New things to do in NZ this summer: Wellington

Play zookeeper for a day at Wellington Zoo. Photo / WellingtonNZ

1. Rita Angus Exhibition, Te Papa

She painted and contributed a lot more to our national story than that little red railway station at Cass. Angus produced a remarkable body of drawings, watercolours and paintings and was a committed feminist and pacifist who created a unique image of 20th-century Aotearoa. Around 70 works will be exhibited from December 18-April 25 (that closing date is appropriate). Te Papa head of art Charlotte Davy says the exhibition highlights Angus' huge contemporary relevance. "The exhibition will draw out the themes of pacifism, feminism, and nature that shaped so much of Angus' work." The exhibition will be accompanied by a full catalogue, Rita Angus: A Survey, featuring all the works in the show and anchored by two major essays by Angus' biographer Jill Trevelyan and Dr Adrian Locke, Senior Curator at London's Royal Academy of Arts. Te Papa Press is also publishing a new edition of Trevelyan's award-winning book,  Rita Angus: An Artist's Life  in April.

tepapa.govt.nz

2. City Gallery Wellington, Central

When Swedish artist and spiritualist Hilma af Klint died in 1944, she left more than 1300 works, seen only by a handful of people, with instructions that they should not be publicly displayed until 20 years after her death. When her nephew finally unveiled her paintings in the 1970s, art history was turned on its head: her first abstract paintings were made several years before more famous male contemporaries such as Kandinsky and Mondrian — considered "the fathers of abstract art". The exhibition runs until March 27 and City Gallery Wellington is the only New Zealand venue for the exhibition of more than 100 paintings, including The Ten Largest – exuberantly colourful works that tower more than 3m, through which the artist explores the four stages of human development.

citygallery.org.nz

Just when you thought Wellington couldn't fit another great eatery, August Eatery arrived. Photo / Supplied

3. August Eatery, Te Aro

It's called August because owners Lisa Lee and Tanase Antipas got the idea in August, opened the next August – and were locked down two weeks later. Now they're back with their daytime cafe next to a gorgeous heritage church in Taranaki St, just around the corner from Courtenay Place. Lee grew up around her family's successful hole-in-the-wall Japanese restaurant in Sydney and Antipas is a 30-year veteran of the capital's restaurant scene at Loretta and Hummingbird. In the elegant space featuring high ceilings, warm lighting and a flood of natural light, it's a Med menu with dishes like tsoureki french toast, poached pear, roasted Jerusalem artichoke, or farro salad with olives. They also make six flavours of doughnuts and a killer cheese scone packed with watercress, mint and dill.

augusteatery.co.nz

4. Chocolatier for a day at Wellington Chocolate Factory, Te Aro

This immersive experience allows wannabe chocolatiers to learn about the art of bean-to-bar chocolate making and craft three of their own bars. A real chocolatier will guide you through the process, using WCF's dark or milk chocolate base blends, ethically supporting cocoa growers and the planet. Sessions include chocolate drinks and chocolate tastings too. Sweet as.

wcf.co.nz

Play zookeeper for a day at Wellington Zoo. Photo / WellingtonNZ

5. Zookeeper for a day at Wellington Zoo, Newton

On a 13ha site in Newtown, a short drive or bus ride from the central city, New Zealand's first zoo has been caring for animals since 1906. Home to more than 500 animals, it's proudly the world's first Toitū carboNZero certified zoo. Its latest experience allows kids to find out what's it really like to be a zookeeper. They'll go behind the scenes with a real keeper to provide care to animals, feeding and cleaning, and learning more about the animals – choose from the herbivores, birds and primates, carnivores or mini-beasts. The zoo is open every day except Christmas.

wellingtonzoo.com

Ewan McDonald