Telling Tales

Like many of Tauranga Moana’s historical artefacts and taonga, the artworks belonging to Tauranga City Council’s Civic Art Collection (CAC) is mostly hidden away from public view. With all the changes afoot in Tauranga CBD, that’s set to change, with a muchanticipated new museum and the pieces in the CAC being made more accessible.

TCC has acquired original works of art for decades through gifts from the community, council departments, mayors and councillors, and now the CAC consists of about 350 regionally and nationally significant works, ranging from paintings, prints and photographs to sculptures and craft. As per the collection’s policy, all pieces have a connection to the Bay of Plenty, either through the subject or the artist.

Numerous CAC pieces are in public buildings such as the TCC offices, Baycourt and Tauranga Libraries, but other artworks are about to be regularly rotated in public spaces, as well as shown in temporary exhibitions and digitised, so the artworks can be enjoyed by all.

It’s likely that there are pieces that you regularly come across, but haven’t really noticed.

For example, one of Mr G’s earlier works, Live Your Dreams, is on a wall at Mercury Baypark. Or the bold woollen tapestries that have hung at Baycourt’s Addison Theatre since 1985. They were made by two Mount-based weavers, artist Jill Kobayashi and the now-renowned tapestry artist Marilyn Rea-Menzies. The 20 overlapping panels took 18 months to complete, and used more than 60kg of hand-spun and dyed wool. Cleverly, they do double-duty, assisting with acoustics.

Here’s a closer look at a few more CAC pieces that you might have noticed around our city…

By Frank Szirmay, 1975–6

Tangaroa is a nine-foot bronze sculpture that sits in Tauranga Harbour — in Māori mythology, Tangaroa is the God of the Sea. The work was installed in the 70s but years later was moved to face visitors entering the harbour, as the crouching warrior is depicted holding a taiaha and performing the wero — a traditional challenge given to test manuhiri (visitors’) intentions. The work is now a familiar landmark for boaters and people walking around Mauao.

The artist, Frank Szirmay, was a Hungarian sculptor who emigrated to Aotearoa in the 50s. The work was presented by the then-Mayor (R A Owens) to the Tauranga District Museum.

The CAC has several miniature versions of the sculpture, also in bronze, made by D Belch. They were commissioned by the City of Tauranga to mark its 25th anniversary in April 1988. One sits in Commissioner Tolley’s office.

Te Kōrero Tipua Legend of Mauao

By Fred Graham, 1982–3

This carved/mixed media work hanging at Mount Maunganui library was created by world-renowned artist Fred Graham (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura).

It depicts the legend of Mauao and the handwritten notes on what appears to be the work’s proposed design explains several elements: The tukutuku panel represents the stairway to heaven. The Sun is both the sun and a representation of a white missionary’s face. The patupaiarehe figures (fairy-like beings) on the right are pulling Mauao towards the sea; on the left they’re fleeing the sunlight, hands raised. The spiral background signifies time. The large waves on the right represent the open-sea side of Mauao; the waves on the left represent the harbour side.

The wooden diamond in the lower centre of the panel is the “nameless one”, which grows in stature as he’s dragged to his present site and given the name Mauao. The two triangles on either side of Mauao represent Ōtanewainuku (right) and Pūwhenua (left).

It was commissioned by Keith (Nobby) Clarke, who at the time was the Deputy Mayor of Mount Maunganui Borough Council, to hang in the council chambers.