I’m anticipating a relatively short blog post today – we spent a few hours driving, with only one stop, though it was a good one. The scenery is just lovely and driving these winding roads over hills and dales, while slightly stressful, is also delightful.
Street Artist at work
We had spotted a large mural 2 days ago that was obviously a work in progress, and this morning as we headed out of Whitianga we popped by to check the progress and discovered the artist at work. We had a lovely chat with him, and we now follow each other on Instagram. His name is Dave Fowell and he has his work cut out on this 30m x 8m wall! Then we headed back into Whitianga to see Dave’s mural which we had previously missed. “The theme for my mural stems from ‘Encounters’ which is the Tuia 250 byline for commemorations in 2019 of 250 years since Lieutenant James Cook’s visit to Te Whanganui o Hei, Mercury Bay. I wanted to portray a modern encounter so chose two musicians playing together, a Māori man and a European woman with their respective ancestors featured behind them. At the top are bars between the two but then gradually the two cultures are woven together – as I feel they are today.”
Scenic Drive
Just a few photos from a couple of lookouts and some random street art that we passed. I would have loved more photos but it’s challenging to find anywhere to stop on these narrow roads.
(If you are curious about Humphrey the sea elephant, you can read all about him HERE).
KatiKati Mural Town
The historic town of Katikati is known as ‘New Zealand’s Mural Town’ and is also the Avocado Capital of New Zealand. In 1989 Katikati was struggling financially, and after a public meeting they formed the Katikati Open Air Art group, which encouraged the development of public art, murals and sculptures, particularly focussed on the history of the region. Today there are more than 70 works, and a stroll around the town is a visual treat. Here is a small sampling:
Haiku Pathway
Katikati also has the only “haiku walk” outside Japan. It features over 40 haiku poems, the vast majority engraved onto river boulders, alongside a pathway that meanders through the town. This is apparently the largest collection of “haiku stones” in English. Who know haiku stones was a thing?
PS. The answer is – there’s no such thing as too many murals.
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It was great that you got to meet and talk with the artist Dave Fowell about the meaning of his work: the blending of Māori and European. Helen
It was very cool to meet him!