Arboretum ready for 25thexhibition

The Sculpture Park at Waitakaruru Arboretum is getting ready for the opening this weekend of its annual sculpture exhibition.

Stories in the Landscape 2022 features 30 sculptures from emerging and established artists and craftspeople from across Aotearoa and Australia.

This year’s exhibition is the park’s 25th which is interwoven with the park’s permanent collection.

Curator Gina Ferguson says: “These are precarious times where we face many challenges and uncertainties. Our perspective on the world around us is changing and with that change comes a need to articulate narratives with greater urgency.”

The stories of the sculptures are diverse: Personal, cultural, environmental, political, local and global. Some emerge from the material and making process.

Featured artists include metal artists Carolyn Menzies and Joe Citizen, Auckland artist Tonina Ngatai, clay artist Carla Ruka, recycled material artist Bev Goodwin, light artist Larisse Hall and cast glass artist Hannah Bremner.

After an official opening gathering on Friday, Stories in the Landscape 2022 will open to the public on Saturday, November 12, and runs until February 26.

The Arboretum and Sculpture Park was created by Dorothy and John Wakeling who bought the 17.5ha property that used to be a quarry in 1991 to rehabilitate the land through the planting of all kinds of native, foreign, and rare plants, and to absorb carbon out of the atmosphere in order to slow down climate change.

Since the start of their mission, the couple have planted more than 20,000 trees.

Now Dorothy and John havemore than 100 sculptures permanently that can be viewed on a 2km loop walk.

“There are dynamic, sweeping vistas, dramatic scenic pockets, small lakes, and wide-open spaces alongside denser clusters of bush.”