We spent today immersed in art and architecture in Whangarei, the city the official New Zealand travel website describes as “a city of adventure, culture and natural beauty”. We walked a lot, particularly along the riverbank, where we enjoyed browsing several galleries and artisan workshops. We resisted the temptation to buy anything, but the pull was strong.

Just a random tree, but we were impressed with the size of the trunk.

Reynolds House – the only surviving remnant of Whangarei’s original pioneer riverbank settlement.

Hundertwasser Art Centre

The Hundertwasser Art Centre celebrates the art and architecture of 20th century Austrian painter, ecologist, architect and visionary, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, who lived in New Zealand from 1974 to his death in 2000. He had a very distinctive style, using lots of colour and eschewing any straight lines (even in his architecture).  The gallery has the largest collection of Hundertwasser artworks outside of Vienna. The building itself is a work of art, but there are also displays of drawings, paintings, posters, carpets, and models. Even the bathrooms are a visual delight.

Town Basin Heritage and Sculpture Trail

Having visited a sculpture trail each day of the trip so far, we did not plan on visiting another one today. So it came as a surprise as we strolled along the riverbank to find ourselves on – you guessed it – the Town Basin Heritage and Sculpture Trail. As well as sculptures there were a series of panels telling the history of the area. The most impressive sculpture was called Waka and Wave – a stone sculpture representing a Māori waka (canoe) breaking through a towering wave.

Street Art

Whangarei is a bit of a street art town. In 2019 they held a festival – Street Prints Manaia, International Art Festival – which resulted in 15 large scale murals, and the collection has grown since. We certainly got our steps up exploring the streets looking for (and mostly finding) murals.