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Remember that gig where you lost yourself in the music?

What about that book that made you feel less alone? The school art room that made you happy? The waiata that makes you whole?

Creativity makes you who you are. And Aotearoa is made by creativity.

Creativity makes us.

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Create!

Auahatia!

In te reo Māori, the kupu ‘auaha’ means ‘to create’. 'Auahatia' is an extension and invitation: create!

Creativity is in all of us. Whether we’re in the crowd or participating ourselves, we’re engaging our creativity.

All it takes is listening to that impulse in each and every one of us to make. To create. To be a part of a creative moment.

Consider this your invitation.

Creativity makes us all

Miriama Kamo

On reading, writing, and the art of crochet.

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Tom Sainsbury

On the Topp Twins, human psychology,and the creativity of the librarian’s cardigan

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Suzy Cato

On being a rainbow, Russell Rooster and finding the creative child within

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Keven Mealamu

On singing in choir, originating a haka, and becoming a ‘real artist’

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Lucy Blakiston

On screaming fun, ogre green, and swearing in the news

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Jon Toogood

On black teeth, the Big Day Out, and “stealing” from KISS

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Stacey Morrison

On being Annie, ugly crying, and the allure of creativity

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Creativity mirrors us

80%

of young New Zealanders say that doing creative things makes them feel excellent or good.

63%

of New Zealanders agree that "the arts help define who we are as New Zealanders."

Happier

Students involved in kapa haka at school are happier to attend school and more disposed to learning.

$17.5 billion

$17.5 billion. The creative sector contributed $17.5 billion to New Zealand’s GDP in 2024.

Ageing

Arts engagement can reduce the risk of developing mental illness in adolescence and in older age.

At school

Art in schools empowers children to learn better in other subjects.

Explore the Creative Fact Finder

We’re building support for a future where arts, culture, and creativity thrive, so all New Zealanders flourish.

Our advocacy work promotes the value of arts, culture and creativity in all our lives, and supports the arts sector to make the case for creativity and the arts.

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Creativity makes us — Auahatia!

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