Step into a world of coastal colour at the Alfred Memelink Artspace Gallery this Arts Trail weekend. Watch Alfred live in action as he demonstrates painting a large, atmospheric watercolour of the iconic Petone Wharf. This friendly, seaside arts hub offers five vibrant exhibition spaces to explore, packed with original art, prints, and regional photography by over 100 talented Kiwi creatives. Discover a unique range of NZ-made gifts, learn about their popular school holiday programmes and adult Wine & Watercolour evenings, and treat yourself to a newly added gallery favourite: real fruit ice cream. It is the perfect, family-friendly trail stop with stress-free parking and bike racks right outside.
www.memelink.co.nz

Alina Gane-Hurcomb is a nationally and internationally published, award-winning artist, specialising in acrylic painting with edge, energy and confidence. Her most recent work also includes exploration of her heritage through carving upcycled surfboards. Alina has exhibited in galleries around the world and will be running a dry media activity at the Dowse, during this year's Lower Hutt Art Trail.
www.instagram.com/alina.ganehurcomb.artist

Ange Holtslag is a painter based in Pito-one (Petone). She draws inspiration from natural and urban landscapes, creating abstract landscape works using paint, ink, stencil, graphite, and spraypaint.
www.instagram.com/anges.art.is.here/

The ocean, including the movement of the waves, the sun breaking through a cloudy sky, and the opening of a flower are all things Becky likes to capture. Through acrylic and oil painting on circular canvas, offering a portal to the garden or sky. Using bright colours for loud, sensationalised scenes, Becky offers the viewer a brief escape in the day.
www.instagram.com/kindness.andmischief

Working from his home studio in York Bay, Eastbourne, Brendan explores creativity as both a personal and spiritual journey. Since graduating from The Learning Connexion in 2025 and continuing his practice through the Hutt Art Society, his work has entered a transformative new phase. His latest collection, presented as part of the 2026 Lower Hutt Art Trail, brings together charcoal drawings, screen prints, and paintings inspired by spiritual and mythological subjects. These works explore his deep desire to reach beyond the visible world through creativity and imagination.
www.instagram.com/brendan.martin.art/

Brianne McLean uses a variety of paint mediums, from acrylic on board to automotive paint on custom motorcycles. Her art denotes a captivating linear style and plays with light and colour to capture an intriguing view of her subjects. Her current work showcases the beauty of vintage motorcycles, machinery, and the working man. Brianne was the Overall Winner of the prestigious 2026 Muriel Hopper Awards.
Brianne McLean Art (facebook)

Step inside the weird and wonderful world of Caitlin Thomas-Riley. Caitlin is a versatile illustrator working in styles such as anime, semi-realism, realism, and pixel art. She specializes in character design, world-building, and concept art for games, including weapons and props. Active in game jams, she contributes design, programming, and sprite work. Caitlin also runs a long-standing online roleplay server. Her commissions, often for strong female characters, come from clients around the world. Notable work includes contributions to the Mianite Minecraft series and the 2025 US-NZ Power Up! Game Jam branding. Based in New Zealand, she's a member of the Hutt Art Society and a local painting group. From 2021 to 2024, she served as president of the Victoria University of Wellington Drawing Club.
www.lochnload.nz/

Dorian Everard (he/him) is a Naenae based watercolour artist who paints botanicals, figure studies, and other surrealist oddities. Much of his work explores his experience with gender and his passion for conservation and social justice. What draws Dorian to watercolours is how the medium allows for such loose, expressive brush work alongside detailed layering techniques. He sells originals and fine art prints of his paintings, and makes stickers and greeting cards featuring his original designs.
dorianeverardartist.com

Hayley creates soulful, nature-inspired paintings using mixed media finished with oils. Her work features native New Zealand birds as symbolic messengers, set against richly textured backgrounds that invite stillness and reflection. Each piece offers a quiet moment, where nature, emotion, and meaning meet. Many of her original works have found homes in private collections throughout New Zealand.
www.hayleylowe.art

