Ōtautahi Christchurch – Artist, writer, and curator Hayley Walmsley (Ngāti Kawau, Ngāti Tautahi, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou) is launching Counter Narratives, a kaupapa-based photo and interview series centred on kitchens, recipes, and the deeper stories we carry with our kai.
Part documentary, part community archive, Counter Narratives will capture real kitchens as they are — clutter, crumbs, mismatched plates, spills and steam included — alongside the stories and recipes that bring people together. Each instalment will document the process of cooking and eating, paired with conversational interviews about what food means: home, memory, migration, identity.
“Food is never just food. It is inheritance. It is survival. It is memory, gossip, grief, and joy served on mismatched plates,” says Walmsley. “This project is about honouring the knowledge that lives in everyday kitchens and treating it like the inheritance it is.”
Boost Ōtautahi recognition
Counter Narratives was recently selected for Boost Ōtautahi – a partnership between the Arts Foundation’s Boosted crowdfunding platform and Christchurch City Council. Boost Ōtautahi provides matched funding (up to $3,000) and mentoring to local creative projects, meaning every donation to Counter Narratives is doubled.
The Boosted campaign will fund the project’s first wave of visits, conversations, and meals, with the long-term vision of building an online archive and potentially a book or exhibition.
Call for Media
Walmsley is available for interviews to discuss the project, the kaupapa behind Counter Narratives, and the wider role of food in cultural storytelling. Images will be available later as the project develops.
Boosted campaign link: https://www.thearts.co.nz/boosted/projects/counter-narratives/
ENDS
Media contact:
Hayley Walmsley
E: hayley@provocationstation.com
P: 0225097122