Exciting new installations on the Avon

Associate Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Nicky Wagner today announced artwork for two landscape elements in Te Papa Ōtākaro/Avon River Precinct.

“The installation of the exciting new art in the Story Arc and Ngā Whāriki Manaaki will continue to add to the Precinct’s vibrancy,” Ms Wagner says.

“The Story Arc is situated within the Margaret Mahy Family Playground.  Ngā Whāriki Manaaki, or stone weaving patterns, will be installed as part of the precinct’s promenade. These new works recognise Christchurch’s heritage and celebrate its stories.

“With a circumference of 130 metres, the Story Arc is a massive circular pathway that leads people from story to story. The Story Arc pays tribute to beloved Christchurch authors Margaret Mahy and Elsie Locke, featuring lines from short stories The Man Whose Mother Was a Pirate and Somebody’s Knocking.

“The Story Arc also illustrates migratory waka and the first four ships. As well as the Story Arc, the Margaret Mahy Family Playground will feature a double flying fox, a four metre ‘mega-slide’ and a ‘splash pad’ with water cannons and sprinklers.

“Ngā Whāriki Manaaki’s thirteen stone weaving patterns represent the value of caring for manuhiri, or visitors, and will welcome visitors to the Avon River Precinct. The weaving patterns will be built from small blocks of coloured stone and transformed into paving designs.

“It’s fantastic to see our shared cultural heritage reflected in the Avon River Precinct through the integration of Christchurch’s many stories,” Ms Wagner says.

More information:

The Story Arc was designed by Ngāi Tahu artists Priscilla Cowie and Neil Pardington and this work is being made by sandblasting the designs into granite. Ngā Whāriki Manaaki were created by weavers Morehu Flutey-Henare and Reihana Parata from Ngāi Tūāhuriri and the weaving patterns were transformed into paving designs in collaboration with artist Wayne Youle. These will be built from small blocks of coloured stone and will look similar to mosaics.

The site of the Story Arc was blessed by Ngāi Tūāhuriri this week and those of Ngā Whāriki Manaaki will be blessed within the month. Installation of the Story Arc has already begun and the weaving patterns will be laid as work progresses on the promenade.

Images of the designs can found here.