Hutt Art is an incorporated society that has supported artists in the Hutt Valley for more than 60 years. Based at the corner of Myrtle and Huia Streets, Hutt Art offers members opportunities to create, learn, and exhibit across a wide range of disciplines, including painting, printmaking, mixed media, pottery, porcelain painting, mosaics, embroidery, and weaving. The society also operates the Odlin Gallery and Huia Gallery, which host regularly changing exhibitions throughout the year. For the 2026 Lower Hutt Art Trail, Hutt Art is presenting a special exhibition showcasing members' work. Stop here first to collect your art trail guide.
https://www.huttart.co.nz/

Jade Ell is a Wellington-based illustrator and the artist behind "Tūī or Not Tūī". Her work celebrates Aotearoa's unique wildlife, with a special focus on native birds such as tūī, kererū, pīwakawaka and kākā. Inspired by time spent in nature, Jade's illustrations combine careful observation with playful colour and pattern to create joyful artworks and stationery. Through her work, Jade hopes to help people reconnect with the natural world and with each other, whether through a print on the wall, a handwritten card, or a small reminder of the birds and places we love.
tuiornottui.com

As an abstract artist, Jane is interested in depicting feelings rather than objects and hopes to generate an emotional response from the viewer. Her bold and vibrant paintings are full of colour, texture and pattern. She works either in oils or acrylics and draws inspiration from the natural world around her, appreciating the clear light and vivid hues that are part of the New Zealand landscape. Her practice has been influenced in general by the Impressionist and Abstract Expressionist movements as well as contemporary local artists.

Leon trained as a Graphic Designer, but is self-taught in Fine Arts. A lot of inspiration comes from his surroundings, and he prefers to paint realism, particularly New Zealand landscapes, flora and fauna, though he also paints the occasional abstract. He works mainly in oils and acrylics. Leon has exhibited at the Hutt Art Gallery, NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Artspace Gallery in Petone, Min Kim's Fine Art Gallery in Christchurch, as well as other venues. He has won various art awards at art shows around the region, and has artworks in many private collections throughout New Zealand, as well as in Australia, US, Japan, and The Netherlands.
www.leonart.co.nz

Louise Thomas is a painter, wildlife photographer, and writer. Working predominantly in oil, her paintings explore themes of wildlife, portraiture, and landscape, with her work informed by her own observations, field work, and photography. Stylistically, Louise moves between cubism, expressionism, and realism, maintaining a distinct colourful painterly quality. Her work has sold to private collectors from New Zealand, Australia, and the United States. She has exhibited in group exhibitions with the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts and the Odlin Gallery in Lower Hutt. Winner 2024 Judge's Choice Award Hutt Art Society Annual Exhibition; 2024 People's Choice Award Hutt Art Society Annual Exhibition; 2025 Best Representational Award Hutt Art Society Annual Exhibition. Commissions welcome.
www.louisethomas.co.nz

Marianne Linton is a full-time artist based in Lower Hutt, creating work in watercolour, oil, and acrylic. Inspired by the beauty of the natural world, she explores a variety of subjects, with a special fondness for flowers and animals. Whenever possible, she loves getting outdoors to paint en plein air and capture scenes firsthand. Commissions are welcome.
mariannelinton.com

MIX supports people who have experienced or are experiencing mental health distress in the Hutt Valley. MIX participants are supported for who they are, to be themselves, and to reach their full potential. MIX offers an inclusive and supportive space that aims to foster self-determination and wellbeing. The creative spaces programme at MIX offers visual art workshops for beginners through to experienced artists. This includes bone carving, ceramics, mosaics, drawing and painting. They also offer music and drama and other media based on the suggestions of participating artists.
https://mix.org.nz/.

