New Plymouth District Council today won the Premier Creative Places Award 2003 for Puke
Ariki, the largest cultural project ever undertaken in the Taranaki region.New Plymouth District Council today won the Premier Creative Places Award 2003 for Puke
Ariki, the largest cultural project ever undertaken in the Taranaki region.Other winners: Rotorua District, North Shore City, Wellington City, Waitakere City, Hutt City and Hastings District
Acclaimed as setting a new standard for cultural institutions in New Zealand and internationally, Puke Ariki is a storehouse of Taranaki's past, present and future combining library, museum and information services.
The Creative Places Award, presented annually by Creative New Zealand, celebrates the vital role that local authorities play in the arts of their communities.
The announcement was made at the Local Government New Zealand conference in Queenstown today where Creative New Zealand's Chief Executive Elizabeth Kerr presented the Award to the Mayor of New Plymouth, Peter Tennent.
"The annual Creative Places Award celebrates the wonderful and innovative arts projects happening in communities throughout New Zealand," Miss Kerr said. "It helps us profile this outstanding work beyond the communities in which it was created.
"All these projects are inspirational because they demonstrate the positive impact that creative places and spaces have on the wellbeing of New Zealand's diverse communities."
Creative New Zealand established the annual Creative Places Award in 1999 with the endorsement of Local Government New Zealand to acknowledge the key role that local authorities play in the arts.
"Creative New Zealand values its partnership with local government and this award acknowledges its huge investment and commitment to the arts of this country," Miss Kerr said. "This is the fifth year of the Award and it is gratifying to see it attracting such strong entries."
This year, the Creative Places Award was restructured to better profile the work of District as well as City Councils. Both were eligible for an award in each of the following five categories: Arts Provision, Built Environment Initiatives, Celebrating Cultural Diversity, Strategic Arts Initiatives and Youth Initiatives. The winner of the Premier Creative Places Award was then chosen from the District and City Council winners in these five categories.
New Plymouth District Council won the Strategic Arts Initiatives category for Puke Ariki and was the judges' unanimous choice to win the Premier Award. The prize for the Premier Award is a substantial contribution from Creative New Zealand towards the commissioning of a new public artwork to be chosen by the winner.
This year's judging panel was Frana Cardno, Mayor of Southland District, Kate Wells, a textile artist and arts consultant, and Bernard Makoare a Ngati Whatua artist and a former local government manager.
The judges said the Puke Ariki complex integrated extremely well with the existing building and its surroundings. They described it as "a stake in the ground, saying 'We are Taranaki and we want people to come and see what we're about'."
Puke Ariki means Hill of Chiefs. It stands on the site of the original Puke Ariki pa and settlement inhabited by generations of Maori. In 1995, New Plymouth District Council resolved to develop a new museum on the Puke Ariki site to provide better accommodation for both the library and the museum. Local architects were appointed and a Puke Ariki Sub-Committee, including community representatives, and a Komiti Maori representing eight Taranaki iwi, were established. They developed a concept, which combined both the library and museum facilities and redefined traditional concepts of information, education, research and entertainment. Following extensive public consultation, construction began in February 2001 and Puke Ariki opened in June 2003 (see below for further information and contact details for the project).
Seven other District Councils or City Councils also won category awards today. Each received a work by leading ceramic artist Merilyn Wiseman and a certificate.
The eight category winners were as follows:
1. Strategic Arts Initiatives: District Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Puke Ariki
Winning District Council: New Plymouth District
Puke Ariki is more than a place. It is a vital and dynamic link between the past and future of Taranaki. One of the most exciting things about Puke Ariki is its use of technology to create an entity without walls. A vast database, Taranaki Information Network, is accessible at Puke Ariki through 18 "Info Pods" and through the Puke Ariki website www.pukeariki.com
A number of Taranaki schools, libraries and information centres are linked to this database.
Further information: Barbara McKerrow, New Plymouth District Council
Mobile: 027 249 5788 Tel: 06-759 6106 Email: mckerrowb@npdc.govt.nz
2. Strategic Arts Initiatives: City Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Heritage Trails
Winning City Council: North Shore City
A series of heritage walk guides were initiated as part of a larger, co-ordinated programme to raise awareness of heritage and enhance the local community's understanding of some of the cultural factors that have shaped the development and life of the city.
The walks are self-guided and tell stories that are special to North Shore City. To date, three guides have been produced. Two of them focus on the natural and built environment. The third describes four different literary walks, recognising a number of important New Zealand writers: Frank Sargeson, Janet Frame, Robin Hyde, Sam Hunt and Maurice Duggan. This was an aspect of the city's arts and cultural heritage that was not previously well-known.
The guides have been very successful. A year after it printed 10,000 copies, the Council had to print a second edition. One of the judges described this as "an innovative initiative that made me want to do these walks."
Further information: Greg Bowron,
North Shore City Council
Tel: 09-486 8585 ex 8925 Email: greg.bowron@northshorecity.govt.nz
3. Arts Provision: City Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Dance Your Socks Off!
Winning City Council: Wellington City
Dance Your Socks Off! is an initiative of Wellington City Council and the city's wider dance community, which aims to profile and celebrate the diversity of dance in Wellington and encourage dance activity throughout the year. Over the past three years, Dance Your Socks Off! has partnered and promoted 58 dance shows, 48 workshop series or classes, and provided 57 regular dance class listings.
