Alluvion: Exhibition of Ceramics by John Gisborne and Morag Shaw

A special note:
Our hearts are with all our Tauranga Moana whānau and neighbours affected by the devastating landslides of 22 January. In this time of shock and grief, we send our deepest aroha to everyone navigating this loss.

We planned this exhibition, ‘Alluvion’, many months ago. Now, as we near the third anniversary of Cyclone Gabrielle, its opening feels deeply poignant - a shared space for our communities to connect.

In the spirit of manaakitanga and mutual support, we believe community arts are more important than ever. They give us a place to come together, to reflect, and to find strength in creativity. We host this exhibition with immense respect for the grief and challenges being faced right here, right now.

For anyone wishing to support local recovery, we’ll have information at the gallery. You can also learn more or donate directly to the Acorn Foundation's Western Bay of Plenty May 2025 Storm Appeal here.

Exhibition details:
Back in February 2023, Cyclone Gabrielle devastated Te Matau-a-Māui. In its wake, our Incubator Creative Hub community was moved to act, holding a fundraiser with over 200 artworks donated by local artists.

Three years on, we are honoured to continue this thread of support. ‘Alluvion’ presents the profound work of two esteemed New Zealand ceramic artists, John Gisborne and Morag Shaw, whose lives, homes, and studios were catastrophically altered by the cyclone.

About the Artists and their journey:

• John Gisborne is a revered figure in New Zealand ceramics, known for his meticulous, wheel-thrown forms that explore volume, line, and shadow. For decades, his home and studio in the Waiohiki Arts Village was his creative sanctuary. Cyclone Gabrielle’s floodwaters inundated the valley, destroying his studio, home, and a lifetime’s collection of work, tools, and materials. In the aftermath, he was faced with a profound loss of place and practice. His new work emerging from this rupture is a powerful meditation on impermanence, resilience, and the quiet act of rebuilding from the ground up.
• Morag Shaw, a highly respected artist and longtime educator, creates evocative hand-built ceramic sculptures that often reference the natural world and human experience. Her studio in Waiohiki, a vibrant arts community, was destroyed by the flood surge, along with countless finished works and pieces in progress. The event forced a sudden, brutal separation from her creative life. The work in ‘Alluvion’ directly channels this experience - it is, in her words, a response to “the feelings of unease and eeriness in the immediate aftermath… a mix of darkness and insight, death and grief, change and transformation slipping past boundaries. The embodiment of life’s dualities.”