Phoebe Lowe is a 17 year old artist who lives in Lower Hutt. She has been drawing since she was a toddler, and begun painting on canvas at 16 for a year-long school project. Since then, she has exhibited many times, alongside her artist mother. With her playful, graffiti inspired style, her work is loved by young and old.
www.phoebelowe.art/

Robyn has been a full time artist since 2000 teaching art and working at her own creations. As a keen tramper she is continually inspired by the magnificence of the natural world. "My commitment is to encourage people through my paintings to help protect our environment and maintain it for the future. I notice beauty everywhere, from the city streets to tiny insects, the ocean to leaves on a tree, and the connectedness that exists between them. I believe these connections are the thread of life."

Sarah Albisser's background as a contemporary dancer and choreographer profoundly shapes her art, blending movement and self-expression. In recent years, she's embraced a minimal, surreal aesthetic, balancing space and simplicity to evoke powerful, poetic narratives. Her work is held in private collections worldwide.
sarahalbisser.com

Sophie creates bold, expressive works inspired by resilience, storytelling and the natural world. Her paintings often feature symbolic elements such as Black Robins, koi fish, florals and powerful feminine figures, blending whimsy with emotional depth. Alongside her own creative practice, Sophie is passionate about making art accessible through inclusive teaching young creatives at her community art club, The Sketch Pad. Her work celebrates strength, imagination, and finding beauty through life's challenges, inviting viewers into colourful worlds filled with symbolism, movement, and heart.
sophiegardinerart.com

Sue is an abstract artist whose work celebrates the vibrant personalities of native birds and cats. Known for her fearless use of bright colour, she creates paintings that evoke strong reactions - viewers tend to either love it or not at all. Her favourite subjects include the tui, kereru, and fantail, whose character and movement provide endless inspiration. Rather than focusing on a single piece, Sue is driven by continual growth, always looking toward the next painting as an opportunity to learn, experiment, and improve. Working in acrylics, Sue sees herself as an abstract storyteller of feathers and fur.

Visit the vibrant campus and experience a hub of creative energy. Explore the working art studios and gallery, and meet TLC's talented artists - tutors, and students - who bring their unique visions to life. From printmaking and jewellery to ceramics, life drawing, illustration, and painting - TLC's community of artists work across a wide range of disciplines.
www.tlc.ac.nz
www.instagram.com/thelearningconnexion/

Wesley Rātā Village (formerly Wesleyhaven) is a place to weave community and enhance wellbeing. Since the closure of the hospital and rest home in 2017, a key focus has been creating a space to connect and be creative together. This group exhibition features work by residents of the village, local Naenae artists, and others who attend programmes or groups hosted by Wesley Community Action. Come for a look around and find out what's been happening at Wesley Rātā Village as it evolves into a new, vibrant, intergenerational community.
www.wesleyca.org.nz/community-actions/wesley-rata-village

The Naenae Menz shed, which has been in operation for fourteen years, has become a focus for groups and individuals in the area wishing to further their skills and enjoy the company of others. The Shed also provides its facilities and support to several community groups involved with helping individuals with disabilities. For the Art Trail, the Naenae Shed has teamed up with the Wellington Woodworkers Guild to feature the work of a range of woodworking artists and crafts people from the area. The work displayed at the shed will include wood turned items, fine furniture, wooden toys and a range of carved wood items. All will be for sale. Club and Shed members will be present demonstrating their woodworking skills and answering questions.
Menz Shed: menzshed.org.nz/naenae/
Guild of Woodworkers: www.gww.org.nz/

Claire has lived in Lower Hutt for 45 years and been sculpting with clay since 1999, initially through community education classes and then the Pt Howard Art Society. She favours form, moving between 2D and 3D pieces and creates many of her pieces by cutting away as opposed to building up. She enjoys using recycled clay, adding another unknown element to the process, which fits with her values around waste. She says working with clay is largely for personal learning and well-being, with her pieces often a reflection on life. Much of her work hasn't been exhibited before.

