Reading Room

I have always been proud of my library at home and consider it such a great treasure. Carefully considered and curated, it contains a stockpile of potential and is loaded with memory. Just a glance suffices to trace where I was when I bought each book and I can even recall the smell of the bookstore.

But I soon realised that those books were just for me; one very important thing was missing in my library (apart from more books!): being able to share that magical world of my books with others in an inspiring, thought-provoking way.

That is how the idea of Reading Room came to life and the first event was held in 2015 and has evolved into is a series of live interviews with inspiring makers of things; Architects, Photographers, Writers and Painters. We talk about their books as away into a broader conversation and context to reveal stories and insights into who they are and why they do what they do.

Reading Room Online

Since Covid-19 lockdown Reading Room became an Instagram LIVE Event featuring a list of global guests.

Karl Fritsch
Neil Keating
Solomon Mortimer
Dame Anne Salmond
Sean Godell
Hamish Keith
Scotty Sumo Stevenson
Mike Chunn
Sara McIntyre
Yvonne Todd
Peter Madden
Ngila Dickson
Marshall Cook
Michael Lett
John Wardle
David Gaimster
Adam Haddow
Peter Stutchbury

Reading Room – Group Events

The wish list of special guests for Reading Room has continued to expand since the first event in mid-2015 at the home of New Zealand Architect Marshall Cook, who was in conversation with Nat Cheshire in front of an audience of 15 lucky guests sitting in Cook’s amazing library. These in-person events are hosted in unique spaces across Auckland, which provide an intimate backdrop for our interviews.

Now, in part due to the lockdown, Reading Room has evolved and is now hosted via Instagram Live on my official Instagram account.

The stories that libraries tell can be immediate triggers for a much wider conversation that go far beyond their confines. Reading Room elicits these greater conversations to marvellous effect.

List of Reading Rooms

  • Marshall Cook in conversation with Nat Cheshire
  • Harvey Benge in conversation with Jonty Valentine
  • Judy Millar in conversation with Sam Mannering
  • Sir James Wallace in conversation with Simon Pound
  • Pip Cheshire in conversation with Matt Liggins

If you know a fascinating someone who has a library at home full of memory and potential please let me know (it doesn’t matter where they are) via my contact page here.

To stay informed about when the next Reading Room event is, please subscribe to my newsletter below and follow my Instagram account.

Reading Room New Zealand