Whitecliffe BFA student Barbara Versfelt is sharing her photographic work across Aotearoa this month, with her photographs featured in two exhibitions: FotoFest Hawke’s Bay (19 Sept – 3 Oct 2025) and Takarunga Hauraki: Nature and Place at Depot Artspace, Devonport (4 – 28 Oct 2025).

Barbara’s practice is strongly connected to her natural surroundings. Her works in these exhibitions centre around rocks, rock pools, and kelp (rimurapa) on the West Coast, drawing attention to the beauty of everyday landscapes.

“With my photographs I wish to invite people to pause and take a closer look. It is easy to overlook what is right before our eyes. Enjoying simple beauty is important; living attentively in the present so that we can give our surroundings the attention and care they deserve.”

At FotoFest in Hawke’s Bay, Barbara exhibited a series of works including Kelp (brown), Rock (green), Rock (orange), Seaweed in turquoise, Kelp (green), and Rockpool (round).

At Depot Artspace in Devonport, her work sits within the community-focused exhibition Takarunga Hauraki: Nature and Place, which showcases images of native wildlife, landscapes, and people in nature taken on the Takarunga Hauraki Peninsula.

Whitecliffe is proud to see Barbara’s thoughtful photography recognised in two public exhibitions, each inviting audiences to slow down and see the natural world with fresh attention.