Emmi loves to create heavily textured, organic, slightly abstract pieces that evoke thought or emotions. "I find beauty in the imperfection of things - rough edges and symmetry that is a bit off." She takes everyday materials such as pieces of fabric, wooden offcuts, wire and paint, and turns them into something that is thought-provoking and intriguing - forms that depict the ordinary in an un-ordinary way.

Jonathan has been sculpting in bronze since 1992. In that time he has had numerous dealer gallery exhibitions and worked on multiple project/commissions. He sculpts, moulds, casts and engineers all of his own work. "I like to work imaginatively and enjoy the technical challenges the lost wax casting process presents."
www.instagram.com/lostwax10

This work is about rebirthing old machinery to a new purpose. It contains a Steampunk aesthetic but is intended to be more in the Upcycling genre. Air compressors, gas gauges, mesh cages, surround antique filament bulbs. Light and pressure.
www.instagram.com/lightbulb_moment_lamps/

Fiona Christeller creates contemporary jewellery, using a range of materials, including precious and other metals, gemstones, beads, found and recycled objects, and whatever else takes her fancy. Using traditional jewellery techniques to make wearable / art objects, her work is consequently unique, colourful, and exciting. She sells in galleries and design stores nationwide. "Please come and enjoy our work. There will be some surprises."
www.fionachristeller.com

Lisa's art invites viewers to challenge what is precious versus ordinary, to reconsider what they often overlook, dismiss, or discard. How artificial is the belief of value? Her Jewellery is not made to be temporary- yet it includes base metals and stone that have been in existence for thousands of years. Common, ordinary, utterly unique. It invites the wearer to be an individual despite subconscious influences from and on each other and the natural world.
https://www.instagram.com/lisa_sinclair_artist/

Nikkie Gibson's jewellery is inspired by the social cultural and physical environs of Aotearoa. She enjoys taking traditional concepts and designs out of context to create something new. Nikkie's goal is to create a body of work that inspires and challenges individual perspectives. She creates jewellery with the belief that it is both body adornment and fine art.
www.instagram.com/nikkiegibsonjewellery

Philippa Hopkins is a lampwork artist based in Naenae. Her love of glass began in Bristol. She initially started playing around with making jewellery using lampwork beads, then she stumbled across a studio that offered lessons in how to make them and the rest is history! The things Philippa loves most about working with glass are the vast range of colours available and the smooth, solid weight of the finished bead in her hand.
www.glaesdesign.co.nz

This Eastbourne-based artist began her silver jewellery journey in Bali in 2017. Inspired by the natural world and the endless curiosity of the making process, Philothea works with pure and sterling silver, brass, copper, gold and bronze to create sustainable, affordable & uplifting jewellery. Unashamedly a tool geek, she loves learning, whether it's the history of jewellery, healing properties in gemstones, or ways of transforming metals. For her, jewellery is more than an accessory for herself and others. It is a way to adorn and appreciate the body, and express a profound gratitude for life through the creation and gifting of jewellery.
www.studiotoru.co.nz

Rachel Stichbury is a contemporary jeweller based in Eastbourne, Lower Hutt, working from her beachside Greenwood Studio. She creates sculptural jewellery in sterling silver and gold, exploring organic texture, form and the refined beauty of precious metals. Each piece is handcrafted using traditional techniques intended to be worn, loved and eventually passed on, or reformed and remade into new designs as part of an ongoing circular life of precious metal.
www.rachelstichbury.com

Jo had been working as a professional hand embroiderer for more than 30 years. She teaches all over New Zealand with regular trips to Australia to both exhibit and teach. Alongside teaching, Jo works on commissions for private individuals, churches, fashion, and film. Jo holds regular exhibitions of her work and has pieces in both private and public collections. In 2017, Jo published her first book, "Stitch People", later released as "Creative Thread".
www.instagram.com/dixeysoul/

Simone has spent two decades making superheroes and villains look good - fabricating weird and wonderful costumes and costume props for major motion pictures, indie theatre productions, and everything in-between. These days, she expresses her love of textiles through art that ranges from quilting inspired depictions of the birds of Aotearoa to abstract pieces that explore our relationships with the world around us. She has a heavy focus on sustainable textile practices and enjoys sharing her processes and love of all things craft, art, and fabric.
Studio entrance is down at the far end of the garage.

