It’s Burns Memorial Exhibition time at the Forrester Gallery again, with hundreds of children’s artworks adorning the walls.

The exhibition began earlier in the month, and is running until October 29, with children from about 27 schools and early childhood centres contributing to the exhibition, gallery director Chloe Searle said.

This the 53rd year of the exhibition, which began in 1970, and is named after former Christchurch Evening Star Sun editor George Burns, who was born and educated in Ōamaru.

“We were really fortunate that with the Lion Foundation and the Oamaru Licensing Trust, the Friends of the Forrester got a grant for buses to bring schools in,” Chloe said. 

“So we're expecting around 2000 students through with school groups over the time the exhibition's on.

“It's always lovely to have the students in and they get a real buzz out of seeing their work on display in the gallery, and they also respond really well to seeing what the other kids have done.”

Gallery educator Liz King said pupils from the visiting schools, and children who go to the Forrester during school holidays can do bird-themed crafts to tie in with the launch of a new Moa Trail.

“Which is kind of exciting.”

“So there's two activities when they're here. One of them is Manu Mugshots, so they get to design their own bird, and then the other one is to make a feather to go on George the Moa.”

The Moa Trail links moa and moa-related sculptures throughout the Waitaki District, and a map is being created with the different locations where people can go to find out more about the extinct giant bird - from Vanished World Centre and Brewery Hole near Duntroon, to Ōamaru’s Waitaki Museum and Archive, and as south as Palmerston.

“So I've done that with Sasha (Morriss) at the Geopark . . . You can go and find out about moa and see the sculptures, just see the moa story from our area," Liz said.

The trail will launch on October 12, as part of the Waitaki Arts Festival which runs throughout October.

Artworks in the Burns Memorial Exhibition on at the Forrester Gallery until October 29. PHOTOS: Ashley Smyth