Last night at Government House Wellington, Dame Cindy and Dr Davies hosted the Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi 2024 Icon Awards Whakamana Hiranga. Established in 2003, these awards are the Foundation's highest honour – bestowed to a living circle of 20 New Zealand artists for their lifetime achievements and contributions the arts.
The two newest Icon Award recipients were Tā Pita Sharples – treasured Māori cultural leader, educator, and composer; and Neil Finn – one of the country's most highly-acclaimed musicians. The Harriet Friedlander Residency recipient, also acknowledged last night, was Ayesha Green – a visual artist from Ōtautahi Christchurch.
Dame Cindy spoke of the abiding importance of the arts in her speech: 'We live in increasingly uncertain times, and it is through the arts that we receive the profound comfort of knowing we're not alone; a reminder of the too-often-neglected truth of just how much we share.'
You can find more images from the event in the Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi 2024 Icon Awards Whakamana Hiranga image gallery and read Dame Cindy's speech in Her Excellency's speech for the Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi 2024 Icon Awards Whakamana Hiranga.