Amanda Stowers is the Sāmoan artist behind Masina Creative, her ceramic work inspired by her cultural background. Amanda's pieces often feature hand carved motifs, completed in a freehand style as an homage to the Tatau and Siapo they're inspired by. Her aim is to create a deeper understanding for her culture while allowing others to feel represented by her pieces that are created with purpose and pride.
masinacreative.co.nz/

All of Anna's pottery is handmade in her studio on the Western Hills. She makes domestic ware and sculpture. All her ceramic work is predominantly wheel thrown and tends to favour simple forms and clean lines. "I like to use New Zealand clay as much as possible and fire in both electric and gas kilns." In 2022, she completed a Level 6 Diploma in Arts and Design majoring in Ceramics at Otago Polytechnic.
www.annacampbellceramics.com

How Cate can create something magical through the medium of clay is wonderful to her. With each creation her intention is that they hold their own space as a unique art piece. She loves the mystical and magical and the feel of the clay as she sculpts. Cate holds a degree in Ceramics from the UK, and is the founder of Fig Tree Studio, where she hosts boutique workshops designed to share the joy of working with clay. Her ceramics have been exhibited in solo shows and represented by galleries in New Zealand, Australia, and the UK.
www.facebook.com/figtreeclaystudio

Chris Parkin (he/him) is an artist, creative and chemist. He is a tutor of pottery at Hutt Art Society and teaches photography through the Southern Institute of Technology. He enjoys experimenting with various techniques in his art, often blending his experience in photography, pottery, politics, and dance to create quirky and unusual works.

Heather Grouden is an artist with many years experience in painting and ceramics. She works in oils, both abstracts and portraits, and her ceramics range from whimsical sculptural pieces to botanically inspired domestic ware. She has exhibited widely and carried out many commissions over the course of her career.

Kirsty opened her pottery studio and workshop in 2018, with her background in textile, graphic, and interior design proving invaluable in the multi-disciplinary art of ceramics. Her work reflects her love of the creative process - drawing inspiration from the patterns, shapes, and textures of the natural world and found objects. Every aspect of her design is carefully considered, with particular care being taken with the more subtle, tactile qualities that make using something as simple as a mug feel just right. As an enthusiastic cook and host, she appreciates the difference a set of beautiful plates or serving platter can make.
www.kirstymorison.com/

Victoria Grouden comes from a long line of artists and crafters and is never long without feeling the urge to make something. She combines her love of the natural world with a love of old things, and her ceramic pieces and jewellery are hugely inspired by what she finds and documents in her other life as a professional archaeologist. She loves pattern, colour, and texture.
www.mudlark.nz

Emma is an artist with a passion for printmaking, painting, drawing, digital art, and collage. She often combines these techniques to create mixed-media artworks. "I love bright colours and often depict flowers in my work. I am a keen gardener and some of my works depict flowers I have grown myself." Emma has been a member of the Hutt Art Society since 2021 and is the coordinator for both the printmaking and collage groups at Hutt Art.
www.emmawestartist.com/

Johannes Mueller-Welschof, a longtime member of the Hutt Art Society, holds a MD in Design and an Advanced Diploma from The Learning Connexion. His work spans photography, print-making, collage, painting, and mixed media. His art is held in collections across New Zealand, Australia, Europe, and Japan. This year he joins three other artists for a pop-up at the Dowse Art Museum, where the group will display their art and also offer drop-in sessions for visitors.
www.facebook.com/jmw.visualarts/

