Art Meets Conservation: Mahurangi Artists Join 'Towards Predator Free 2050'

Four Mahurangi Artist Network members — Yvonne Gray, Sally Thrush, Karena de Pont, and Talia Russell — are among 40 artists featured in the Towards Predator Free 2050 exhibition series, curated by Valerie Cuthbert. This major art and conservation initiative runs from 16 August – 14 September at Auckland Botanic Gardens, and then at Estuary Arts Centre, Orewa, from 22 September – 27 October, with an opening event on 27 September, 3–5pm.

Yvonne Gray brings awareness to the swift demise of our native Archey's frog.

The multi-venue exhibition combines creative exploration with ecological urgency, highlighting both the beauty of Aotearoa’s native species and the growing threats posed by invasive predators, habitat loss, disease, and climate change. Through painting, sculpture, printmaking, jewellery, photography and more, artists respond to the national goal of making New Zealand predator free by 2050.

Yvonne Gray’s mixed media series Goodbye Freddie explores the plight of Archey’s frog — a critically endangered native species described as a “living fossil.” Found only in remote forest patches, these tiny frogs are now under threat not just from predation and disease, but from political priorities that value mining over conservation. “I wanted to highlight what we risk losing for the sake of multinational interests,” Yvonne says. “These taonga species have survived millions of years — it’s heartbreaking to think they might vanish on our watch.”

Left: Print-maker Sally Thrush's sculptural forms and concertina book.

Right: Across Tawharanui to Little Barrier - Karena de Pont's Burnt Offering painting on charred cedar boards.

Sally Thrush presents a hand-crafted concertina book, incorporating layers of printmaking to depict the delicate balance of life across forest, river, and sea. “From the forest floor to the canopy and beyond,” she writes, “keeping our ecosystems alive gives refuge, healing, and connection. Let’s keep them this way.” Her work reminds us that even the smallest species deserve protection — and that a healthy environment supports all life, including our own.

Karena de Pont returns to the exhibition with the final pieces from her Little Barrier wall sculpture series, alongside a striking new painting titled Across Tawharanui to Little Barrier. “It’s a celebration of the work being done to protect our unique flora and fauna,” she says, “from predator-proof fences on the mainland to the sanctuary of island reserves.” Karena also experiments with gelli printing in a new body of work inspired by a National Geographic article titled “One Pig, One Night, Fifty Frogs” — a stark illustration of how quickly predators can undo years of conservation.

Talia Russell will be leading a stencil screen printing workshop during the exhibition. This hands-on experience invites the public to explore the intersection of art and conservation in a tactile, creative way.

This exhibition reminds us that creativity is a powerful tool for connection, advocacy, and change. Don’t miss this extraordinary event uniting art and ecology.