“I don’t really do skiing, so the NZ Art Show weekend has become my annual winter escape — and I don’t even have to go anywhere.”
Meet Katy Sweetman — art collector, storyteller, and self-confessed NZ Art Show superfan. A long-time supporter of the arts, Katy has been part of the show’s world since 2017, when she first got involved as marketing director for one of its corporate sponsors.
But her connection to the event goes back even further — to the early 2000s, when she first arrived in Wellington and fell in love with the idea of an affordable art show that celebrated New Zealand creativity on a grand scale.
“It’s an institution — a burst of colour in the middle of winter. The NZ Art Show is one of those weekends where Wellington feels electric with creativity.”
Over the years, Katy has worn many hats — sponsor, Friend of the Show, collector, and most recently, a collaborator helping to tell the stories of the people behind the event: the artists, the organisers, the supporters, and the creative community that powers it.
An art history graduate and lifelong collector, Katy is endlessly curious about the creative process. Her home is filled with artworks that trace her own story through the years — pieces by Suzy Costello, Anneke Moore, Esther Bunning, Rae West, and Cody Ellingham among them. Each one marks a chapter in her life, a reminder of the relationships between art, place, and memory.
Her collection has grown through spontaneous connections — like Anneke Moore’s glowing lightbox she bought the year she launched her own company, Storycore. The artwork’s heart and mind motif became a kind of visual mantra for the business, a reflection of her belief in the power of storytelling to connect people.
From the Gala Night buzz to the quiet VIP preview on Thursday mornings, Katy knows how to savour every moment of the show. Her advice for first-timers?
“Do a full lap first — get your bearings, then take a second lap and really look. You’ll see something new every time.”
“There’s nothing I like more at the end of a long, head-hurting day than stepping out of my home office and just looking at art. I don’t have to put it into words — it just helps me get lost.”
For Katy, collecting art is about more than ownership — it’s about connection, curiosity, and celebrating creativity in all its forms.
