Airport Artwork on Sale to support Special Families

2024-04-15

A unique artwork created in the Wellington terminal is up for sale, raising funds to support families who have children with special and extra needs.

Artist and muralist Em Wafer created the artwork as Wellington Airport’s artist in residence this month. It is now for sale on Trade Me with all funds raised going to the Āhuru Mōwai Trust.

The theme for this piece is “unexpected journeys and life-long learning; arrival in a different time and space in the world with a new pace and perspective.”

Paul and Mandy Latham created the Āhuru Mōwai Trust in 2016 and say the support from Em is humbling.

“The funds raised will support our work to create safe spaces for families, where they can feel supported and understood as they are,” says Paul.

“This will help us create positive experiences for the whole family, making their worlds bigger rather than smaller.

“We’re also grateful to Wellington Airport for supporting this project and helping raise the profile of our work.”

This is the second year that Wellington Airport has hosted Em as artist in residence. Last year her artwork raised $5,000 for the Āhuru Mōwai Trust.

The auction closes at 8pm on Wednesday 24 April.

About Em Wafer

Em is a full-time New Zealand artist and muralist known for her surreal microcosmic worlds. She exhibits locally and internationally and has collectors worldwide.

Unique enough to strike a chord with our own stories yet universal enough to leave space for individual reflections, Em's work addresses the wordless subconscious.

Em is frequently inspired by moments with her son James, who is on the autism spectrum and brings beautifully unique perspective shifts through a neurodivergent lens.

“The totally different way he seems to see everything, his questions, his unusual order of priorities - the way he is doesn’t always make it easy for him to function in the world or for us to teach him. But he’s awesome, and hilarious, and I admire his raw honesty.

“The main message we want to bring across is this: don’t look away, look closer and be curious. There’s so much more going on inside every one of us than what is obvious on the surface, but even more so for our children and adults on the autism spectrum - things can be the opposite of what they seem. Be curious, be open, and ask - never assume.”