Australasia’s largest lightwall, The Lightship returns this September to illuminate Auckland’s waterfront with its 2025–26 season. Curated by Simon Bowerbank (Whangārei Art Museum) and presented by Port of Auckland, this year’s programme—Thresholds & Crossings—features bold new works by six artists from Aotearoa and Australia, exploring the dynamic tensions between land and sea.
Spanning 110 metres and powered by 8,500 programmable LEDs, The Lightship transforms a working port into a vibrant canvas for contemporary public art. In a time of economic and emotional strain, it offers a free, uplifting cultural experience—reconnecting communities through creativity and light.
Location: The Lightship is located on Quay Street at Port of Auckland, wrapping around the Bledisloe Wharf car-handling facility.
Check out the confirmed artists and installations below:
The Lightship - Clinton Watkins (Image supplied)
The Lightship - Turumeke Harrington (Image supplied)
The Lightship - Oscar Perry (Image supplied)
The Lightship - DJCS (Image supplied)
About Simon Bowerbank
Simon Bowerbank is a curator and gallery director with a focus on contemporary art, technology, and public space. He has curated The Lightship for the past three years and is also Director of Whangārei Art Museum.
Installation 1 | 1 SEP – 26 OCT, 2025
Artist: Esther Stewart (Melbourne, Australia)
Known for her crisp geometric forms and architectural collaborations, Esther Stewart explores space and perspective through abstract painting and design. She has collaborated with architects on site-specific projects and worked with Valentino to translate her signature patterns into fashion.
Installation 2 | 3 NOV – 28 DEC, 2025
Artists: Jess Johnson (Roswell, USA/Auckland, New Zealand) & Simon Ward (Tauranga, New Zealand)
Internationally acclaimed for immersive installations combining drawing, animation, and VR, this duo builds intricate cosmologies and transforms them into multisensory environments. Their 2018 VR work Terminus was commissioned by the National Gallery of Australia and exhibited across Australasia.
Installation 3 | 5 JAN – 20 FEB, 2026
Artist: John Ward Knox (Karitane, New Zealand)
John Ward Knox’s practice shifts fluidly between painting, sculpture, installation, and site-specific work. Conceptually driven and materially varied, his projects explore fragility, perception, and the passage of time, often using unconventional processes or structures to reframe the viewer’s encounter with an object or space.
Installation 4 | 2 MAR – 24 APR, 2026
Artist: Jack B. Hadley (Auckland, New Zealand)
Hadley blends sculpture, design, and engineering to create playful, anthropomorphic works that challenge the boundary between utility and art. Drawing on influences from architecture, toys, and commercial display, his pieces combine industrial materials with a refined sense of form and character.
Installations 5 & 6 | To be announced in 2026
Click here to learn more about the Lightship Programme.
Flat fee of $7.50 per day on weekends at Fanshawe Street carpark. Find out more.
Kids ride free on public transport on weekends and public holidays. Find out more.