Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Mayfair revamp arts restart for Kaiko¯ura
Despite a minor setback after the discovery of an urupa¯ beneath the site of the old Mayfair cinema, the coastal town of Kaiko¯ ura is set to have a dedicated arts and culture centre.
The outside facade of the building originated from a 1934 community cinema, which was badly damaged in the 2016 Kaiko¯ ura earthquake. Destruction of the old building took place at the end of 2018, which left the front structure standing with building starting in August of last year.
Kaiko¯ ura Arts Centre board president John Wyatt said there had been a ‘‘slight delay’’ in construction, after the urupa¯ was found on the site.
A spokesperson from Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga said they were aware of the discoveries made during this work, and the Kaiko¯ ura runanga operated under an archaeological authority.
‘‘There was an urupa¯ found underneath the site. That lead to some close bonds and contacts and an emotional journey with our ru¯ nanga here,’’ Wyatt said.
‘‘Along the way, our principal had always been to make this space accessible and bicultural. Those principals, in terms of the korero with the ru¯ nanga that we had last year, are still significant.’’
Wyatt said while the building had seen ‘‘better days’’, the facade was ‘‘iconic’’.
‘‘Thankfully the earthquake came through the back of the building, so the main structural damage was to the walls and the rear of the building, but it was quickly evident that was going to become uneconomic to even start repairing,’’ Wyatt said.
Instead, the front of the old cinema was kept, while the rest of the new building was built from scratch.
‘‘Once we knew that we were able to save, retain and restore the facade, that was what became vision 2020, which was to build a new lightweight, ecosustainable, multi-purpose future proofed arts and culture centre,’’ he said.
Wyatt said the new building ‘‘versatile’’ and ‘‘technologically advanced’’.
‘‘What we quickly recognised is if you take Kaiko¯ ura 150km in each direction, there is nothing like this nearby.
‘‘Equally, when events have come to Kaiko¯ ura they’ve had to bring in light and sound equipment, we’ve only had our memorial hall that we could use. So we had to produce something that was going to stand the test of time, but something that people were going to gravitate towards and use.’’
The first exhibit at the Mayfair would feature work from fine art photographer Susie Baker, with an exhibit titled ‘‘Energy of Change’’.
Baker said this work had spanned over several years.
‘‘Pretty much since
Kaiko¯ ura’s earthquake. We were all in a bit of a daze at the time and I went around with my camera and then I worked in the dark room following the years after that,’’ Baker said.
‘‘The town was changing, it was moving on. So that energy of change is not just earthquake related at all, it’s to do with moving forward.’’
Baker said her processes were quite ‘‘old photographic techniques’’. ‘‘I use some old processes from the 1800s that use the sun,’’ she said.
The exhibition had a collection of hand printed black and white prints of changes happening in the community, to do with the building, and that environment, Baker said.
‘‘There’s a beautiful picture of the new low tide, just the rocks exposed at South Bay, in Kaiko¯ ura and some of the buildings coming down and the new builds being built.
‘‘And some of the SH1, where all of the work has been done to realign the road, there’s a print of the road there as well.
‘‘It’s not just about the earthquake, it’s about how it has helped the town move forward.
‘‘We’ve never had an arts centre, we haven’t got anywhere to really nurture the culture in Kaiko¯ ura. So this is the bonuses, the good things that are coming out of what’s happened to the town.’’
The Mayfair/Te Whare Toi o¯ Kaiko¯ ura will open its doors to the public on November 23.