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Play to bring creativity and joy to Children’s Ward

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Art and Culture
He Waka Tuia
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He Waka Tuia outreach curator Saskia Whall with artworks by Electric Confetti, which have been installed at the children’s ward at Southland Hospital in Invercargill.

An exhibition that puts the tamariki of Murihiku at its heart has become a highly-anticipated annual fixture: and this year, the He Waka Tuia team will take the joy of Play to some of the region’s most vulnerable children.

Play 5.0 opened at Invercargill’s transitional art gallery and museum in July, and a modified version of previous exhibitions can now be found on the walls of the Children’s Ward at Southland Hospital.

He Waka Tuia outreach curator Saskia Whall said elements from previous iterations of Play ­– which marked its fifth instalment this year – had been installed within the Children’s Ward at Southland Hospital.

“Art makes the world so much more beautiful and more interesting. We know Play has become so well-loved, and so highly-anticipated, within our community,” she said.

“Children are almost mouldable – in many cases, you learn where your interests lie when you are relatively young and these continue to grow as you get older. Getting kids interested in, and involved in, the arts opens so many doors they can walk through during their lives,” she said.

The collaboration with the Children’s Ward also gave He Waka Tuia an opportunity to ensure the tamariki admitted to the ward were still able to be involved in events happening within the community, Whall said.

From vinyl colouring sheets applied to the walls, to neon and interactive artworks, the team at He Waka Tuia had worked to reimagine some of the previous displays from Play and tweaked them to make it workable for the space.

Health NZ General Manager of Southland Hospital, Simon Donlevy, said the Children’s Ward was a bright, welcoming space decorated to help tamariki and their whānau feel comfortable and at ease.

“Bringing the Play exhibition into the ward is a lovely extension of that positive environment, giving the ward more colour, interest and stimulation for everyone who spends time there,” he said.

“It is really special for the Children’s Ward to have this collaboration with the inner-city art gallery, He Waka Tuia, to remind us of the relationship and connection between the hospital and the city and communities we serve.”

He Waka Tuia manager Sarah Brown said the collaboration was believed to be the first of its kind to take place between a public art facility, and a Children’s Ward at a public hospital, in the country.

“We are delighted that the team at Southland Hospital was willing to work with us to bring something so special to life. There’s evidence from around the world that demonstrates just how therapeutic art can be. While every exhibition is special, this one feels particularly meaningful for us all, and we’re really thrilled at the prospect of bringing some joy and creativity to lives of tamariki and their families within the Children’s Ward,” she said.

“Play is for everyone, and the popularity of the exhibition year-after-year shows just how deeply it resonates with our wider community. If some of our community’s youngest art lovers were unable to come to Play at He Waka Tuia this year, it is our pleasure to be able to take it to them,” Brown said.

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