Apprentice of the Year Competition Paints Futures at Ara

The Master Painters New Zealand Apprentice of the Year competition was held recently at Ara Institute of Canterbury’s Woolston campus. Twice cancelled due to Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions, the competition was finally able to take place as part of the annual conference for the Master Painters New Zealand Association Inc.

Apprentice of the Year Competitors

Four apprentices competed, each representing a different region. They were given a brief requiring them to assemble, prepare and paint a flat pack playhouse. They were then judged on the quality of their finished project by a panel of people including Martine Falconer, a painting tutor from Ara’s department of Trades.

“The experience of judging was really interesting for me as we got to see from start to finish what happens during the competition,” says Falconer. “To be honest, it was extremely hard judging as all the contestants did such an excellent job.” 

“Luckily, we also had a really good mixture of judges and we all had something different to bring to the table that helped us to narrow it down to the overall winner.” 

After every competition, the finished projects are donated by the Master Painter’s NZ Association to four charities, early learning centres or Kohanga Reo. As part of this annual tradition, this year playhouses were donated to Nga Puna Wai Sports stadium, St James Street Preschool, Phillipstown Childcare Centre and to Te Kōhanga Reo o Ōterepo.

“The gifting of these playhouses to the onsite pre-schoolers and our community is a great way for us to build relationships with the next generation,” says Te Marino Lenihan, Executive Director of Treaty Partnerships at Ara.

“Our babies may be 15 odd years away from choosing a tertiary provider, but we know that their choices then are shaped by their experiences now and over the intervening time. Bringing more Maori into higher level education requires us to apply an intergenerational lens to our engagement practices now. Helping our whanau feel good about us is super important.”

John Kerrigan, painting tutor at Ara’s department of Trades agrees. "Overall, this event has been about forming strong connections with different generations, whether it be by hosting a competition involving numerous individuals or by gifting the finished projects to the community.”

While working towards their qualifications, learners at Ara can access apprenticeships across a range of trades courses. This is an effective way of learning as it means students can gain on-job training as well as the development of the new skills.  Coupled with exceptional support and guidance from Ara staff, student apprentices graduate prepared for the industry.