Max Oettli — In Two Parts

Max Oettli

National Library Wellington
Lower ground foyer, corner Molesworth and Aitken Streets, Thorndon, Wellington

3 June - 7 October 2026

Max Oettli, Boy on Grafton Bridge, Auckland, 1968. Ref: 35mm-102235-F Alexander Turnbull Library.

Showcasing the photography of Max Oettli, this exhibition brings together Auckland street scenes and portraits from the Turnbull collections. See the world through his lens.

These two selections from the work of photographer, Swiss resident, New Zealand expat, Max Oettli, coincide with one of his regular sojourns in Wellington and capitalising on his whereabouts to acknowledge his substantial contribution to the collections of the Alexander Turnbull Library.

Between March 2017 and June 2018, Max worked with Library staff to digitise and describe 3,657 of his 35mm negative film strips. Oettli took these photographs while he was living in Auckland from 1967 to 1975 and the original black-and-white negatives were donated to the Library alongside 13,000 scans of individual frames.

Two wheels – images in motion

Two wheels – images in motion provides a point of entry into the nature of Max’s photographic enquiry as well as providing a complement to the exhibition Broken River Train / Dreams of Travel showing in Te Puna Foundation Gallery on the ground floor until mid-August.

Face Value – street portraits

Face Value – street portraits is a screen presentation giving a sense of the photographer’s vocation of portraying the world according to Max.

An additional advantage of having the photographer on hand has been to co-opt the two ‘riffs’ on his life and work written in Max’s inimitable style. Thank you Max!