HoCŌ: THE EXHIBIT

JESS, CENTURI, NEIL, CATE AND SARAH

CHRISTCHURCH ŌTAUTAHI

“Humans of Christchurch Ōtautahi began its journey in 2017, initiated through a series of workshops run by Jasmine Jenke, the founder of Humans of South Auckland. Since then our team of volunteer photographers
and storytellers have been capturing stories of Cantabrians and sharing them on social media, and more recently, here in Avenues magazine. Like our counterparts around the world, Humans of Christchurch Ōtautahi aims to share honest stories about everyday people, but of course, with a Christchurch flavour.

“Many of the stories resonate with some familiar values – resilience, creativity, innovation, to name a few. There’s a depth and richness in our local community that we believe needs to be shared. We’ve also found that by asking people to tell their stories it can encourage others to share, and knowing that such stories can empower others in this way is a huge driving force for us.

“We are all passionate about building community and celebrating diversity. In a world of fake news, photoshopped, portraits and glamourised Instagram accounts, these honest stories and images can be heartwarming, humorous, or confronting. Many of the stories are relatable in one way or another, and all of them are an integral part of retaining a piece of Ōtautahi’s heritage.”

On Sunday October 20 some of these stories will be presented in an exhibition as part of the BECA Christchurch Heritage Festival ‘Encounter our Stories’. Opening night takes place at Tūranga Central Library, spaces are limited; book through Eventbrite. The digital showcase will then be open to the public until October 27.