PROFILE

Sheyne Tuffery is a Wellington-based multimedia artist of Samoan and Scandinavian/Celtic descent. For over 27 years, his work has explored cultural identity, Pacific urbanism, and environmental change through printmaking, painting, animation, and public art.
Trained at the Auckland Society of Arts in the early 1990s and later completing a Master’s in relief printmaking at the University of Auckland, Tuffery developed his signature style around the concept of paper architecture: futuristic Pacific cityscapes inspired by the Samoan fale and shaped by the towering density of global urban environments. Influenced by Gaudí’s organic architecture and the gothic skylines of Prague, his imaginary structures are blueprints for survival — fusing tradition with speculative design.
Tuffery’s work has long responded to rising sea levels, biodiversity loss, and colonisation, particularly in the Pacific region. Early pieces addressed these concerns symbolically; recent works confront them directly through motifs of endangered species and shifting landscapes. He draws connections between ecological resilience and cultural continuity.
In 2019, as artist-in-residence at Carter Observatory, Tuffery created a body of work responding to the Apollo 11 moon landing’s 50th anniversary. The experience deepened his engagement with astronomy, cosmology, and the role of science in shaping shared human narratives. These themes now appear regularly in his practice, combining popular science with spiritual reflection.
During recent lockdowns, Tuffery embraced found-object monoprinting and natural materials, reconnecting with land and texture while promoting low-tech, sustainable methods. He continues to share these practices in workshops that foreground recycling, storytelling, and Pacific perspectives.
Tuffery’s art is both visionary and grounded — a dialogue between ancestral knowledge and future possibility.
---------------------------------------------
Solo Exhibitions
2024. Subliminal Archipelago, Boyd Dunlop Gallery , Napier
2022 – ZooPlankton, Waiheke Art Gallery,
2019 – Lunar Module, Carter Observatory, Wellington
2014 – Siapo Satellite, Massey University, Wellington
2013 – Ghost in the Machine, Deane Gallery, City Gallery Wellington
USO and the Dragon Slayer, Solander Gallery,
2011 – The Ancient Mariners, Papakura Art Gallery,
2010 – Earthly Delights, Waiheke Art Gallery,
2008 – Sonar Interference, Salamander Gallery, Christchurch
2006 – Misplaced Effigies, Flagstaff Gallery, Devonport
Penguins and Buicks, Salamander Gallery, Christchurch
Marziart Internationale Galerie, Hamburg, Germany
2005 – The Gondwana Waka, Lane Gallery,
2003 – Sifi Taavale Fale, Lane Gallery,
2002 – Salamander Gallery, Christchurch
2001 – Car Paopao, The Lane Gallery, Auckland
2000 – Expressway to Taou, St Agatha’s Gallery, Mt Eden
1999 – Solo99, Camera Lucida Gallery, Oaxaca, Mexico
Porto-Indo, The Ilsington Gallery, London, UK
1998 – Atlantic/Pacific, The Ericeira Gallery, Lisbon, Portugal
1997 – Monument to Motion, Archill Gallery, Auckland
1996 – Cacophony, The Lane Gallery, Auckland
Selected Group Exhibitions
2024 – Finalist, Japan Print Association Exhibition, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum
2022 – Trouble in Paradise, National Library, Wellington
T.O.P II, Arthaus Contemporary, Auckland
T.O.P III, TRU Gallery, Kamloops, Canada
2020 – Whenua Ūkaipō: Connectedness, Wellington
2016 – Inkmasters Exhibition, Cairns, Australia
2015 – Line Out, Northern Print Studio, Newcastle, UK
Wansolwara, Franklin Arts Centre, Pukekohe
2014 – Binding & Looping, University of Hawai’i, Mānoa
2011 – Freak of Nature, Monash University, Victoria
Out of the Box, Tweed River Art Gallery, NSW
2009 – Another New Zealand, Another USA, COCA, Christchurch
2006 – Pasifika Styles, University of Cambridge Museum, UK
Re-Interpreting the Middle East, Ramallah + international venues
2005 – Face Value, Sydney, Brisbane; Homelands, Cybertribe, Australia
2004–2002 – Wallace Awards, Auckland; Sumei National Print Exhibit, NJ, USA
1996 – Bottled Ocean, Auckland City Art Gallery
Achievements, Residencies & Awards
2022 – Relief Online Exhibition, Megalo Print Studio, Canberra
2020 – Print Edition, Print Council of Australia
Finalist, Hida Takayama Woodblock Triennale, Japan
2019 – Artist Residency, Carter Observatory, Wellington
2016 – Finalist, Inkmasters Print Award, Cairns
2015 – Finalist, NZ Painting & Printmaking Award; Parkin Drawing Prize
2014 – “Barracks Mural” Commission, Wellington
CoCo Pacifika Residency, Massey University
2013 – Grey Lynn Mural Commission; NZ Print Award Finalist
2007–11 – Gallery Director, LeSA Gallery, Wellington
2006 – Residencies: Macmillan Brown, Samuel Marsden, Howick, Dilworth Colleges
2005 – Creative NZ Grant (San Francisco); Artbeatz Activate Award
2004–2001 – Wallace Finalist, Wesley Commission, Auckland Museum Residency
Collections
Japan Print Society, Tokyo
Corcoran School of Art, Washington DC
Henry Ford Community College, Dearborn, Michigan
International Center of Bethlehem, Palestine
Macmillan Brown Collection, Christchurch
Wallace Arts Trust Collection, Auckland
Lincoln University Library, Canterbury
Wellington City Council
NZ Diplomatic Residences (Public & Cultural Collections):
Rarotonga, Apia, Addis Ababa, Bangkok, Brasilia, Guangzhou, Honolulu, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Moscow, New Delhi, Port Vila
----------------------------------------
Articles/ Links
Stuff Article /Dominion Post 2022
Stuff Article/ Dominion post 2022
Eastern Courier 2009
New Zealand Herald 2002