Board of Trustees
The Mairangi Arts Centre is a Charitable Trust which employs a small team dedicated to the day-to-day running of the Centre. MAC’s overarching governance is administered by a Trust Board. Board members serve on a three-year, voluntary basis and are responsible for achieving the centre’s long term vision and strategic objectives, and for ensuring that we continue to serve the needs of the local community
Trustees’ Profiles
Chris Cooper, Chairperson
Chris has been a Mairangi Bay resident for the past 22 years. He retired from a career in commerce and industry, as Head of Finance for the NZ operation of a multinational business. Retirement has allowed Chris to rekindle his interest in painting as he attends weekly classes at MAC. Chris states that he has a certain amount of spare time in retirement and see that as an opportunity to give something back to the Mairangi Bay Community.
Shane Oerder, Deputy Chair
Shane is a communications and infrastructure specialist with over 30 years of industry experience building enterprise grade cloud solutions and is currently on the board of the New Zealand Employees credit union. Shane is married with three children and his personal interests include stone and bone carving, watercolour and acrylic painting, cycling, snow skiing, hiking and kayaking.
Emme Stols, Treasurer
Emme relocated to the beautiful Bays almost 4 years ago, and settled in Mairangi Bay in 2021. She has been in the art supply industry for over 30 years and she has a passion for sculpture, pottery, and mosaic. Emme holds a Business Management Degree and intends to pursue further studies this year. The Mairangi Arts Garden and its continual evolution is a project that is of particular interest to Emme. She is looking forward to contributing to the growth and community inclusion at the Mairangi Arts Centre.
Karen Gardiner
Karen Gardiner is a local resident, teacher and trustee of The Chartwell Trust, a privately managed charitable trust whose mission is to support and articulate the value and impact of the visual arts. She hopes to enable a deeper engagement by the community in the processes of thinking, seeing, doing and being through art and creative visual thinking for all.
Paola King Borrero
Paola grew up on the North Shore but has lived overseas in North America and Europe for over two decades. Paola holds two degrees in Art History and Painting and currently holds positions at the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and the Naval Musuem. As a practising artist, Paola has held numerous exhibitions in Aotearoa and internationally. Recently she has decided to pursue Post-Graduate studies in Musuem and Heritage Studies. Her interests like in all forms of creative expression.
Wenmiao Bian
Wenmiao is a resident of Torbay and was a corporate lawyer of multinational companies in Beijing, China before her family moved to New Zealand in 2015. Since coming to New Zealand, Wenmiao has continued her service in the legal and education fields and has been deeply involved in the local community as a volunteer. She is one of the founders and the project manager of the Families Growth and Thrive Charitable Trust, a non-profit organization based in North Shore providing cultural and educational support to new migrant families. Wenmiao is dedicated to promoting opportunities for new immigrants to learn about, engage with and participate in local New Zealand arts and culture.
Dr Val O’Reilly
Dr Val O’Reilly (Kāi Tahu) is from Te Wai Pounamu/the South Island and has lived on the North Shore for over 30 years. Val believes creative practice is an important expression of, and outlet for, individual and community identity. Although her first love is painting, Val has studied raranga (traditional Māori weaving), toi ataata (Māori visual arts), and recently started a journey in ceramics with the Mairangi Arts Centre. In her mahi with colleagues at The Career Development Company, Val works with individuals and organisations across New Zealand to support their career journeys.
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