More sculptures planned to draw visitors

Two more gateway sculptures are planned to draw visitors to the Ruby Coast and Mapua area.

The Aporo Sculpture was officially welcomed and blessed yesterday beside the Tasman Village turnoff on Aporo Rd.

The sculpture was the result of six years hard work from local artists, community groups, the Tasman District Council and volunteers who backed the $60,000 sculpture.

Artist and project manager Adi Tait, who had been involved in the project since day one, said she was thrilled to finally see the sculpture complete. ‘‘Now every time I look at it there’s people parked having a look at it,’’ she said.

The sculpture was created as a way to draw traffic back to the area after the Ruby Bay bypass was opened.

The community response was massive, she said. Many volunteered their services and materials to create the sculpture, largely driven by the Ruby Coast Initiative Trust. . Two more sculptures are now planned for the wider Mapua and Ruby Bay area – one at the Higgs Reserve near the Mapua turnoff, and one at the Seaton Valley intersection.

The Mapua sculpture will be similar to the Aporo Sculpture, but with a focus on the variety of marine life. The Seaton Valley Rd sculpture will be a multi-piece work of totem poles, said Tait. Plans to begin fundraising for the sculpture on the Mapua turnoff are underway, and Tait hoped to see it complete within a year.

The community have been involved in the process – the initial design of the Aporo Sculpture was put out to the public for feedback. The nine-metre high ovoid cylinder has stylised shapes of seabirds from the estuary, which are cut from steel. The design was to reflect the variety of birds the Ruby Coast has, said Tait.