As part of Object Book Fair, join a conversation between Balamohan Shingade (Spoor Books), Dan Rule (Perimeter Books) and Lora Ward (Bacteria Books), discussing publishing and distribution in design, and how this differs between Australia and Aotearoa.

Together they will reflect on their experiences starting and running independent publishing houses – including the highs, lows, and challenges – and explore the similarities and differences across the Australian and New Zealand publishing and design scenes.

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Balamohan Shingade is a writer, curator and researcher living in Titirangi. He has published essays on contemporary art, Indigenous-settler relations, authoritarian populism, and the Indian diaspora in Aotearoa New Zealand. He is also the publisher of Spoor Books, an independent publisher, a community platform and an online bookstore featuring titles from India and beyond. Based in Titirangi, Aotearoa New Zealand, Spoor Books aims to connect readers with left-field inquiries and non-Western imaginaries.

Dan Rule is a publisher, writer, and editor from Melbourne, Australia. He is the co-director and editor-in-chief of Perimeter, a specialised bookstore, publishing imprint, and distribution house. Dan was a longstanding visual art critic for Melbourne newspaper The Saturday Age, a design and architecture columnist for The Age, the former editor and editor-at-large of Vault magazine, and the former co-editor of Composite Journal. Major critical writing commissions include for the National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Camera Austria, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Australian Centre for Photography and others. He was a co-founder and juror for the Perimeter Small Book Prize and the PHOTO x Perimeter International Photobook Prize, and regularly lectures on the intersection of writing, photography, and publishing for various institutions, festivals, and universities.

Lora Ward is a creative director working across art, design and publishing. Originally from Aotearoa, she is the founder of Bacteria Books, an independent platform and bookstore dedicated to contemporary culture, material practice and critical discourse. Through exhibitions, publishing projects, retail curation and collaborations, her work explores the intersection of ecology, design history, craft and experimental publishing. Based on Bundjalung country, Byron Bay, Bacteria Books has a focus on art, design, poetics and cultural theory. Known for its thought-provoking collection, it has built an international online audience while cultivating a strong local community. More than a bookstore, Bacteria Books reflects the ecological and cultural networks that inspire creative practice.

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This event is taking place as part of Object Book Fair. 11am – 4pm, Saturday 13 June & Sunday 14 June 2026 at Objectspace, 13 Rose Road, Ponsonby, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.