The Group was an informal but highly influential art association formed in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1927. Initially begun by ex-students from Canterbury College of Art, its aim was to provide a freer, more experimental alternative to the academic salon painting exhibitions of the Canterbury Society of Arts. The Group exhibited annually for 50 years, from 1927 to 1977, and was continuously at the forefront of New Zealand art's avant-garde scene.
Many of the country's best-known artists were associated at some time with The Group, among them Colin McCahon, Doris Lusk, Toss Woollaston, Rita Angus, Olivia Spencer-Bower, Leo Bensemann, Rata Lovell-Smith, Philip Trusttum, and Douglas MacDiarmid. The influence of The Group extended into other areas of New Zealand culture through the collaborations and friendship of members with the likes of writer and editor Charles Brasch.