Te Uru Contemporary Gallery is proud to present The Evocation of Worlds, a major new exhibition by Ruth Ige, the inaugural recipient of the Rydal Art Prize since the award found its new home at Te Uru Contemporary Gallery.

The Rydal Art Prize celebrates outstanding contemporary artistic practice and supports the development of ambitious new work. Ruth Ige’s exhibition marks the beginning of a significant new chapter for the prize, establishing Te Uru Contemporary Gallery as its home and reaffirming the Gallery’s commitment to championing contemporary artists from across Aotearoa.

Curated by Anja Lückenkemper, The Evocation of Worlds gathers together a new body of work that extends Ige’s ongoing exploration of memory, identity, migration and belonging. Through richly layered surfaces and an intuitive use of material, Ige creates spaces where personal histories intersect with broader cultural narratives, inviting audiences to consider how worlds are remembered, imagined and continually remade.

Working across painting, textiles and mixed media, Ige’s practice draws upon lived experience while engaging with wider conversations around displacement, resilience and cultural continuity. The exhibition offers a deeply poetic meditation on the ways people carry histories across generations and geographies, and how art can become a site for both remembrance and transformation.

“We are delighted to present Ruth Ige as the inaugural recipient of the Rydal Art Prize at Te Uru,” says Director Adrienne Schierning. “Ruth’s work is both deeply personal and profoundly resonant. Her ability to weave together histories, material knowledge and contemporary experience makes this an exceptional exhibition and a fitting beginning for the next chapter of the Rydal Art Prize.”