Damien Wilkins
In conversation with Kiran Dass

Sunday 21 September, 1.30pm–2.30pm
Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery
Presales $15 | Door sales $20

Damien Wilkins is a celebrated novelist and writer, widely recognised for his contribution to New Zealand literature. His debut novel, The Miserables, won the 1994 New Zealand Book Award for Fiction. Since then, he has published over ten novels, along with plays, poems, short stories, and songs. In 2025, Damien won the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction at the 2025 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards for his novel Delirious. He was awarded the Katherine Mansfield Fellowship in 2008 and became an Arts Foundation Laureate in 2014. Damien is currently the Director of the International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, where he has mentored acclaimed authors including Eleanor Catton, Pip Adam, and Catherine Chidgey.

Kiran Dass is the Programme Director for WORD Christchurch. A writer and critic, she has written about books, music, and culture for a variety of prestigious publications. Kiran currently lives in Lyttelton.