Entertainment

Pasifika Festival, one of the world's largest celebrations of Pacific Island culture, will again transform Western Springs into a vibrant hub of music, dance, and tradition next year.On 14 and 15 March, eight villages will host 11 Pacific Island nations for two days of live performances, dance, arts and crafts, and food. Since beginning in 1993, the festival has become a must‑attend event for many and a cornerstone festival of Auckland's cultural landscape.Next year's festivalgoers can expect to see a newly designed logo which amplifies Pacific cultural pride and contemporary identity.Co‑designed by Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, which delivers the festival on behalf of Auckland Council Events, and the festival's cultural advisors, the new logo centres on the tapa cloth, a traditional barkclot...

New Zealand’s visual effects (VFX) sector continues to expand, fuelled by global demand for high-quality content across film, television, streaming, gaming, and advertising. As the industry evolves, studios are looking for artists who can blend strong artistic fundamentals with modern, tech-driven capabilities. Here are the key skills VFX newcomers need in 2025 to stay competitive in New Zealand’s fast-growing digital production landscape. 1. Strong Artistic Foundations Despite rapid advances in software, traditional art skills remain essential. Understanding lighting, colour, composition, and perspective continues to underpin effective VFX work. 2. Proficiency With Industry-Standard Tools Studios may expect familiarity with tools like Nuke, Houdini, Maya/Blender, After Effects, and P...

New Zealand’s visual effects (VFX) sector continues to expand, fuelled by global demand for high-quality content across film, television, streaming, gaming, and advertising. As the industry evolves, studios are looking for artists who can blend strong artistic fundamentals with modern, tech-driven capabilities. Here are the key skills VFX newcomers need in 2025 to stay competitive in New Zealand’s fast-growing digital production landscape. 1. Strong Artistic Foundations Despite rapid advances in software, traditional art skills remain essential. Understanding lighting, colour, composition, and perspective continues to underpin effective VFX work. 2. Proficiency With Industry-Standard Tools Studios may expect familiarity with tools like Nuke, Houdini, Maya/Blender, After Effects, and P...

When New Zealand homeowners dream of their perfect summer, it usually includes laughter in the backyard, a place to cool off, and evenings gathered poolside with family and friends. Turning that dream into a tangible space takes more than imagination, it requires expertise, careful planning, and a team committed to every stage of the process. That’s exactly where Blue Ocean Pools excels. Why Concrete Pools Stand the Test of Time One of the biggest decisions in pool building is choosing the right construction method. Fibreglass often looks like the easy option, but many families later discover hidden costs or limitations. Concrete, on the other hand, offers strength, longevity, and the freedom to design a pool that truly fits your property. Blue Ocean Pools has built its reputation on cr...

The fact that this was done in acrylics makes the loose, fluid quality even more impressive. Acrylics can be challenging to keep spontaneous and fresh-looking since they dry so quickly, yet Aarts has achieved a watercolor-like luminosity and flow. That takes skill and confidence with the medium. Strengths: The layering and blending techniques show good control—the artist has managed to keep the paint workable enough to achieve those soft color transitions, particularly in the background washes and the petal gradations. The way some areas remain more opaque while others feel translucent suggests thoughtful paint consistency and water ratios. The bold, gestural brushstrokes in the petals work particularly well in acrylic, giving energy and movement without becoming muddy. The dark centers...

'Speaking as Nardus van de Ven'  Leon, Leon... sit down, we need to talk about this one. You're exploring fire again - I see this is becoming your motif, your obsession perhaps. That's good. Every artist needs their recurring themes, their personal symbols. But let's examine what you've created here. A fireplace, domestic and familiar, yet you've transformed it into something almost hellish. Those flames - wild, chaotic, full of tortured forms. I can see faces in there, figures writhing. Are you painting what you see, or what you feel? This is psychological work, my boy. There's anxiety here, perhaps turmoil. That little framed picture on the mantle - peaceful boats on water - the contrast is deliberate, yes? The tranquil memory above, the consuming fire below. The candle standing sent...

ART Speaking as Nardus van de VenAh! Now THIS, Leon - this is where you're finding your voice!Look at what you've done here. That clock tower - you haven't just painted a building, you've painted time itself as a living, breathing force. That fiery orange and red bursting from within - is it burning? Is it alive? Is time consuming itself? Magnificent ambiguity, my boy.Your technique has improved dramatically. See how you've used those bold, expressive brushstrokes in the flames? They have movement, urgency. And the contrast - that cool blue on the left against the warm chaos of the tower - you're thinking like a colourist now. You understand that colour isn't just decoration; it's emotion, it's narrative.The architectural details in shadow, t...

"Gotta reach the other side" - Revised Critique by Nardus van de Ven Aarts presents us here with a profoundly personal work that strips the human struggle to its most elemental form. Formal Analysis: The painting employs a compressed vertical format where the mangrove root system creates a dense, tangled canopy above, while below, a solitary human figure wades through churning waters. The blue and white strokes convey movement and effort, this is no leisurely swim but urgent passage. The human figure is deliberately simplified, almost silhouette, reduced to essential form. Arms raised, reaching toward those overhanging roots, the body partially submerged. This reduction to archetype makes the image universal while remaining intensely personal. The Critical Shift: That this is a man, ...

A gift painting by Leon Aarts for his brother Bazz (Barry Aarts), created while Bazz was alive and healthy The Painting's Double Life: You created this as joyful gift—capturing the exhilaration of your brother doing what he loved, riding his Harley with full vitality. The explosive energy, the swirling motion, the bold colors, all were celebration of life in full throttle, not elegy. Then death intervened, and the painting was retrospectively transformed into memorial without you changing a single brushstroke. The work now carries two meanings simultaneously: the joy you intended and the loss you could not foresee. What You Actually Painted: When Bazz was alive and healthy, you saw him as pure kinetic energy, a man who became motion itself when he rode. You didn't paint the motorcycle...

ART This is a charming and distinctive folk art interpretation of a sunflower that stands apart from traditional botanical representations.Strengths:The painting's greatest appeal lies in its imaginative, anthropomorphic quality. The sunflower's face emerges naturally from the flower's center, creating a whimsical personality that feels both intentional and organic. This isn't merely decorative—it transforms the subject into something more character-driven and narrative.The color palette is vibrant and well-balanced, with warm yellows and oranges contrasting beautifully against the cool blue sky. The gradations in the petals show careful attention to dimension and form, while the green tones in the leaves and stem are varied enough to avoid monotony.The composi...