17 — 22 September
AGI Member Only Event
AGI Congress 2023, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand. Land of the long white cloud. First country to see the light. World’s last discovered land mass. And one of the few countries in the world to have an adjective as part of its name. Aotearoa New Zealand. A place for new thinking, new conversations, new adventures.
Aotearoa has always been a place defined by the elements and sought by keen explorers. 750 years ago, the legendary Polynesian navigator Kupe was first to sight and set foot on the land of the long white cloud. In 1642, the first European, Abel Tasman, sighted what he called ‘Staten Landt’. In 1769, James Cook, chasing the Transit of Venus, mapped the archipelago’s coastline and set in motion the gears of colonialism.
In 2023, we are thrilled and excited to invite intrepid members of the Alliance Graphique Internationale to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland for the AGI Congress and Open. In the indigenous language of Aotearoa, te reo Māori, Tāmaki Makaurau means ‘desired by many’, and we hope our full and varied programme, and the qualities of the destination, will entice members from across the great oceans.
Following the two-day AGI Open, our Congress flies the flag for cultural immersion. From the untameable beauty of the West Coast, where mighty surf crashes onto vast black-sand beaches, and through ancient forests clothed in green, we chart a line eastwards, through landscapes dominated by volcanic cones and harbours, across an exclusive private art ‘farm’, to the urban centre, where we will discover art and architecture that captures the indigenous spirit of place. All with mini-excursions on electric motorbikes designed in New Zealand. Our time together concludes with wine, fusion food and designed memories on beautiful Waiheke, the white-sand ‘island of trickling waters’.
For most members, Aotearoa New Zealand represents a significant journey. AGI Congress 2023 is a climate positive event. We’ve calculated our projected carbon footprint and will offset 125% of event emissions with restorative native forestry projects. We promise it will be a memorable one. To maximise the possibilities of your adventure, we advise you to begin planning soon.
From an island, every view is a new horizon.
Ka kite ākuanei.
See you soon.
The AGI NZ organising team,
Dean Poole, Kris Sowersby, Michaela Webb, James Goggin, Arch MacDonnell.