The judges described this entry as "a fantastic community event and a wonderful way of getting people involved".
Further information: Andy Nelson, Wellington City Council
Tel: 04-801 3604 Email: andy.nelson@wcc.govt.nz
4. Arts Provision: District Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Rotorua Arts Village Experience, RAVE
Winning District Council: Rotorua District
The Rotorua Arts Village Experience is a new local arts centre for music arts, crafts and cultural groups. It has been developed from three heritage buildings on the Wohlmann House site, which had been used by local arts groups and artists as a base for 13 years. A steering group, chaired by the Mayor and involving iwi, arts and other groups, developed the idea of the arts centre in consultation with existing and potential users. Commissioning a vibrant new artwork was seen to be fundamental to increasing community awareness and participation in the project and the people of Rotorua were invited to take part in making a mosaic floor, following a design by local artist Marc Spijkerbos. RAVE is now regularly used by 30 groups.
The judges described this entry as "a great collaborative project with potential to further develop existing relationships for the benefit of all".
For further information: Nick Dallimore, Rotorua District Council
Tel: 07-349 5141 Email: nick.dallimore@rdc.govt.nz
5.Celebrating Cultural Diversity: City Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Asia 2000 Diwali Festival of Lights
Winning City Council: Wellington City
The Asia 2000 Diwali Festival of Lights, which took place in October 2002, was the first time Diwali was celebrated on a large public scale in New Zealand and was a chance for Wellingtonians to experience a real Indian cultural celebration. As part of two weeks of Asia 2000 Diwali activities, the Wellington City-partnered event captured the essence of Diwali in a spectacular one-day festival. This free event showcased the diverse contributions of more than 500 participants to an audience of 30,000. It included international performance groups, 35 food and retail stalls, displays, fashion shows and cooking demonstrations, culminating in Diwali-themed fireworks.
"Celebrating our diversity gives us more opportunities to realise ourselves by realising other people. A wonderful celebration of a culture," the judges said.
Further information:
Delia Shanly,
Wellington City Council
Tel: 04-801 3876 Email: delia.shanly@wcc.govt.nz
6. Youth Initiatives: City Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: RESPECT 2003
Winning City Council: Hutt City
RESPECT is a biennial youth-focussed, music, visual and performing arts festival in Lower Hutt. It is a clear indication of Hutt City Council's commitment to youth, community and audience development as well as to the local social, cultural and economic wellbeing of Lower Hutt.
The festival was launched by Hutt City's Dowse museum in 1999 as an attempt to attract a wider range of people to the gallery - in particular, youth, families, Maori and Pacific Island peoples. The 1999 festival had a hip-hop focus and was hugely successful. The community called for more and RESPECT has now become a biennial summer event.
The judges said of RESPECT: "It is impressive to see a council step out and welcome arts and cultures that may be unfamiliar. This festival helps youth who are an important part of the community to express themselves in a positive way."
For further information:
Tim Walker,
Hutt City Council
Tel: 04-560 1480 Email: tim.walker@huttcity.govt.nz
7. Built Environment: City Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: West Wave Aquatic Centre
Winning City Council: Waitakere City
With the growing recreational fitness and leisure needs of the public, Waitakere City decided to extend its existing swimming pool complex, which operated as a facility for both competitive and recreational use. A new wing was added for leisure use and the complex was opened in November 2002, renamed the West Wave Aquatic Centre. In line with Waitakere City's practice of giving artists equal status with other design professionals when creating public buildings and spaces, sculptor Virginia King was hired to work with the architects from Creative Spaces on the overall building concept.
Virginia King's contribution can be seen, for example, in the colour schemes, the organic shapes of the pools and a number of sculptural water features. Working with the Council's Arts Advisor, she also commissioned Dean Buchanan, Graeme Gash, Bernard Makoare, Te Warena Taua and Zeke Wolf to provide designs and artworks in ceramics, glass, paint and steel.
The judges described this project as "a great collaboration between artists and cultural thinking, combining art with civic initiatives from a holistic point of view".
Further information:
Kelly Tikao,
Waitakere City Council
Tel: 09-836 8000 ex 8507 Email: kelly.tikao@waitakere.govt.nz
8. Built Environment: District Councils Category Winner 2003
Winning Project: Hastings CBD revitalisation
Winning District Council: Hastings District
The revitalisation of Hastings CBD is an ongoing project that has grown out of the Council's Landmarks strategy for district-wide development. Based on a Council and community partnership, this strategy has pursued the revitalisation of Hastings through a focus on architecture, history, landscape and art in public places.
For this specific project a number of local artists were commissioned to create work along with prominent New Zealand artists Virginia King and Neil Dawson. Their art has been subtly integrated into the design of functional elements such as seats, streetlights and grates and bike racks.
The judges said: "It's a fantastic mixture of function art, quirky art and beautiful art. It must make Hastings people feel very proud. This money is very well spent."
Further information:
Mark Clews,
Hastings District Council
Tel: 06-878 0500 Email: markac@hdc.govt.nz
Ends
Please note:
The above information is on embargo until 11am on Wednesday 30 July. If you wish to prepare a story in advance please contact only those people listed in the press release as these are the only people who know about the Creative Places Award results.
Profiles of the winning projects will be available on the Creative New Zealand website www.creativenz.govt.nz from 11am on Wednesday 30 July. Visit the What's New section and click on the link provided in the story entitled New Plymouth District Council wins Premier Creative Places Award 2003.