Contemporary art
found historical film footage, courtesy of Nga Taonga Sound & Vision’s archives, of yesteryear bikes once ridden in New Zealand.
Stevenson says the Art Deco 1940s lamp, in the shape of a woman and featuring a decorative flower-shaped lightbulb holder, prompted her to draw on her dance background. She’s created a “lotus pond” projection where digital flowers open as visitors move around them.
The trio picked lesser known Night Lights Motat, Friday — Sunday, 6-9pm; tickets through the Motat website. objects, saying the challenges included making the extraordinary out of the ordinary within a strict time period. But Foottit describes the project as one driven by a passion to create something original and breath- taking. “That’s what we do,” says Foottit. “We’d rather take on more challenge to achieve what we set our minds on achieving; it’s driven by the idea and desire to create something great.”
Other installations explore the significance of the stars of Matariki and on the New Zealand flag through Maori musical instruments, performance and moving image.
Lustrous, an installation created by a group of architecture students from Unitec, uses recycled materials to give waste a new lease on life.
The installations are complemented by light activations such as a dazzling tunnel of light by La Lumiere, projection mapping, trams festooned with fairy lights and floodlit heritage buildings. Visitors can also try illuminated poi and hula hooping and see the interactive exhibition, Sunlight — Ihi Komaru, which is new to Motat and tells the science-based story of sunlight.