Taupō artworks go public
Four Taupō artworks have been added to the National Register of 20th Century Public Art.
Public Art Heritage Aotearoa New Zealand (PAHANZ) has added the works to its website PublicArt.nz.
Works by Barry Brickell, Graham Cooper, Tene Waitere, Queenie Te Maku Wano and Ira Karaitiana are already publicly accessible to locals but can now be seen in the online register.
The work by Barry Brickell, ‘Volcanic Plateau’, constructed of clay tiles, is now sited in the Terminal Building at Taupō Airport, but could very easily have ended up in the landfill.
PAHANZ co-director Sue Elliott says the work is an excellent example of the danger that these 20th Century public artworks are in.
Originally in the Taupō Post Office, the privatisation of Government-owned Post Offices led to renovation plans for the Taupō Post Office.
The mural was removed and reinstalled at the entrance to a carpark site further up the road and separated into two pieces.
In 2014 the owner of the site housing the mural announced plans to develop the site.
The day the bulldozers were on site, Taupō businessman and arts advocate Chris Johnston stepped in with the funds and saved the panels. He was later reimbursed by the Taupō District Council.
The panels stayed in council storage for several years, awaiting funds for conservation work and in 2019 the council allocated a budget for conservation work, which was undertaken in Auckland.
Chris, as chair of the Taupō Airport Authority, successfully negotiated for the mural to be factored into plans for a new airport terminal.
The work, with a new wall and hanging system to deal with the weight, was reinstalled in the new Taupō Airport building in December 2022.
“Like so many public works of art, these works tell a story about their local communities and reflect a shared social history,” Sue says.
“Many of these 20th Century works have been destroyed, covered over, or simply lost. Others remain undocumented and at risk due to a lack of public knowledge of their significance and value.
The website is New Zealand’s first national register of such “cultural treasures” and launched with 380 works in mid-2023.
