Young budding art lovers have got the opportunity to walk in a curator’s shoes and help decide what the next He Waka Tuia exhibition will look like.

Kids Can Curate is the chance for anyone under the age of 18 to look through 70 works of art from the Invercargill Public Art Gallery collection and vote on which should be exhibited.

The top-voted artworks will then go on display at He Waka Tuia, along with an explanation from tamariki for choosing them.

Manager Sarah Brown said the exhibition was an amazing opportunity for children to try out being a curator. She hoped that it would spur some to consider it as their future career.

“It’s also a great way of showing children that their opinion matters. Seeing their chosen artwork on display and being able to understand why the piece stood out to them, really validates their thoughts and opinions.”

Clear files with photos of the artwork will be at He Waka Tuia from Thursday, through the Christmas and New Year break, until mid-January. The exhibition itself will run from January 22 to February 28.

There will also be an area for children to choose cutouts and set up their own exhibition the way they think it should be displayed.

“It is a fun activity for tamariki to take part in during the holidays and their opinions might even surprise the adults in their lives,” Brown said.

He Waka Tuia will be open over the Christmas and New Year period and closed on Christmas Day.

Maps for the South Sea Spray self-guided tour of all the street artwork from the event will still be available during this time for those wanting to explore Invercargill’s latest creations.