Panel Talk: Interconnected – Exploring where art, science, and nature collide

Hosted by Miriama Kamo, Interconnected brings the relationships of art, science, nature, and mātaurangagloss to life in a panel discussion where London-based art collective Marshmallow Laser Feast joins leading researchers and curators for an evening of sharing how we understand the world and ourselves, inspired by Breathe | Mauri Ora.

This thought-provoking kōrero explores how technology makes the invisible visible, and how creativity, science, and Indigenous knowledge together can transform how we see our planet and our place within it.

Featuring

• Representative from Marshmallow Laser Feast – artist/director

• Dr Dan Hikuroa – Earth systems scientist and expert in integrating mātauranga Māori

• Dr Huhana Smith – artist, curator, and researcher exploring climate adaptation and Māori knowledge

• Dr Rebecca Rice – Senior Curator Art at Te Papa

• Dr Thom Linley – Curator Fishes at Te Papa

The panel will explore

• How technology and art reveal nature’s hidden systems

• The meeting of mātauranga Māori and the scientific method

• Ethics and responsibility in an age of ecological change

• Reimagining humanity’s relationship with the living world

• Future visions for the next generation’s environmental consciousness.

Programme

• 6pm to 7pm – Exhibition Viewing
  Experience Breathe | Mauri Ora after hours – an internationally acclaimed digital art exhibition that reveals the unseen forces connecting all living things.

• 7.30pm to 9pm – Panel Talk

• Audience Q&A and closing reflections.

Spaces are limited – book your ticket today.

Speakers

Miriama Kamo (Host) (Ngāi Tahu/Ngāti Mutunga)
Award-winning journalist, broadcaster, and storyteller dedicated to amplifying voices and wisdom from Aotearoa.

Marshmallow Laser Feast
An acclaimed UK-based art collective creating immersive experiences that explore the relationship between humans and the natural world.

Dr Thom Linley
Curator of Fishes at Te Papa – a deep-sea biologist uncovering the mysteries of ocean life without human bias and what they reveal about resilience and connection in nature.

Dr Dan Hikuroa (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngati Mahuta, Ngaati Whanaunga, Pākehā)
Earth systems scientist and expert in integrating mātauranga Māori with Western science to better understand and care for our environment.

Dr Huhana Smith (Ngāti Tukorehe, Te Mateawa, Ngāti Rangitāwhia, Ngāti Kapumanawawhiti ki Kuku)
Artist, curator, and researcher whose work connects art, indigenous knowledge, and climate adaptation in the Aotearoa landscape.

Dr Rebecca Rice
Senior Curator Art at Te Papa, exploring how art helps us see the natural world – and ourselves – differently.

Marshmallow Laser Feast: Works of Nature, 2023, ACMI. Photo © Eugene Hyland.