Terms of Reference
Public Art Advisory Panel
Terms of Reference – Public Art Advisory Panel, December 2022
Public Art Advisory Panel
The vision for arts and culture in Auckland, for Aucklanders
The Auckland Plan sets the strategic direction for Auckland as a region. Arts and culture
plays a key role in achieving several of the outcome areas of the plan and also contributes
to achieving the vision of Auckland being a world-class city.
Business units with arts and culture directives are key operational and cross-functional
teams within Auckland Council that support creative, inclusive and proud communities.
Specialists provide curatorial and programming expertise, project and production
management, art collection care, technical implementation skills, and advice and support
to the arts and culture sector as well as dedicated front of house customer service and
facility staff.
The key purpose of Public Art Advisory Panel
Public Art Advisory Panel provides insightful, cohesive and expert viewpoints as strategic
context and guidance for the art works in public places.
Supporting purposes
• In all its deliberations, the panel underscores the role of innovation, creativity and arts
and culture as vital to Auckland being a world class city.
• The panel champions Aucklanders’ ability to engage with creativity as part of their
everyday lives.
• The panel provides independent advice to Auckland Council staff and through them, to
elected members on selection processes, gift offers, acquisitions, and new work
proposals.
Two key policy documents create the advisory framework of the panel: Auckland Council’s
Public Art Policy and Toi Whītiki:
• Auckland Council’s Public Art Policy (2013), which mandates excellence, alignment,
transparency and robust planning for the creation, delivery and care of permanent and
temporal art in Auckland’s public places. This policy commits council to working with
an independent and external expert panel to ensure that council receives independent
advice that meets the requirements of both a region-wide programme and the needs of
council’s shared governance structure.
• Toi Whītiki (the Arts and Culture Strategic Action Plan) responds to the Auckland
Plan’s strategic direction for arts and culture.
In addition, operational guidelines for a range of activities such as sector investment,
programming and collection management will both inform and respond to the work of the
panel.
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Terms of Reference – Public Art Advisory Panel, December 2022
Advisory panel scope
The independent, external expertise of the panel is expected to provide advice for the Arts
and Culture unit’s cross functional teams to report to elected members. The activity
involves reviewing the unit’s annual work programmes against its stated objectives and
guiding documents. These opportunities are inherent to Auckland’s arts and culture
operating context.
It involves discussion and commentary on significant initiatives affecting Auckland’s arts in
public places, such as plans for integrated artworks, temporary public art activities
delivered in isolation or through festivals or events.
Public Art Advisory Panel is neither a decision-making body, nor does the panel set
expenditure. The panel does not substitute, replace or replicate in any way the need for
stakeholder engagement on individual projects, events or facilities, or matters of policy.
Stakeholder engagement will be directed by council’s significance and engagement policy
and will meet the requirements of the Local Government Act.
In order to provide advice about arts and culture in Auckland’s public places, the panel
makes an active contribution to the professional and public conversation about the role of
arts and culture in the everyday lives of Aucklanders, in ways that create connections,
encourages participation or growth of audience, partnerships and robust discourse.
It provides the independent expert advice required by Auckland Council’s Public Art Policy.
Advisory panel membership
The panel has between seven and nine members with a balanced array of arts, culture
and design expertise, including a dedicated role for Te Māngai Toi. Particular professional
practice expertise areas sought include (for example) creative entrepreneur, built
environment designer or architect, artist, graphic, experience or product designer, curator
or programmer. Collectively the panel will have:
• Thorough knowledge of the region’s creative sector and the desire to contribute to
position creativity at the centre of Auckland’s growth and transformation;
• An informed view of Auckland’s geography and an understanding of the place-making
potential of arts and culture for the city;
• An understanding of Auckland’s rapidly evolving demographics and diverse
populations and the opportunities and challenges these pose to the city’s development;
• A global perspective on the role creativity plays in creating an excellent, liveable city;
• Commitment to upholding the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi;
• Philosophical alignment with the outcomes of the Auckland Plan;
• A robust and transparent approach to actual or perceived conflicts of interest.
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Terms of Reference – Public Art Advisory Panel, December 2022
Conditions of appointment
Panel members are appointed for a limited term of three years, with a potential renewal of
up to two years, to ensure a gradual succession of members. In addition, Auckland
Council will from time to time recruit new members to replace members who resign during
their three year term.
Auckland Council retains the right to nominate or make ex officio appointments to ensure
requisite skills and expertise are present on the panel.
The appointment of panel members is made by the Manager Public Art, in consultation
with an appropriate internal arts and culture representative, following an in-person
interview. Advisory panel members are paid a meeting rate.
Advisory panel member responsibilities
The panel convenes up to six times per year. The primary responsibility of the panel is to
provide advice to officers.
The panel’s Chair is elected by the panel, and will serve as its spokesperson if required.
The chair will coordinate closely with the Manager Public Art regarding any external
communication about panel activities, including with elected representatives or the media.
A key role of the Chair is to run effective meetings and ensure full participation of
independent members.
Members are expected to offer independent advice to council, which can be transparent
and discoverable if need be, without being attached to a particular individual, through
written summary statements of advice in the panel minutes.
The Public Art Programme Planner will operate as secretary for the meeting, and the chair
will work with the secretary to agree panel focus areas and activities, establish meeting
agendas, and ensure that the panel’s administrative needs are met.
All advisory panel members:
• Raise and present relevant issues to the panel, and report accurately and objectively
on these;
• Actively participate at meetings, share knowledge and encourage discussion;
• Work to achieve consensus on decision making, and where consensus is impossible
for any reason, respect the panel’s majority decision regarding advice provided to
council while also accurately recording minority opinions;
• Respect the values of the communities and individuals that may be affected by panel
advice;
• Be able to communicate Auckland Council’s philosophical position related to arts and
culture;
• Be available for phone and email correspondence between meetings as required for
urgent matters;
• Treat fellow panel members and staff professionally and act in good faith;
• Maintain confidentiality as appropriate and as required;
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Terms of Reference – Public Art Advisory Panel, December 2022
• Serve independently with the ability to give impartial advice without financial interest
and without representing the particular interests of specific groups or individuals;
• Disclose all potential conflicts of interest, and promptly provide relevant updates as
required.
Auckland Council operating context
Established on 1 November 2010, Auckland Council has both a governance and
operational role.
Governance includes the Governing Body of His Worship the Mayor and 20 ward
councillors. The Independent Māori Statutory Board (IMSB) ensures that Auckland Council
enfolds the views of Māori in Tāmaki Makaurau and acts in accordance with te Tiriti o
Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi. Decision-making on matters of regional significance sit
with the Governing Body.
At a local level, governance also includes 21 local boards spread across the region. Local
boards make decisions on local matters in support of strong communities and provide
input into region-wide strategies and plans.
The Governing Body (or its relevant committee), which includes an Independent Māori
Statutory Board (IMSB) member, is the decision-making entity for public art matters at the
regional level.
Generally, political decision-making is informed by expert staff advice. Arts and culture
staff convey to elected representatives that Auckland’s arts and culture landscape is best
served by decisions informed by Mātauranga Māori (Māori world view) and a healthy
balance between regional and local perspectives.
Arts and culture staff also work closely with Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs),
such as Auckland Transport, Eke Pānuku Development and Tātaki Auckland Unlimited.
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Front cover image:
Justice, 2017, by Lisa Reihana, Ellen Melville Centre. Auckland Council Art Collection
Photography by David St George
Find out more:
phone 09 301 01 01
or visit
aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/
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