure of attending a number of events on the Festival programme. We went to see Sounds of the Sanctuary: a magical evening of music presented by the New Zealand String Quartet, set in the beautiful surroundings of Zealandia. We also went to see one of my favourite authors, Anne Enright, speak on the power of love and literature.
Dr Davies also attended the Magic of Movement writing workshop with Rachel Davies, heard the brilliant Damon Salesa speak on the human history of the Pacific Ocean, as well as Lynn Davidson discuss the art of memoir.
Despite our best efforts, between the two of us, we barely scratched the surface of what was an extraordinary programme: both in terms of the number of events, but also their range and diversity.
The Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts has brought together some of the very finest writers, dancers, comedians, musicians, and artists from around New Zealand and across the world: from The National playing to a packed-out TSB Arena, to Moment Factory’s Light Cycles, brilliantly illuminating the Wellington Botanical Gardens in ways never seen before.
As some of you may know, I come from a career that has straddled both academia and the public service – and I understand what a fraught thing it can be to discuss the “value” of the arts. I think few have answered the question more concisely than the great German playwright Bertolt Brecht, who said that: ‘All artforms are in the service of the greatest of all arts: the art of living.’
The arts enhance all of our lives by helping us to see the beauty of the world around us, by attuning our powers of observation and expression, and by giving us a stronger sense of identity and self. The arts also strengthen our capacity for empathy, and our ability to consider the world from another’s perspective.
As British author Jeanette Winterson puts it so well: ‘What art does is to coax us away from the mechanical and toward the miraculous… Art asks us to think differently, see differently, hear differently, and ultimately to act differently, which is why art has moral force.’
At a time where we might feel overwhelmed by the events in the world around us, the arts remain a place of comfort, and a source of wisdom and guidance – a place where we can remind ourselves of the goodness in the world and each other.
As those in this room know better than any, the arts cannot and do not happen in a vacuum. They require the support of those artists who put so much of themselves into their work, as well as the spaces where those artists can perform and share that work. In short, the arts require the hard work, commitment, and selflessness of the sorts of generous and visionary people here this evening.
I know that this Festival is the result of over two years of planning and preparation – and it is a testament to the Festival organisers and sponsors, as well as so many brilliant artists and performers, that it has been such a great success. Through your work, generosity, and inspiration, you have given audiences members across Wellington experiences they will never forget.
My sincere thanks and congratulations once again to Angela and your team for pulling together this wonderful event – and above all, for your steadfast belief in and love of the arts.
Kia ora huihui tātou katoa.
