Friday 23rd Oct - Sunday 1st Nov 2026
Te Waka Kura O Mohua Auditorium, Takaka
BAY ART is an annual exhibition and awards event run by the Golden Bay Community Arts Council with the aim to encourage and recognise the diverse range of high quality artwork produced by amateur and professional artists and artisans resident in Golden Bay. Attracting nationally recognised judges and featuring a number of categories BAY ART has been running since 1987 and is a huge favourite on the local arts and cultural calendar, regularly attracting over 100 entries and many hundreds of visitors to the region over exhibition week.
YOUNG@ART is a non-competitive exhibition for Golden Bay young folk aged 5 - 17 years which runs in conjunction with BAY ART, with the option for youth aged 12 - 17 years to enter the judged BAY ART event in the Youth Award category.
Important Dates:
Online Entries Close: Tuesday 20th October @ 5.30pm
Delivery of Entries: Wednesday 21st October between 2pm and 5:30pm
Curating of Exhibition: Thursday 22nd October
Judging: Friday 23rd October
Grand Opening and Prize Giving: Friday 23rd October at approx. 5.00pm (doors open 4.30pm)
Exhibition Open: Saturday 24th October - Sunday 1st November from 10am - 4pm daily
Peoples Choice Award and Closing: Sunday 1st November at 4pm
Entries Pickup: Sunday 1st November between 4pm - 5pm (in person)
Categories:
2D Art: painting, printmaking, mixed media, film, photography, and digital art.
3D Art: sculpture made of stone, ceramics, wood, glass, metal, mixed media, and fibre art.
3D Miniature: jewellery, sculpture and mixed media art smaller than 15cm square
* Additional category prizes awarded at judges discretion.
Important Note: Artists are responsible for creating a display system
for all free standing artworks. Digital works must be set up by artists
using their own equipment.
Levels:
General: Open to all entries.
Professional: Entry is by personal choice and not a requirement for professional artists.
Youth: Open to youth aged 12-17 years who would like to be judged for awards.
An overall winner will be chosen in each category. The prize pool (including money and gifts) will be awarded across the exhibition at the discretion of the judges and includes recognition of highly commended works.
Conditions of Entry:
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The competition is only open to current residents of Golden Bay.
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Entries must be original, completed in the last 12 months and not previously exhibited.
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There is a limit of one entry per category, per person, which may be judged or not as desired.
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All entries must be suitable for a general audience and will be accepted at our discretion.
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Entries are to be delivered to Te Waka Kura O Mohua (GBHS) Auditorium on Wednesday 21st October between 2pm and 5.30pm.
LATE ENTRIES CANNOT BE ACCEPTED.
Exhibition Ready Requirements:
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Work must be supplied finished, dry and in a safe condition for handling (i.e. no sharp points, jagged edges etc.). If the work is very large/heavy the artist will need to provide assistance with hanging or displaying.
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If your work is an installation, you must contact us no later than one week prior to the entry date.
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2D work MUST be provided ready to hang – i.e. with hooks and cord already firmly attached. Work not ready to hang will not be exhibited.
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On a separate tag clearly write name, title of piece and category. Attach tag to string. (Tags are purely for hanging purposes and will be removed for exhibition.)
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All work MUST be collected at the end of the exhibition on Sunday 1st November between 4pm – 5pm. Artists can arrange another person to pick up.
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Although all reasonable care will be taken Golden Bay Arts Council will not be responsible for any loss or damage to art work.
Prizes and Judging Criteria:
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An overall winner will be chosen in each category. The prize pool (including money and gifts) will be awarded across the exhibition at the discretion of the judges and includes recognition of highly commended works.
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The supreme award can be chosen from any entry.
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The people’s choice award will be awarded at the end of the exhibition.
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The judges’ decisions are final.
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Prize money is subject to change.
Bay Art Judges 2026
Karin Gembus originally hails from America. Before coming to Nelson more than 10 years ago, she lived for 18+ years in La Paz, Bolivia. She is an avid supporter of the arts, currently serving on three local arts committees: Nelson Suter Art Society (President), Art Group Nelson (Vice President) and Tasman National Art Awards (Secretary). She holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees and a diploma in Arts and Media from NMIT. Instagram - @karingembusartist
Sarah Lewis is a Nelson-based contemporary abstract artist and member of Wall to Wall Art Collective. She has exhibited and sold works in galleries and exhibitions throughout Nelson. As a pianist and music teacher, her visual work is strongly influenced by rhythm, movement and space. Instagram - @sarahlewisartist
Tom Brooker, who holds a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Essex University, worked for 12 years in London as the assistant to renowned artist Damien Hirst. Tom works mainly in oils and is inspired by the natural landscapes and architectural structures. He is an artist member of Nelson Suter Art Society, where he's also a committee member. Instagram - @tom_brooker_art
Bay Art Core Crew 2026
This year's exhibition will again be managed by Gary Smith with the support of Rosa Silverfinch (Bay Art) and Holly Parker (Young @ Art) with Marg Braggins stepping into more of a mentoring role this year. 2026 is a year of transition for both exhibitions with Kathy, Sarah and Marg taking a step back to allow new energy to flow into the event. Also, Gary will be stepping back as the event manager with Rosa learning the ropes this year in preparation for picking up the reins in 2027 (when incidentally the exhibition will be celebrating 40 years).
Bay Art and Young @ Art Curator legends step down in 2026
It is with both a sense of loss and more importantly celebration that the Golden Bay Community Arts Council and Bay Art crew would like you to join us in acknowledging the amazing service and skill both Kathy Reilly and Sarah Thomas have put into being an integral part of organising and curating Bay Art and Young @ Art respectively... the Bay Art core crew would like to personally express our deepest honour and appreciation for the passion, expertise and tireless energy you both have contributed to these events. While we all know change allows for renewed energy for these exhibition's your depth of experience and support for our youth and the region's artists will be missed.
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