Creative New Zealand is the national agency for the development of the arts in New Zealand. The purpose of our work is to encourage, promote and support the arts in New Zealand for the benefit of all New Zealanders. (Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Act 1994).
Our mandate is to support community and professional arts. In doing so, we uphold the principles of access, participation, and excellence and innovation in the arts.
We value the partnership we have with Māori, in acknowledgement of their unique position as tāngata whenua. Much of what makes New Zealand art unique lies in what makes New Zealand unique - our indigenous culture.
We also value Pacific arts and their growing contribution to New Zealand identity. Given the increasing ethnic diversity of New Zealand’s population, Creative New Zealand works to ensure that our impact is felt across the population.