Waikumete Cemetery
This is a block of graves in Waikumete Cemetery on a sunny morning. More pictures from the cemetery.
August 12, 2010
August 11, 2010
Painted Boxes: Playhouse Theatre (Mark Whyte)
Painted Boxes: Playhouse Theatre (Mark Whyte)
(Wednesday is for painted boxes.)
The painting by Mark Whyte on this transformer was completed just recently. It stands outside No. 33 Glendale Road, Glen Eden, and the real thing (Glen Eden’s Playhouse Theatre which we featured earlier in this blog) is just up the road. The reverse side harks back to the history of the building when it was used as a movie theatre, the Star Theatre which closed in 1972.
Painted Boxes: Playhouse Theatre (Mark Whyte)
July 22, 2010
Corner Stones, Glen Eden
Corner Stones: Illusion of Windows
This is Corner Stones Cafe and Restaurant in Glen Eden, with its painted-on windows giving the impression of indescreet voyeurism.
June 21, 2010
Glen Eden Mural: Ladder Fern
Glen Eden Mural: Ladder Fern
I have an older photo of this mural, faded and tagged. So I was very pleased when I saw that the decorative wall had been given a new lease of life. Well, about half of the mural, anyway, the other half is hidden behind the shrubs on the right which are now quite big.
The mural is at the West Coast Road end of a seemingly unnamed lane connecting West Coast Road with Glenmall in Glen Eden. I could not find a signature anywhere.
June 10, 2010
Magnolia Way
Magnolia Way
Magnolia Way is a road in Waikumete Cemetery along which one finds mausoleums. While mausoleums are not common in NZ cemeteries, there are a good number of them at this site, catering largely for families of Dalmatian and Lebanese extraction.
June 6, 2010
Loo with a View #1
Loo with a View
This is the view from Waitakere View Road in the Waikumete Cemetery, together with public conveniences. Sadly, the view – across Glen Eden/Oratia and the vineyards of the foothils, with the Waitakere Ranges as backdrop – cannot be enjoyed from within.
From the Waitakere City website: “Waikumete is one of the largest cemeteries in the Southern Hemisphere and the final resting place for over 70,000 people. It also provides the largest open space environment for passive creation within Waitakere.”
A brochure about the history of this Cemetery has this apt comment: “these Exeloo style toilets were erected in 1999 to serve the modern western berms and lawns and Urupa. Unfortunately the style and location of these toilets integrates poorly with the Cemetery and they are located in a visually prominent location.”
Nevertheless, it’s good that the needs of the living are not forgotten.
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March 24, 2010
Painted Boxes: Caught in the Act
In this post we pay tribute to the artists who liven up our neighbourhoods with paintings on utility boxes (transformers, traffic control boxes, telecommunications cabinets, etc). Nearly three years ago, I started taking pictures of these works, occasionally inclusive of the artist. This is a compilation of such images. Bear in mind that the paintings on display are unfinished, the finished products might feature in other posts.
The artists I caught in the act:
- Mark Whyte
- Edith Diggle
- Diane Carter
- Diane Ruth Rimmer
- Shelley Slater
A big thanks to them, and of course to all other artists participating in these efforts. We should also acknowledge the sponsors of these projects: City councils/power companies/paint manufacturers. The boxes shown in this post are all in Waitakere City, where these projects are administered by Julie Nash, Community Arts Coordinator. I am indebted to her for some additional information incorporated below. These are her details:
Julie D. Nash
Community Arts Coordinator, Waitakere City Council, Private Bag 93109, Henderson 0650.
Ph 836 8000 extn 8934. Julie.Nash@waitakere.govt.nz
The first image shows Mark Whyte painting a transformer in Glenview Road (map), bringing together various Glen Eden Scenes: the cemetery (which is right behind the hedge), the railway station and its cafe “Pumped”, the Chapel of Faith in the Oaks, with the Waitakere Ranges and the foothills as backdrop. I remember, it was a cold day with a biting Sou’westerly blowing across the ridge. Just a few metres up from here is the Glen Eden welcome sign.
Mark Whyte also participates in next weekend’s Waitakere Artists’ Open Studio Weekend 2010. He will be pleased to welcome you in his studio at 13A Woodglen Rd, Glen Eden, on March 27/28.
Mark Whyte in Glenview Road, June 2009
The first time I saw Mark, he was painting a transformer at Westgate (map). In his unique way, he used scenes of mangroves and buildings from the Massey area.
Mark Whyte at Westgate (March 2008)
Just a few days ago, Mark was busy in Glendale Road (map), Glen Eden, with a box showing the Playhouse Theatre which we have featured here before.
Mark Whyte in Glendale Road (March 2010)
Right now, Edith Diggle is taking care of a couple of boxes in Hollywood Avenue (map), Waima, Titirangi. Native flax and rimu and kauri trees surround the ducks so typical of the area. Since this shot was taken, the ducklings have taken on their yellow colour, and Edith told me that over time the scenery will be populated with all manner of smaller wildlife – we live in anticipation.
Edith Diggle in Hollywood Avenue (March 2010)
My very first ‘catch’ of an artist painting a box was Diane Carter of Karekare, painting this transformer in Atkinson Road, Titirangi (map), in bold hibiscus livery.
Diane Carter in Atkinson Road (May 2007)
In Titirangi Road, I found Diane Ruth Rimmer working on this transformer; just imagine the painstaking work with all the cooling fins! She depicts the misty moods of the Waitakere Ranges. Unfortunately, some time ago the transformer changed colour to a uniform green – a victim of a road accident.
Diane Ruth Rimmer in Titirangi Road (June 2007)
The artist transforming the transformer at the corner of Hepburn and Culperry Roads (map) is Shelley Slater, covering it in nasturtiums. This photo was also taken on a very cold day – easy to take the shot, much tougher to brave the cold for hours!
Shelley Slater in Hepburn Road (June 2008)
