Crown Lynn Connections

Join us on an immersive tour of three distinct West Auckland sites, each simultaneously sharing unique reflections on the history of Crown Lynn pottery. 

Gathering at Te Toi Uku, we’ll begin the day with a guided tour of the Crown Lynn & Clayworks Museum by Director Louise Stevenson, soaking up the rich history of New Zealand’s most popular tableware and the people who designed, shaped, decorated and manufactured it.

From there, we’ll make our way to Corban Estate Arts Centre to enjoy the option of lunch together at the Coffee Studio before meeting at the Homestead Galleries at 1pm for an artist’s tour of Rebecca Steedman’s contemporary ceramics exhibition Talking Earth, inspired by her childhood memories associated with Crown Lynn dinnerware.

Then we'll continue to Te Pou Theatre, also situated at Corban Estate, to admire the contemporary pottery being showcased in their foyer for the current season of The Handlers by Poata Alvie McKree.

The tour will conclude with the 2pm matinee of The Handlers, a new play about the lives and times of a group of wāhine working at the Crown Lynn factory in the mid seventies.

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ABOUT TE TOI UKU

Te Toi Uku is a small museum in Auckland’s New Lynn which houses the collection of the Portage Ceramics Trust.

The Trust was set up in 2005 to purchase a private collection relating to Crown Lynn. Now the museum tells the stories of the West Auckland clay industry, from the early clay pipe-making days to the Crown Lynn era.

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ABOUT THE HANDLERS

The Handlers, by Alvie Poata McKree, is a poignant story about our beloved Crown Lynn iconic mugs and the hands that made them. Set in the bustling Crown Lynn Factory of 1976 West Auckland, the play follows a whānau of Māori women whose lives intertwine with the production line. When they must take time off to attend a tangihanga, the factory grinds to a halt, risking their livelihoods. Amidst the record production of crockery, these wāhine navigate workplace discrimination and racism, embodying resilience and strength. The Handlers offers a fictionalised glimpse into the challenges and triumphs of women working in factories like Crown Lynn, resonating with universal themes of perseverance and solidarity.

The Handlers is presented by Te Pou Theatre in partnership with Te Rēhia Theatre. Te Pou Theatre is a kaupapa Māori theatre based at Corbans Estate.