Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery, Contemporary arts centre in Titirangi, Auckland, New Zealand
Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in Titirangi, Auckland, designed by Julie Stout of Mitchell & Stout Architects. The custom-built gallery opened on 1 November 2014, replacing its former home inside Lopdell House. The building received awards in the 2015 Auckland Architecture Awards Public Building and Heritage categories and the 2015 New Zealand Architecture Awards Public Building category.
The gallery opened inside Lopdell House in 1986. It closed in 2012 for a custom building by Julie Stout of Mitchell & Stout Architects, which opened on 1 November 2014 and won the 2015 Auckland Architecture Awards in the Public Building and Heritage categories and the 2015 New Zealand Architecture Awards Public Building category.
The name Te Uru comes from Te Hau a Uru, meaning wind from the west, and was chosen after talking with the local indigenous community Te Kawerau ā Maki. This connection reflects how the place is rooted in the land and the people around it.
The gallery sits on sloped terrain and is best reached by walking from the nearby car park, which requires some uphill effort depending on parking location. Once inside, elevators connect all levels, making movement between floors straightforward.
The gallery's name was chosen with local iwi Te Kawerau ā Maki and refers to Te Hau a Uru, the wind from the west that the Waitākere area is known for. The inaugural curator was Ioana Gordon-Smith, and Andrew Clifford led the gallery as director from 2013 until early 2023, when he moved to the Sarjeant Gallery.
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