Katikati Portrait Exhibition Opens at Local Library

A free exhibition celebrating Katikati's history opens at the town's library on Monday 4 August and runs through to 30 September. Titled 'Katikati: Portrait of a Town', the display brings together black-and-white photographs, books, maps, and paintings by local artists to take visitors on a visual journey from the district's earliest days through to about the 1970s.

The exhibition was put together by Western Bay of Plenty District Council community heritage services co-ordinator Sandra Haigh, who drew on taonga held in the on-site community archives she manages. The timing marks both Family History Month in August and the 150th anniversary of Ulster Irish settlers arriving in Katikati.

Haigh described the display as entirely visual in nature — a portrait of the town as it changed and grew over time — making it an accessible way for anyone to connect with the district's past.

Originally published in Katikati News (Sun Media).