Niki, a British-born, award-winning artist based in Eastbourne, holds an MFA from the Schule Für Gestaltung Basel and a Visual Communications degree from Wellington Polytechnic School of Design. Her practice is an exploration of balance and duality—between analog and digital, chaos and calm. Blending abstraction and representation, she distils visual narratives into evocative compositions that reflect the emotional and sensory dimensions of recollection. Through gestural mark-making and structured layers her work captures and transforms fleeting moments into lasting impressions. Blurring the lines between reality and remembered experience. Inviting viewers to reflect on the fluid nature of memories.
www.twinislandgallery.com.

Pepper Raccoon is a illustrator and merch designer based out of a micro-warehouse in Lower Hutt. She is well known for her nature-inspired enamel pins, stickers, and apparel designs, sold in eco-sanctuaries and shops around the country, and has a fine art background that she brings to her original digital designs. She is passionate about making art affordable and accessible, as well as bringing an original, alternative voice to the New Zealand nature art market. Her studio is not only a space for drawing, but also where her stickers and many of her other products are made.
pepperraccoon.com.

Sacha Fawbert comes from a long line of creatives and has developed her own style, underpinned by a sense of curiosity, three years of study with City and Guilds, and years of experimentation with ideas and techniques. Primarily a textile artist, she has recently branched out into the broader field of mixed media. She is a playful artist - playing with ideas, words and techniques. Pieces may be silly or serious, obscure or obvious, and sometimes they just tell the tale of who she is.

Simon is a multi-media assemblage artist who has been working with found objects since studying at Whitireia Polytech in the early 90s. His practice encourages us to look at waste in a different way, seeing it's potential as a creative medium, by giving it a second life in his artworks.

Andrea Mae Miller is a Fine Art Printmaker based in Eastbourne, Lower Hutt. Her art practice uses multiple printmaking techniques, often in the same work, to create textured, intricate limited edition prints. From her studio above Wellington Harbour, Andrea draws inspiration from the natural environment around her: the birds, the bush, the weather, and the sea.
www.andreamaemiller.co.nz

Jolene is a visual artist and printmaker whose creative journey began with a Sculpture degree from Camberwell College of Art, London, followed by a career teaching secondary Art and Design. Printmaking is central to her practice, with works spanning linocut, drypoint, monotype, and woodcut. Her approach is intuitive and experimental, exploring line, form, texture, layering, and mixed media. Inspired by the natural beauty of Aotearoa New Zealand, her prints draw on native bush, rugged coastlines, and local wildlife, including birds, insects, and marine life. Jolene's recent achievements include selection for Imprint 2025: Contemporary NZ Printmakers Showcase, the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts Spring and Summer Exhibitions, and finalist status in the New Zealand Painting and Print Awards 2026.
www.shorelinestudio.nz

Linda's work uses many forms of printmaking including screen printing, mono type printing, and woodcut. "I'm working all the time on new ideas using both screen printing and my vintage printing press. My work reflects the energy and passion I have for our local area."
www.instagram.com/lindasmith1686/

Maarten is an emerging artist exploring different styles of print making as well as with working with cold wax and oils. He works from his studio overlooking the marina in Point Howard. His work is abstract and explores the relationship between colour, shape, line and movement. His work has found its way to private collections in NZ, the USA and Europe.

Marci Tackett loves creating colorful prints on paper and fun functional pottery. Colour, pattern and atmosphere are at the heart of her creative practice.
http://marcitackett.com/

Dean is a self-taught photographer drawn to the quiet beauty of the outdoors. With an eye for detail and a passion for capturing the raw beauty of landscapes, Dean finds inspiration in the quiet, often overlooked moments found in the outdoors. Whether hiking through forests or standing at the edge of the sea, Dean's lens captures the places we pass by but rarely pause to see. His work is a celebration of light, mood, and the magic that surrounds us every day.