Bridging the Gap

Wellington. April 2009. Ajr

Although I've used this photo in the past (smaller), I'm revisiting it. I was trawling through photographs yesterday trying to decide what to run with this morning and this one leapt out at me. It's part of the City to Sea Bridge in inner city Wellington, which was created by Hawke's Bay Maori artist, Para Matchitt in 1993. If you click on City to Sea Bridge in the label line below, you'll be able to read more about it and see more of the stunning sculptures that make it stand out in a city of highrise and glass.

Capital Culture

Civic Square, Wellington. April 2009. Ajr

This is Te Aho a Maui (Maui's Line), in Wellington's Civic Square.

Maui is the legendary figure who fished up the North Island. The design is symbolic of the land meeting the sea - and in fact it follows on from the City to Sea Bridge that I wrote about here on Monday and last Saturday. Te Aho a Maui is represented by the terracotta paving unravelling from the mountains to the sea. The mountain and adjacent waterfalls represent and reflect the complexities of New Zealand's heritage.

More Matchitt

City to Sea Bridge, Wellington. April 2009 Ajr

Following on from Saturday’s images of Wellington’s City to Sea Bridge (scroll down), here are some close-ups of a number of the Para Matchitt sculptures that sit at the top of the bridge. “How We Got Here” is the theme of the gateway poles; and according to the nearby artist’s statement, “the celestial representations and symbols of love illustrate how our ancestors arrived in Aotearoa – as people are now arriving at the waterfront or crossing to the heart of the city.”

City To Sea

City to Sea Bridge, Wellington. April 2009. Ajr

I don’t know how many times I’ve driven UNDER Wellington’s City to Sea Bridge but today, for the first time ever, I walked OVER it. I’ve always admired the glimpses I’ve had of Para Matchitt’s sculptures and now I can safely say, they’re even better up close. Matchitt, a Hawke’s Bay-based contemporary Maori artist, created the works in 1993. This is a detail of one of the wooden works. I’ll bring you the best of them here on Monday morning.