Airport mural will not go to new terminal
Artwork that has hung inside New Plymouth’s airport terminal for 50 years will have no place in its $25 million replacement, it has been confirmed.
The aluminum relief Kingsford Smith mural was created in 1966 for the opening of the then-new airport by nationally-renowned New Plymouth artist Don Driver and hangs above the check-in area.
Driver, who died in 2011, was commemorating Sir Charles Kingsford Smith’s landing at Bell Block in 1933 after the first passenger-carrying crossing of the Tasman Sea.
But New Plymouth District Council has confirmed the work will not be part of the replacement terminal – a decision criticised by the artist’s widow.
‘‘I’m not just personally disappointed but also disappointed that the council has such little regard for its history, for the history of the terminal and for Charles Kingsford Smith’s arrival here,’’ Joyce Driver said. ‘‘It does commemorate that first flight across the Tasman and New Plymouth is the only airport which can commemorate that.
‘‘It was site specific – it was made for the terminal.’’
In an emailed statement, airport chief executive officer Wayne Wootton said: ‘‘We’re looking for a suitable home for the artwork, which is not part of the modern and cultural design.
‘‘We’re working with Puketapu hapu¯ on the design for the new terminal, which we expect will be completed in 2020.’’
The 7 metre by 2 metre mural depicting Kingsford Smith’s
14-hour flight in the Southern Cross monoplane was commissioned by the then-New Plymouth City Council in 1966 for the newly-opened air terminal and installed in January 1967.
Wootton said they were working to find the mural ‘‘a new home’’.
‘‘Don Driver’s Southern Cross has been a fantastic part of our airport. But we’ll be celebrating our heritage in a different way in the new terminal with a focus on a cultural and modern design.’’
Terry Parkes, chairman of the New Plymouth Art in Public Places Trust, said the decision was ‘‘absolutely disgusting’’.
‘‘That’s a very important piece of artwork that’s been there since its conception.’’
If it is not in the terminal it should be given a place in the carpark in some sort of glass or perspex case, he said. ‘‘It shouldn’t leave the airport. It’s like part of the landscape.’’