The Dominion Museum Building
Massey University will return to the Dominion Museum Building in 2019 following the closure of the Great War Exhibition after Armistice Day in November 2018.
The Ministry of Culture and Heritage and Massey University have come to an agreement that will enable the exhibition to remain open for the Ministry’s planned Armistice Day centenary commemoration. The exhibition will close at the Dominion Museum Building at 6pm on December 2, 2018.
The Great War Exhibition was designed as a temporary exhibition, which would be open for the duration of the First World War centenary, Ministry for Culture and Heritage chief executive Paul James says.
“The Ministry appreciates Massey’s willingness to lease the building over the past four years to give people the opportunity to learn more about New Zealand’s First World War stories," Mr James says.
“We would also like to warmly thank the National Military Heritage Charitable Trust for their excellent work in running the exhibition and Sir Peter Jackson for developing the exhibition and lending his extensive collection of First World War artefacts and memorabilia.
“The Great War Exhibition has been an important part of the centenary programme. It has been well-attended by the public and made a significant contribution towards the programmes objectives around connecting people with this important era of our history.
“More than 400,000 people have visited the exhibition since it opened in April 2015.
"We encourage the public to take the opportunity to visit the Great War Exhibition and the Trench Experience before it closes."
Massey University Vice-Chancellor Professor Jan Thomas says the University was delighted to host the exhibition through an important period in New Zealand’s history.
Professor Thomas says the University community is equally happy and excited to again be able to showcase its world-class College of Creative Arts including the Wellington School of Design in such an impressive facility.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for the city of Wellington to share in the fantastic work being produced by our students and staff in the fields of fine arts, creative media production, commercial music, and design. The iconic Grand Hall has been the scene of numerous exhibitions, performances and events for decades and it will be wonderful to have such an outstanding asset back in action for the college, the wider Massey University, including the colleges of Business, Health and Humanities and Social Sciences, and the public.
“Overlooking the National War Memorial and Pukeahu National War Memorial Park, it occupies an important place in Wellington’s history and future. It is the front door for Massey University’s Wellington campus and will once again provide an outstanding teaching and learning environment for the University’s students and staff.”
About the building
The New Zealand Dominion Museum building was completed in 1936 and was the national museum and art gallery until Te Papa opened in 1998. It is owned by Massey University in partnership with the Wellington Tenths Trust.
About Massey University’s College of Creative Arts
The College of Creative Arts is an anchor educational institution based on Massey University’s Wellington campus that can trace its origins back 132 years.
Its three schools, Nga Pae Mahutonga – The School of Design (established in 1886 in the name of forerunner institutions before the merger with Massey), Whiti o Rehua – The School of Art (2002), and Te Rewa o Puanga – the School of Music and Creative Media Production (2015) provide a collaborative environment that fosters research, creative practice and scholarship.
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It employs 429 academic and professional staff and in 2017 attracted 1757 students to the Wellington campus, two thirds who come from out of town, including 100 international students. It has an annual turnover of $32 million.
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The college offers qualifications ranging from bachelor degrees through to PhD, including the Master of Fine Arts. Its programmes include commercial music (addressing technology, industry and practice); creative media production (games, apps, web, film, video, animation, visual effects, audio, virtual reality/augmented reality); entertainment design; fashion design, fine art, industrial design, Māori Visual Art, photographic design, spatial design, textile design and visual communication design.
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It is a significant partner with Wellington community organisations and businesses including being a founding partner of the LUX light festival; sponsors industry events and film festivals; partners with Weta Workshop to offer an entertainment design programme within the college’s existing Master of Design; partners with Wellington City Council to run the Te Whare Hera International Artist Residency that brings contemporary international artists to live and work in Wellington; has established the Matairangi Mahi Toi Māori and Pasifika Artist Residency in the grounds of Government House in partnership with the Governor General and sponsors the Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards.
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In 2018 it opens new music recording and production studios as part of the School of Music and Creative Media Production which has attracted a host of talented musicians to teach its programmes.
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The college has earned a raft of accolades including in 2017 being ranked number one design school in the Asia-Pacific by global design award agency Red Dot; Ranked in the top 100 for art and design by World University QS subject rankings; staff and students won 12 gold, 16 silver and one purple pin in the Designers Institute of New Zealand Best Awards 2017. In 2018 the college won the supreme award at the 2018 Wellington Gold Awards that recognise the best in Wellington business, having earlier won its category of creative gold at the same awards.