Sight Lines: Women and Art in Aotearoa

Sight Lines: Women in Art in Aotearoa, by Kirsty Baker and designed by Katie Kerr, has won the Gerard Reid Award for Best Book and the Penguin Random House New Zealand Award for Best Illustrated Book at the 2025 PANZ Book Design Awards.

Winner of the Judith Binney Prize for Best First Book Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction in the 2025 Ockham Book Awards.

Extraordinary women, groundbreaking art.
Sight Lines explores the rich history of women’s art in Aotearoa, from traditional whatu kākahu to contemporary installations, featuring artists from Frances Hodgkins to Merata Mita, Fiona Clark to Mataaho Collective.

The book brings together painters, photographers, performers, sculptors, weavers, textile artists, poets, and activists—working individually, collaboratively, and in collectives. Their work challenges ideas of what art can be and invites fresh perspectives on Aotearoa’s art history.

With over 150 striking images and essays by leading writers, Sight Lines tells the stories of 35 remarkable women artists and their connections to land, water, family, community, politics, and the nation. A bold and inspiring celebration of women’s creativity in Aotearoa.

Format: Hardback

Pages: 444