One of New Zealand’s iconic art centres, TheNewDowse steps beyond the 20th century art museum to display, celebrate and showcase creativity across art, science, technology and design.

Our vision – creativity in progress – expresses a strong commitment to creative thinking, creative solution-finding and to the active ‘engagement’ of creativity.

Our building is itself a showcase of sustainable and innovative design. As an arts hub, TheNewDowse is a meeting place for many communities - a place for performances, workshops, product launches, fashion parades, weddings and more. TheNewDowse houses eleven exhibition spaces, a destination café, shopette, a stunning outdoor courtyard, a creative workshop specially designed for hands-on classes and programmes and The Lounge which is filled with comfortable couches and chairs for quiet ‘lounging’, arts-based reading material and four Connect computers with internet access, as well as family-friendly activities including a magnet board, jigsaw puzzles and exploration worksheets.

Put a creative spark in your next event!

Not your average art gallery, TheNewDowse has an innovative multi-purpose events space perfect for housing your next event. With stand-alone and breakout space available, including an enclosed courtyard, the spaces can work in a multitude of ways and can be configured to cater for anything from a staff workshop for 20, a formal lecture for 80, or a seated dinner for 200.

With a stack of design and architecture awards, TheNewDowse is perfectly suited for all kinds of corporate,community and social events, such as weddings, conferences, receptions, craft fairs, seminars, birthdays, workshops and launches - anything you want to inject a bit of creative flair into!

To enquire about having your next event with us contact the Visitor Services team on:
Ph: 04 - 570 6500
Fax: 04 - 569 5877

TheNewDowse is easy to find located directly opposite Hutt City Horticultural Hall and Hutt City Town Hall. By car it will take you around 20 minutes from Wellington (via State Highway 2). Buses (including the ‘Valley Flyer’ Express, nos. 83, 81, 91) leave from Central Wellington every 20 minutes.

Take a look at ‘Place Finder’ Hutt City