Free museum entry for New Zealanders and people living in New Zealand
Open every day 10am-6pm
(except Christmas Day)
Free museum entry for New Zealanders and people living in New Zealand
He tirohanga hou ki te ao.
Ko tā Breathe | Mauri Ora he whakamārama i ngā mana huna ā-rangi, ā-nuku e karapoti ana i a tātou, e whakaatu ana i te hiranga mā ngā haerenga ā-tairongo e whakanui nei i ngā āhuatanga tē kitea i te ao o ia rā. Mai i ngā pakiaka o tētahi rākau nui nō Amahona, ki ngā peka huna o te tinana me te whānautanga o ngā ikarangi, ka ruku hōhonu atu tēnei kaupapa wheako ki te ō mataora e whakatipuria ana, e honoa mai ana ngā mea ora katoa – te MAURI ORA.
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See the world from a new perspective.
Breathe | Mauri Ora illuminates the hidden forces surrounding us, revealing the sublime through sensory journeys beyond our everyday perception. From the roots of a majestic Amazonian tree to the unseen branches of the body and the birth of galaxies, this immersive experience explores the rhythm that cultivates and connects all life – breath.
Level 4
Adult Premium Ticket (includes VR experience): $40
Concession Premium Ticket (includes VR experience): (Student; Gold Card; Community Services Card; Friends of Te Papa member): $33
Child Premium Ticket (includes VR experience): (rec. 14 yrs and over): $25
Adult: $30
Concession: (Student; Gold Card; Community Services Card; Friends of Te Papa member): $23
Child (under 16): $15 (under 5s are free)
Family (2 Adults, 2 children): $75
International Visitor + Breathe | Mauri Ora Adult: $58.00
Additional VR experience (purchase on the day at ticket desk or in exhibition): $10
Support companion: Free
Buy your tickets in advance online, or on the day at the ticket desk on Level 2. Last ticket sales at 5.15pm
All ages
60 minutes
This is a highly sensory experience
View our sensory guide and map
This exhibition features major digital artworks on an awe-inspiring scale from London-based collective Marshmallow Laser Feast (MLF). Through guided meditation, large-scale video works, and interactive experiences, you evolve from droplets of water to plants, cells, and stars, becoming part of the cycle of life and the cosmos.
Using creative technology to deepen our understanding of and connection to the world around us, MLF reminds us that we are just one species in a shared ecosystem and asks, what can we learn from nature to prepare for the future?
An optional VR experience immerses you in the journey of breath. Extra charge applies.
Breathe | Mauri Ora features artworks:
executive-produced by the late Edward R Pressman and filmmaker Terrence Malick
narration by executive producer Cate Blanchett
poetry by Daisy Lafarge
music by Jon Hopkins, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Meredith Monk, Howard Skempton, and Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood.
Marshmallow Laser Feast is a London-based art collective led by artists and directors Robin McNicholas, Ersin Han Ersin, and Barnaby Steel. They work at the intersection of science, art, and technology – employing a wealth of creative disciplines, from installation to kinetic sculpture, film to live performance.
MLF’s work invites participants into a sensory journey that reinterprets the idea of human perception and experiences beyond our everyday reality. MLF collaborates with artists, engineers and scientists, building bespoke software and hardware systems to realise their visions. More at marshmallowlaserfeast.com
This major exhibition is created by ACMI – Australia’s national museum of screen culture based in Melbourne, Victoria. Watch, play, make and discover the universe of screen-based art, films, TV and video games. More at acmi.net.au.
Breathe | Mauri Ora Events Season
Sat 13 Dec
Be among the first to explore Breathe | Mauri Ora at a special opening party that includes late-night exhibition access and live entertainment.
Tue 17 Feb
A sixty-minute immersive performance of taonga puoro (musical instruments) and spoken word celebrating the exhibition Breathe | Mauri Ora and the connection to te taiao (nature) in our own backyard.
Fri 20 Feb
Discover how art, science, nature, and Indigenous knowledge converge as Marshmallow Laser Feast and experts share insights inspired by Breathe | Mauri Ora.
Sun 22 Feb
Breathe balance into your busy life with a day of inspiration, wisdom, and connection. This wellbeing symposium is held alongside the New Zealand – exclusive exhibition Breathe | Mauri Ora.
Wed 25 Feb
Discover inspiring stories of Aotearoa New Zealand’s unique native species with an evening of spotlight talks from Mana Whenua kaitiaki and Te Papa natural history and art curators.
Sat 7 Mar
How do poets, musicians, and dancers respond to the immersive worlds of Breathe | Mauri Ora.
Wed 11 Mar
Discover inspiring stories of Aotearoa New Zealand’s unique native species with an evening of spotlight talks from Mana Whenua kaitiaki and Te Papa natural history and art curators.
Ngā toronga ako | Education visits
This engaging two-part programme begins in our Te Taiao | Nature exhibition, where students will explore concepts found within Breathe | Mauri Ora.
Woven throughout the Te Taiao | Nature experience, students will engage with themes such as kaitiakitanga (guardianship), ecology, and the natural rhythms and cycles of nature.
Students begin their immersive experience in Breathe | Mauri Ora, where they explore powerful works of art that invite reflection on our connection with te taiao – the natural world, and then design their own environments where humans are in sync with the natural world.
Explore our Breathe | Mauri Ora events season, featuring panel discussions, a wellbeing symposium, taonga puoro (Māori musical instruments), performances, and immersive dining. Discover experiences celebrating our connection to te taiao (nature).
You’re the explorer in our Te Taiao | Nature exhibition zone. Celebrate Aotearoa New Zealand’s unique natural environment – and get ready for our future as kaitiaki.
On now
Permanent exhibition
Exhibition Ngā whakaaturanga
Step outside into a living, growing exhibition. Explore native bush and a volcanic landscape.
On now
Open daily until 5pm
Exhibition Ngā whakaaturanga
Fresh takes and new favourites. You’ll find them in Toi Art – the home of the National Art Collection.
Discover new artists, get creative in the family-friendly Art Studio, or spend time with a favourite artwork.
On now
Long-term exhibition
Exhibition Ngā whakaaturanga
Early childhood, Primary, Secondary
Explore Te Taiao | Nature exhibition Te Papa’s stunning natural history exhibition.
Education visit
Nancy Adams (1926–2007) was one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most notable botanists and a talented artist. One of Te Papa’s most prolific botany collectors of all time, she also painted and drew an incredible number of botanical illustrations. She used her artwork to produce important books about Aotearoa New Zealand’s flora, including seaweeds, flowers, trees, and alpine plants.
Recognising we are nature through mātauranga Māori and Te Papa’s Collections Online.
Natalie Robertson describes the photographs in her series, ‘Tātara e maru ana – The sacred rain cape of Waiapu’ as visual documentation, but they’re also poetic and lyrical.
Rongoā Māori is the traditional Māori healing system. Ailments are treated in a holistic manner.
Ferns are so prominent in Aotearoa New Zealand, we even wear them on our sporting uniforms. From botany research to citizen science, pressed-fern books of the 1800s to collecting All Blacks and tourism memorabilia, our collectors and curators spend a lot of time with ferns.
The magnificent plant world of Aotearoa New Zealand in art and object.
The ultimate introduction to the natural history of Aotearoa.
