Samoa House Library

Samoa House Library is an open and evolving educational platform that has emerged in response to the forthcoming closure of the University of Auckland's Fine Arts, Music and Architecture and Planning libraries.

After successfully opening in late September, the unique positioning of Samoa House Library within Aotearoa's art ecology was quickly recognised and celebrated, and we received widespread support locally and New Zealandly.

We now need your help to secure our beautiful space in Samoa House on Karangahape Road for 2019!

We believe it is important for the Library to continue to operate as the first not-for-profit artist-run space in Aotearoa of its kind. We would like to see the library become a durable institution that can grow and continue to support students, recent graduates, artists and the wider community.

First and foremost, SHL acts as an alternative Fine Arts library, but it also functions as a place of community development and communal learning; hosting workshops, lectures, screenings, critiques, and events taught by, and for, our community. Our approach is open and democratic, with an emphasis on horizontality and peer-to-peer education.

The collection is built according to its core principle of openness and collaboration and is comprised entirely of donations of art books and ephemera from arts institutions, publishing houses, and individuals with a stake in the health of the arts in Aotearoa. The library has a unique cataloguing system that acknowledges donor or provenance, making it reflective of the community that built it. There are currently over 2,500 items in the collection, and it is growing by the day.

We offer a welcoming, free, public space in the heart of Karangahape Road, where knowledge can be shared, and where connections and critical discussions can take place in a supportive environment. The library has a key physical position neighbouring a network of institutions and galleries, it is connected to but independent of these institutions, making it a vital and highly valuable reflective space.

Visit our website for more information: www.samoahouselibrary.org

Donations of any amount are greatly appreciated. Securing our lease for the year would mean that Samoa House Library can continue to house it's growing collection, and host public events and programs such as the upcoming 2019 summer school. Every donation counts!

Thank you so much for your support.

Samoa House Library