Digging Up History

Pegasus, North Canterbury. 2008 & 2009 Ajr

When I flew out of Christchurch recently, I had a clear view of the new North Canterbury town of Pegasus, 25 kilometres north of Christchurch. Viewed from the air it seems little more than an excavation site and I think the first residents have only just moved into their new house. There is a long way to go for the rest of the town, which will include hotels, shopping complexes, golf course, lakes, a yacht club and homes for 7,000 residents. In the meantime, much has been going on at ground level. Because of the town’s proximity to the old Kaiapoi Maori pa, home of the Nga Tu-ahu-riri hapu (sub-tribe of Ngai Tahu), the town’s developers, Infinity Investment Group agreed to work with a team of archaeologists and tribal representatives to ensure that any artefacts unearthed are treated appropriately. A significant number of Maori artefacts have been unearthed, including greenstone adzes, the remnants of a waka (canoe) and an ancient pou (carved post), which is believed to have been part of the old pa’s palisade defences, which were breached by fire in the 1830s. The plan is to house these and other significant cultural items in a whare taonga (cultural centre) to be built at Pegasus.

Pegasus, North Canterbury Jan 2009. Ajr

The rich historical significance of the Pegasus site has also been acknowledged in the placement of six new carved pou whenua, which make a bold statement at the entrance to the town. Carved by Fayne Robinson, Riki Manuel and Caine Tauwhare, who collectively have more than 75 years carving experience, the pou took eight months to complete. They’ve been carved from wind-felled totara logs from Okiwi Valley just north of Kaikoura and gifted by Te Runanga o Kaikoura on behalf of the people of Ngati Kuri. www.pegasustown.com If you are interested in Maori Culture please click on my other blog http://maorilifestyles.blogspot.com for much more.

StreetscapeNZ - 10

London Street

Lyttelton

For others in this series click on StreetscapeNZ in the label line below

Accidental Art

When an Unknown Rusty Brown Material

On a City Wall

Accidentally Becomes Abstract Art

Small Moments of Greed

Cherry-Topped

Cupcakes

From Buttercups

East Meets West

Riccarton, Christchurch. Jan 2009. Ajr

You can’t miss the splendid bulk of the International Buddhist Association Centre on Riccarton Road. This is one of my favourite community buildings in Christchurch. Designed by Christchurch architects, Warren and Mahoney, it draws inspiration from the Dunhuang Caves – a series of over 490 caves, Buddhist temples and statues cut into the rock face near the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in north-west China, said to be the most comprehensive repository of Buddhist art and history in the world. Built at a cost on NZ$4.5 million, the prominent Riccarton centre, features a beautiful Indian sandstone façade with niches for bronze Buddhist statues. Inside there is a light-filled vegetarian café and teahouse, an art gallery, library, and prayer hall complete with a huge jade Buddha; and along the front, a line of my favourite ginkgo trees. www.warrenandmahoney.com

Barry's Provocative Unpublished Minutes - 42

"Arms For The Poor."

Here's another ink-jet print from one of our leading printmakers. This is now a comprehensive series, so click on Cleavin in the label line below to see many more - and don't forget to click Older Posts at the bottom of each page.

Meet the People - 34

Image Suppliedby Arrowtown House.

Another in the Series Meet the People – Ordinary and Extraordinary New Zealanders Doing Interesting Things – Steve and Jeanette Brough were ‘born to work in tourism’ and as their very successful history in hospitality and accommodation shows, they know how to give visitors a memorable New Zealand experience. Now based in picturesque Arrowtown, near Queenstown, Steve and Jeanette have just opened the very stylish boutique hotel, Arrowtown House. The couple have a track record for picking new hot-spots. In 1995 they opened Queenstown’s first small luxury lodge, Remarkables Lodge, which won several NZ Tourism awards and was winner of Travel & Leisure’s ‘World’s Best Award;’ and then in 2000, they opened Shotover Lodge at Arthur’s Point, which they sold in 2007. Before all that they’d spent twenty years in hospitality in Australia managing resort properties, ski resorts and their own café in Bowral, NSW. Away from attending to their guests’ needs, they’ve travelled extensively themselves – especially in Asia, the Greek Islands and Mexico - where Steve always enjoys indulging his passion for black and white photography. Jeanette meanwhile finds travel stimulates her passion for food – curries in India’s Thar Desert; boat noodles in Thailand; crab-sellers in Hanoi - which all inspire the first class cuisine she presents at Arrowtown House. And now there’s cycling to fit in! Jeanette belongs to the recreational club, Queenstown Peddlers, while Steve has launched himself both mountain bike and road racing in the weekends. There’s no such thing as wasting a minute of time for this pair. www.arrowtownhouse.com

Arrowtown Gold

Images Supplied by Arrowtown House

And this is the place Steve and Jeanette call home – beautiful Arrowtown House Boutique Hotel – a cluster of buildings built in 1999 that merges seamlessly with the existing historic buildings that this pretty town is known for. Plaster walls and cedar windows evoke the mood of the mining era yet inside, the Broughs have renovated and extended to provide their guests with every modern comfort. Arrowtown itself is a leafy enclave of old gold miners’ cottages surrounded by mountains and three major golf courses, just fifteen minutes from ‘the buzz’ of Queenstown. Blessed with art galleries, movie theatre, museum, boutique shops and numerous cafes and restaurants – among them internationally recognised, Saffron and New Zealand Country Restaurant of the Year, Amisfield – the village is the perfect spot for a classy visitor stay. And Arrowtown House is small and intimate – just five bedrooms a few steps away from the main dining room, lounge and bar.

