Convenience, Te Pai Place
This convenience, lovingly decorated with a spider’s web, is in Te Pai Place, Lincoln North.
April 30, 2014
April 29, 2014
Old Mangere Bridge
Old Mangere Bridge
The disused old Mangere bridge is a popular fishing spot.
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April 28, 2014
The Train
Mandala by Miranda Brown
One of Miranda Brown‘s Mandalas at the New Lynn train station. A diesel engine pushes a train through its trench. Before too long, this will be history, electrification is the word! (If all goes according to plan, today should see the first electric trains running on the Onehunga line, after a public launch yesterday.)
As the Facebook page says: As part of the New Lynn Transport Centre Project, Miranda Brown was commissioned by Waitakere City Council to create an iconic public artwork reflecting the local multicultural community. This concept focuses on the four major waves of migration that have taken place in New Lynn over the past few centuries, represented here by each mandala – circle. Beautiful! Take a trip to New Lynn and check it out.
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April 27, 2014
Blockhouse Bay
Blockhouse Bay
Oystercatchers roosting as the tide comes in.
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April 26, 2014
Auckland Green Gecko
Auckland Green Gecko
Shown here in black and white – this is an Auckland Green Gecko (Naultinus elegans elegans), on display at the Arataki Visitor Centre. They are part of the native fauna of the Waitakeres, but I have yet to sight one in the wild, even though I live in the midst of kanuka trees, one of their favourite haunts.
For more black and white images check out Dragonstar’s Weekend in Black and White.
April 25, 2014
Anzac Day
Prow, Detail (Matariki Carvers of Te Kawerau a Maki)
April 25 is Anzac Day, a day on which New Zealanders and Australians commemorate the casualties of wars. Many places in the country feature a “War Memorial Library”, “War memorial Hall” and so on. New Lynn has its Memorial Drive, with adjacent Memorial, and War Memorial Library. Here are some pictures of the Memorial.
From an inventory of New Lynn reserves:
“A grid of brick pillars reflects the industrial history of New Lynn and carry both the RSA memorial plaques and support red and white roses (for peace and love). The roses will eventually form a canopy over the square. A diagonal line of Totara inserts across the square creates a spine and emerges at either corner as a free-standing canoe prow and stern. These artworks were designed and carved by the Matariki Carvers, (Te Kawerau a Maki). The prow is a fine traditional carving in kauri set on a stainless steel base; the stern a stylised, stainless steel structure that has been etched in a red earth colour with a traditional design”.
I personally have some difficulty to view the memorial square as an integral monument, but appreciate it as a well-functioning community square (“not easily read as a cohesive designed landscape in its present form” as per the above mentioned inventory) – and I really like the individual components. The bottom picture tries to convey an overview, with the prow barely visible on the right (the War Memorial Library in the background, left).
Prow (Matariki Carvers of Te Kawerau a Maki)
Stern (Matariki Carvers of Te Kawerau a Maki)
New Lynn War Memorial
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April 24, 2014
April 23, 2014
Coffee at the Market
La Cimbali
A polished espresso machine at La Cigale French markets in Parnell.
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April 22, 2014
April 21, 2014
Cytoplasm (Phil Price, 2004)
Cytoplasm (Phil Price, 2004)
Phil Price is a New Zealand sculptor specialising in kinetic works driven by wind power. “Cytoplasm” is beautifully placed on Waitemata Plaza at the Viaduct Basin. The discs move seemingly without friction, creating ever new configurations.
Made of carbon fiber, glass fiber, high temperature epoxy, precision bearings, stainless steel. Collection of the Auckland City Sculpture Trust.
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