We Want to Celebrate You!

Waikato is a vibrant hub of creativity and cultural richness, brimming with hidden gems waiting to dazzle and sparkle on the world stage. Today, we’re excited to launch Creativity Lives in Waikato, a promotional campaign that shines a spotlight on the diverse range of artists and creatives in our region. Our goal is to inspire our communities to recognise and celebrate Waikato as a creative haven, a place where arts and culture thrive.

We invite you to join us in this celebration!

Share your stories, show your support, and help us highlight the creativity that lives in Waikato. What better way to join the celebration than with a selfie or a photo of your creative work or experience? We’ve introduced an exciting new filter for you to take a selfie, share your creative journey, and stand proudly as a part of this vibrant community.

This is an opportunity to acknowledge your own creative practice as well as the creativity of the people around you. Shine a light on your family and friends who weave artistic activity and cultural storytelling through our lives. Celebrate the creativity that comes from all the nooks and crannies of the Waikato. Around every bend another taniwha, around every corner another artist.

So, how can you join in the celebration?

Post photos or videos of your creative projects on social media using our special filter and tag @creativewaikato. Whether you’re painting, crafting, writing, performing, or enjoying art, we want to see it!

Show your support with our exclusive campaign merchandise, including pins and t-shirts. These items will be available soon, so stay tuned for updates.

That’s not all!

We have discovered a treasure trove of hidden creatives who will be sharing their stories through our ongoing campaign.

“The Waikato region is filled with stories, artistic expression, and under-recognised creativity. It can be found in schools and libraries as well as in galleries, theatres, and concert venues. It flourishes in workshops, garages, classrooms, community hubs, studios, spare rooms, parks, halls, and more. There are a growing number of creatives who call Waikato home. This is very exciting! They are the people in all of our lives bringing colour, excitement, connection and imagination to the world around us. That creativity comes in so many different forms and emerges from different voices in different spaces, so we wanted to find a way to celebrate that diversity and encourage people to see that Creativity does truly live here in Waikato.” – Dr. Jeremy Mayall.

Whether you’re enjoying the artistic and creative goodness from Waikato or contributing to it, you are a part of our diverse creative landscape, and your experience matters. Share your story, tag @creativewaikato with our filter, and celebrate Waikato as a hub of creative inspiration.

Let’s put our creativity out into the world and let it shine!