There's been some exciting activity recently on the construction site of the NZICC, and we wanted to share the milestones that we have reached in the past few weeks.
We recently saw the lights turn on for the first time on the façade of the Wellesley Gallery. This will be a stunning space for events - at 480sqm, it will host a cocktail for 350 people or a banquet dinner for 230. Whether you're inside for an event, or just admiring from afar, this will be a beautiful space.
We hit an exciting milestone with the first terracotta tile being installed recently in the 105 metre long, and 32 metre high wall wrapping the northern edge of the NZICC. This is no easy feat as the wall comprises over 13,500 tiles, and this first tile put into place sets the grid line for the rest of the artwork.
The terracotta tile artwork was designed by New Zealand artist Peata Larkin.
Larkin is an artist who plays with interactions of light and shadow and the space an artwork occupies, weaving an elaborate spatial tapestry of pattern, colour and texture with strong references to Maori history, art history and genealogy. A fundamental aspect of her work is repetition and she has exploited all its qualities of harmony and order and then added scale to the matrix in order to create this very significant artwork.
“I wanted to create an artwork that described the multiple waterways and fertile soil Tāmaki Makaurau (and Aotearoa) possesses, as well as connect strongly and aesthetically to Sara Hughes’ glasswork. I wanted to soften the long wall and achieved this by creating an undulated geometric pattern inspired by traditional Maori weaving; a subtle three dimensional presence that would visually change dependent on the angle it was viewed from,” says Mrs Larkin.
The glass panels and fins adorning the exterior of the NZICC have now been installed - a really exciting milestone for the NZICC. Designed by artist Sara Hughes, this art installation alongside Peata Larkin's terracotta wall, is one of two largest pieces of public art ever created in New Zealand. Inspired by Mrs Hughes' upbringing in rural Northland near the Waipoua kauri forest, the colours and design of the panels and fins reflect the experience of walking through the New Zealand bush and looking up through a canopy of trees to see the unique light and colour of the forest. As shown in the images, the light shining through the panels will create a beautiful experience in the meeting spaces within the NZICC. The panels on the southern wall of the NZICC encapsulate what will be the Rouako Room, our premium dining space, which at 1,140sqm will be able to host 710 people for a sit down dinner or 1,270 at a cocktail function.
Sara Hughes' glass artwork is 2400sqm in total, and the glass artwork on the Southern wall is overall 105m long and made up of panels 1.5m wide and between 1.2m to 3.675m tall.
By the numbers:
- 550 glass panels in total, including:
- 230 individual panels on the southern wall
- 75 panels on the northern wall
- 98 glass fins, 49 on the east and west walls respectively
How many different colours?
- 60 different colour shades used in Sara Hughes' glass artwork
