The Postcard Project with Canvas

The Postcard Project – Wāhine toa

On September 19, 1893, Aotearoa New Zealand became the first country in the world to give women the right to vote in parliamentary elections.

This year, New Zealand celebrates that significant 125-year anniversary and to commemorate it, the New Zealand Herald has published a special issue of Canvas magazine, dedicated to its anniversary.

We asked women around the world - wāhine toa in politics, literature, arts, activism, sports and community leaders - to sign and write a personal message on a bespoke postcard to be published in Canvas magazine and to be part of this exhibition at Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira.

The responses came from as far as the United Kingdom, the US and Canada and beyond. Their personal, handwritten messages are a celebration of women around the world, and of a small nation at the bottom of the world that led the way in giving women a voice in the most profoundly vital way – poti mo wāhine – votes for women.

Don't miss our special Women's Suffrage edition of Canvas Magazine, free in your NZ Herald on Saturday 15th September or view the postcards at the Auckland Museum from Saturday 15th - Saturday 22nd September.

While you're there you can also check out Are We There Yet? which delves into how far we've come since giving women the vote - free at the museum until October 31st.