Ramp Connects

“My role is to advocate for and champion the artists I represent,'' says Anna Miles of her eponymous gallery. The gallerist's point of view is informed by a childhood spent making things. Her subsequent years writing about art have paved the way for a 19-year strong career running her Auckland-based gallery.

Ramp Gallery manager Hollie Tawhiao chats with Anna Miles about championing and advocating for women in the art world and how she’s embraced challenges by “staying in”. Anna shares some insights for emerging artists too, “Make! Dig deep into your own interests no matter how weird they are.”

Lissy and Rudi Cole are artists known for their love of neons, crochet and telling stories with themes that not only bring joy to audiences and uplift Māori, they also broach important issues on equity, sovereignty and colonisation.

The husband and wife creative duo kōrero with Ramp Gallery curator Hollie Tawhiao about collaborating with whānau, manifesting their creative future and their calling to bring more aroha to the people of Aotearoa and the globe.

Ramp connects with Liz Callaway, a Tony nominated, Emmy award winning singer and performer who has provided the singing voice for Anya in the Disney animated film Anastasia, among other films. She is also a decades-long Broadway performer and this year she has had to hone her technology skills as she reaches out to her audiences online.

Ramp connects with artist Kereama Taepa, whose work explores ideas around identity and belonging. One of his latest exhibitions, Transmission, speaks to the rich history of innovation within Māori culture as he mixes traditional Māori carving with virtual reality and 3-D printing. He has a Masters Degree from Massey University and currently teaches art at Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology in Rotorua.

Ramp connects with Susan Rogers, a music production & engineering professor at Berklee whose industry work has included working as a producer, engineer and technician for various artists including Prince and The Bare Naked Ladies.

Ramp connects with comic and The Spinoff creative director Toby Morris whose clear, informative and engaging work on Covid-19 has seen The Spinoff win a contract with the World Health Organisation.

Ramp connects with Yah-Leng Yu and Arthur Chin whose Singapore-based design company Foreign Policy aims to make a difference within the community, while always be ahead of the trend.

Ramp Connects with photographer Mark Hamilton who boldly took up photography and made it his career when life was taking him in a very different direction.

Ramp Connects with artist and writer Faith Wilson whose work has seen her travel extensively and land back in her hometown Kirikiriroa (Hamilton), where she has had no difficulty finding inspiration to create.

Ramp Connects with journalist, film maker, writer and provocateur David Farrier who says "on a good day, you're constantly getting surprised by what you're finding".