NZ ART SHOW 2026 Top 10 Artwork Wax Off. Wax On.
Christchurch Painter Kate McLeod Named Top 10 Finalist at NZ Art Show
Local contemporary abstract artist Kate McLeod has been selected as a finalist in the People’s Choice Art Award at the NZ Art Show 2026, with her large-scale painting Wax Off. Wax On. named among the Top 10 artworks in this year’s Show.
Now in her fifth year exhibiting at the NZ Art Show, McLeod’s selection places her alongside some of Aotearoa’s leading contemporary artists. Chosen from hundreds of artworks set to feature across the Show, the finalists were selected by the NZ Art Show Board of Directors for their ability to create connection, spark conversation, and resonate emotionally with audiences.
The selected work, Wax Off. Wax On., measures 1255 x 1555 x 60mm and forms part of McLeod’s new body of work, The Invisible Load, created exclusively for the 2026 NZ Art Show. The series explores the invisible labour of domestic work, using cleaning tools such as mops, brushes, cloths, and sponges to create the paintings.
“Objects designed to erase marks are instead used to create them,” says McLeod. “The work explores repetition, accumulation, and the physical traces of labour that often goes unseen and unrecognised.”
Built through repeated movement and layered gestures, the paintings transform acts of maintenance into visible records of time, effort, persistence, and care. Rather than romanticising domestic labour, McLeod’s work focuses on the materiality of labour itself, revealing the quiet force within repetition and the physical evidence of work that is usually expected to disappear.
“The paintings are built through accumulation rather than single gestures,” she says. “That structure reflects the rhythms of domestic labour, cyclical, ongoing, and without a clear endpoint. The power in that isn’t loud or dramatic; it’s in persistence.”
The People’s Choice Art Award reflects the NZ Art Show’s emphasis on connection and accessibility, inviting the public to vote for the work that resonates most strongly with them across King’s Birthday Weekend. The winning artist will receive a $3,000 prize.
Executive Director Carla Russell says the award celebrates artworks that leave a lasting impression on audiences. “It’s about the work that stops people in their tracks,” says Russell. “The piece they keep thinking about. The one that creates conversation or emotion or curiosity.”
The NZ Art Show 2026 takes place from Friday 29 May to Sunday 31 May 2026 at TSB Arena on the Wellington waterfront, featuring more than 200 artists and over 4,000 original artworks from across Aotearoa. Visitors will be able to view Wax Off. Wax On. and meet Kate in person throughout the weekend.
“Paintings should be experienced kanohi ki te kanohi, face to face, to fully experience their life force energy. A screen can never truly hold the weight, texture, or presence of a work of art,” says McLeod
Tickets and event information are available via the official www.nzartshow.co.nz