Dame Suzanne (Suzie) Moncrieff, DNZM, Upper Moutere.
For services to the arts. Dame Suzanne Moncrieff is the founder of the internationally renowned World of Wearable Art. A Nelson sculptor, she organised a show combining wearable art with theatre and dance to promote an art gallery, in 1987. This became an annual event and grew incrementally, attracting large audiences to Nelson. In 1999 WOW won the Supreme New Zealand Tourism Award. A permanent exhibition space for WOW entries, along with a Classic Car Museum, was opened in Nelson in 2001. When the show outgrew available venues in Nelson, it was moved to Wellington in 2005, where its growth has continued. Entries for WOW are received from around the world, and merchandising is now part of WOW’s business success. Dame Suzanne was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 1998.