British Artists Robbed During Research Trip to New Zealand

Three artists from The Woodmill, a London based artist-led curatorial collective, have been on a research trip in New Zealand for the last three weeks. The visit was organised by Te Tuhi, a contemporary art gallery in Auckland, and supported by Arts Council England.

On Wednesday 11 May, 3 days before their return to London, The Woodmill’s rental car was broken into while they ate dinner on Dominion Road. A backpack was stolen which contained a laptop and a camera, with a combined value of $4,000.

Woodmill artists Naomi Pearce, Stuart Middleton and Richard Sides have been in New Zealand meeting artists and talking about their recent curatorial projects, individual practices and collaborative work. They have given free public talks in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch on the role of artists within cities and their relationship to processes of gentrification, and engaged with art students at Massey University of Wellington, Elam School of Fine Arts at the University of Auckland and AUT.

The Woodmill have lost all their recent work including footage shot in NZ – their purpose in coming here – and archival artistic material stored on the laptop. We are asking for the return of the laptop, no questions asked, and for people to contribute towards raising money to replace their stolen equipment.

The loss was not covered by The Woodmill’s travel insurance as it was stolen from a car after 9pm. Te Tuhi (http://www.tetuhi.org.nz), a charitable trust, has not been able to claim the loss from its insurance, and so the Trustees and CEO Hiraani Himona have set up a give a little campaign to try to raise the money to replace the stolen items.

The Woodmill was established in Bermondsey, London in 2009 and has shifted through various incarnations, from initially managing a 40,000 square foot complex for artists studios from 2009 - 2011, to becoming increasingly active as a producer of exhibitions, workshops, events and site specific projects. Their work is community focused and socially engaged. The Woodmill have worked in coherent, consistent, long term ways in low income areas of London, engaging with local communities and supporting young artists. They are in NZ on a research trip towards an upcoming exhibition at Te Tuhi in 2017.

http://www.recreativeuk.com/resource/woodmill / http://www.victoria.ac.nz/events/2016/05/the-woodmill-talk / https://herbertwright.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/londons-last-great-free-art-collective-show/