Pouwhenua: Markers on the Land

I was one of four artists commissioned for project for the Wanaka Festival of Colour. The other artists were Simon Kaan, Michel Tuffery and Areta Wilkinson. During the week of the festival we were introduced to the history of the land and its settlement by experts in Ngai Tahu history Matt Ellison and Brian Allingham.

Being a resident in Wanaka I was able to begin my research beforehand. Wanaka was named by Maori as a place of higher learning, so I decided to learn something new about nature’s design and incorporate it into my work for Markers on the Land.

I began work using natural materials and nature’s universal construction principle known as tensegrity. This term was coined by Buckminster Fuller for the system discovered by Kenneth Snelson in which compression elements are held in dynamic balance solely by tension threads that connect them. Donald E Ingber in a paper for Scientific American described tensegrity as “the architecture of life”. Other scientists see it as a model for sustainable economic and social systems.

In this sculpture for the Festival of Colour raupo stems were used, interconnected by linen threads. None of the stems touch each other and stress is distributed equally throughout the system making it resilient.

A previous semi circular work titled Synergy photographed with its reflection in the lake to complete the circle was developed into a completely circular sculpture that was eventually hung on 35 metre wires between two trees on the shores of Lake Wanaka with the mountains as a backdrop.

Entitled What is Life it was dedicated to the memory of my friend and climbing partner John Pawson who tragically fell to his death from the SW ridge of Mt Aspiring in New Zealand when he and I were climbing in November 2008.

What is Life. Sculpture for Pouwhenua