Bridge Art

Para Matchitt. Wellington.

One of the carved figures

on Wellington's overhead

waterfront pedestrian walkway

When Arts Meets Water

Havelock North Fountain, Hawke's Bay by Paratene Matchitt. 2008. Ajr

It was a cold wet day when I came upon this fountain sculpture by one of New Zealand’s leading Maori artists, Para Matchitt. It sits in a small square in the Hawke’s Bay town of Havelock North and was commissioned as part of the town’s redevelopment. I think I like it.

Design Spot 6

Sandi Reefman, Napier. June 2008. Ajr

Meet Sandi Reefman, the Napier creator of the fabulous and rapidly-expanding Esther Diamond Collection – a quirky, colourful range of homeware products that incorporates the designs and artwork of several leading New Zealand artists including Dick Frizzell, Para Matchitt, Fane Flaws, Martin Poppelwell and Ben Pearce. I LOVE the idea of drying my dishes on a tea-towel emblazoned with a Dick Frizzell design or a witty work by Martin Poppelwell; or, in a loose moment, wiping dribbled food from my chin with a table napkin that really looks as though it ought to be framed. It’s all about getting contemporary art out to a much wider audience says Sandi, and I’m all for that. I think it’s a brilliant concept that deserves all the support it is currently getting. See here for more of this gorgeous range. www.estherdiamond.com www.eon.co.nz