At the gallery
Accessible exhibition guides, clear signage, inclusive design and seating options will be available.
Kāinga / Home / Now You See Me
Kia kitea | The Endometriosis Empowerment Project
Now You See Me
A free photographic exhibition using portraiture and personal storytelling to make the often-invisible realities of endometriosis visible.
The story continues
Now You See Me is returning to Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington this November.
6–22 November 2026Fishcube Gallery & Cafe · 111 Dixon Street, Te Aro, Te Whanganui-a-TaraFree entry
In September 2026, we brought Now You See Me – The Endometriosis Empowerment Project to Wellington for the first time.
Over just six days, approximately 450 people walked through the exhibition, standing face to face with portraits and stories sharing the realities of living with endometriosis.
The response showed us how needed spaces like this are.
People came to learn. Others came because they saw themselves, their partner, their child, their friend or their own healthcare experiences reflected in the stories on the walls.
The exhibition created conversations about chronic pain, delayed diagnosis, surgery, fertility, identity, relationships, healthcare experiences and the many ways endometriosis can affect an entire life.
And we are not finished.
An extended Wellington pop-up
More time to stop, read, listen and understand
Our hope is to take Now You See Me to communities across Aotearoa, so these stories can be seen far beyond Wellington.
Taking a photographic exhibition around the country requires significant funding for venues, transport, installation, staffing, printing, accessibility and community outreach.
We are continuing to seek the larger funding and partnerships needed to make a national exhibition possible.
Until then, we have been given an opportunity to bring Now You See Me back to Wellington for an extended pop-up exhibition.
From 6–22 November 2026, the exhibition will be hosted at Fishcube Gallery & Cafe, giving our community more time to visit, bring whānau and friends, return with someone they want to share it with, and have conversations that often do not happen anywhere else.
Our first Wellington exhibition was open for just six days.
This time, we have an extended opportunity to share these stories.
We hope that means even more people will have the chance to stop, read, listen and understand.
Six days. Around 450 visitors. Countless conversations.
Our first Wellington exhibition
Our September exhibition at Thistle Hall Community Gallery was the first time the complete Now You See Me project had been shown publicly in Wellington.
Across just six days, approximately 450 people visited the exhibition.
But the impact cannot be measured through visitor numbers alone.
People stopped to read. They talked. They cried. Some recognised their own experiences in the stories on the walls, while others told us they were beginning to understand endometriosis in a way they never had before.
The feedback showed us just how powerful it can be when lived experience is given the space to be seen and heard.
“I feel so seen. My period also started the same as theirs, just like their stories.”
“Really eye opening. I didn’t really get it until I read these.”
“Wow, the gaslighting and the not being believed. It’s such a common theme.”
“This has been amazing for our community, the way this has brought people together and made them feel seen because it is such an isolating disease.”
“I felt so left out and invisible in the endo community when I turned 45, it felt like there was no space for me. So seeing older women involved in this has been so nice and important for me.”
“What a wonderful exhibition. The audio players are so great for people like myself who are vision impaired.”
“More people need to see this.”
Visitors asked whether Now You See Me would be coming to Auckland and Christchurch, reinforcing something we already knew: these conversations are needed well beyond Wellington.
That is why we hope this is only the beginning.
Endometriosis is often invisible from the outside. Now You See Me gives people an opportunity to see the human beings behind the statistics and understand that endometriosis can affect far more than a period.
It also creates something equally important for those living with the disease: the chance to recognise themselves in somebody else’s story and know they are not alone.
About the project
Portraits meet lived experience
Now You See Me amplifies the lived experiences of those with endometriosis in Aotearoa through powerful portraiture and personal storytelling.
The exhibition centres diverse bodies, genders and identities.
It challenges narrow stereotypes and invites visitors to build understanding, empathy and connection by standing face to face with stories too often unseen.
Delivered by Ainsley DS Creative and Endo Warriors Aotearoa, the project is guided by manaakitanga, inclusion and lived-experience leadership.
Whai wāhitanga | Accessibility
Plan a visit that feels safe and comfortable
Accessibility is a core part of the exhibition, not an extra.
Before you arrive
Updates about venue access, layout and available supports will be added here and shared through EWA social media.
The longer-term vision
Why we want to take Now You See Me around Aotearoa
Endometriosis does not only affect people in Wellington.
The experiences represented through Now You See Me belong in communities throughout Aotearoa, including places where opportunities to access endometriosis education, advocacy and in-person community support can be limited.
Our longer-term goal is to take the exhibition to other parts of the motu.
To do that sustainably and keep the exhibition accessible, we need funding and community partnerships to help cover the real costs of touring the project.
Until that larger funding is secured, we will continue looking for opportunities like this November extended pop-up to keep these stories visible, reach new audiences and build momentum towards taking Now You See Me further across Aotearoa.
Because these stories deserve to be seen.
Meet the photographer
Ainsley Duyvestyn-Smith
Ainsley is an empowerment portrait photographer, visual storyteller and health advocate whose work sits at the intersection of art, advocacy and community care.
With more than a decade of experience through Ainsley DS Creative, Ainsley creates human-centred imagery grounded in relationship, trust and manaakitanga.
Living with endometriosis herself, she created Now You See Me to make the invisible visible, challenge narrow representations and ensure diverse experiences are seen, heard and valued.
Visit Ainsley DS CreativeWith gratitude
Community supporters
Fujifilm GFX
Photography and imaging support helping bring participant portraits and stories to life.
Fishcube Gallery & Cafe
Thank you to Fishcube Gallery & Cafe for supporting the November 2026 Wellington extended pop-up.