Image Supplied by Arrowtown House

And when breakfast is as enticing as this, who wouldn’t want to stay there? www.arrowtownhouse.com

History In The Bank

Kyneton, Victoria, AUSTRALIA Nov. 2008. Ajr

When I was visiting Melbourne back in November, I spent quite a bit of time in the small Victorian town of Kyneton, just over an hour north of Melbourne itself. It’s Victorian by location and also by history, as it was at its peak during the Victorian period. Historic Piper Street particularly, is filled with wonderful old Victorian buildings, many of which have been restored and colonised by classy restaurants and boutique stores. One of my favourites is the chunky bluestone building of the Kyneton Museum, which began life as the Bank of New South Wales in the 1856. It was purchased by the Shire Council in 1969 to serve as a folk museum with exhibits drawn from the gracious homes and old farms of the Kyneton district. www.kyneton.org.au

Grapes and Spires

Christchurch Anglican Cathedral. Jan. 2009.

I've walked around the Christchurch Cathedral Many times and never previously noticed the thriving grape vine that grows on the north side. www.christchurchcathedral.co.nz

Purple Paddocks

Waikuku. North Canterbury. Jan. 2009 Ajr

It was a HOT day when I drove up to Waikuku and when I stopped to photograph this pretty scene at Lavender Fields, I could hear the whirring and buzzing of bees pollinating the flowers.

One Hot Thursday

Waikuku Beach, Canterbury. Jan. 2009. Ajr

Cooling off

@

Waikuku Beach

North of Christchurch

Market Winner

Lyttelton. Jan. 2009. Ajr

Of all the markets I frequent, I think Lyttelton Farmer's Market is one of the best. I was here early last weekend; the crowds were yet to arrive, but still it was interesting and colourful. The stalls here are always reliable and filled with goodies and because the market is held within a contained area, it's always packed - and with an interesting crowd of people. www.lytteltonfarmersmarket.co.nz

Tattoo You

Zealand Tattoo, Christchurch. Jan 2009. Ajr

I am intrigued by tattoos. I'd be far too much of a sissy to get one myself but that doesn't stop me ogling everyone else's. In my head, they're in the same filing cabinet as street art, graffiti and body piercing - all those ever-so-slightly grungy 'arts' that are frowned upon (by many) yet say so much about a whole subset of our culture. I am particularly keen on this window display at Christchurch's Zealand Tattoo, which gives us a little bit of everything - from a bronze Chinese lion and a robot to funky lights, colourful cabinets and a flirtatiously 'tattooed' mannequin. It was all too much. I HAD to stop and take a photograph. www.zealandtattoo.co.nz

Santa Fe Adobe Meets Whipped Cream

Canterbury. Jan 2009. Ajr

It has to be said that the architecture of the standard New Zealand home is pretty boring; but every so often you find someone who has rebelled against the general blandness of it all, someone who has gone off on a wondrous flight of fancy to create something 'a little different.' I discovered one such place yesterday when I was out driving in North Canterbury. Nothing stands out more in a tiny New Zealand rural settlement than a house that combines the free-flow organic forms of New Mexican adobe architecture with a whipped-cream white exterior. I don't think I could be held responsible for driving away thinking of deserts, pavlovas and cowboys.

LIGHT Work

Christchurch. Jan. 2009. Ajr

And so I return to “Coral/Floral,” the popular light designed by Napier-based David Trubridge......... this time spied in a Christchurch menswear store. I’m continually drawn to this light – as anyone regularly reading this blog will know. I’ve photographed it in many different settings, which you can see if you click on David Trubridge in the label line below. www.davidtrubridge.com

Cool Cars - 33

One Bright Yellow 1967 Chevrolet Camaro - Spotted at Ferrymead, Christchurch

Lakefront Luxury

Images supplied by Eichardt's Private Hotel.

A few months ago the very stylish Eichardt’s Private Hotel in Queenstown opened the purpose-built Eichardt’s Lakefront Cottage just a few paces away from the main hotel on the Lake Wakatipu waterfront. The four two-bedroom suites (available in a number of different configurations) have been lavished in that same superb attention to detail that acclaimed New Zealand interior designer, Virginia Fisher is known for. (Fisher incidentally, was recently named one of the top five hotel interior designers worldwide by Time Magazine). She’s brushed the airy, split-level cottage suites with a fresh, creamy-gold palette; and with sunny skylights, electric shutters, well-equipped kitchens and simple but elegant furnishings, there’s more of a comfortable home-away-from-home feel as opposed to the distinctly opulent style of Eichardt’s itself. If you click on Eichardt's Private Hotel in the label line below, you'll be able to peek into the interior of the main hotel. www.eichardts.co.nz

And This Is The View..............

Image supplied by Eichardt's Private Hotel

...........Looking from Eichardt's Lakefront Cottage across the foreshore of Lake Wakatipu to Steamer Wharf and the 1912 vintage steamship, TSS Earnslaw, which makes daily cruises across the lake to Walter Peak Station. The food and wine of course, are optional but let’s face it, who’s going to say no? www.eichardts.co.nz

Maori Cultural Centre

Christchurch. Jan 2009. Ajr

I was out biking the other day and found myself outside Nga Hau E Whau National Marae, a multi-tribal, multi-cultural marae that was built in Christchurch in the 1980s on land gifted by the Christchurch City Council. It’s the only marae in New Zealand that was founded as a meeting place for all the peoples of New Zealand regardless of tribal affiliations, race, religion or geography. It operates as a place of culture, education and entertainment and frequently welcomes visitors and tourists, who can watch Maori weavers and wood carvers at work. I love the Marae buildings here but as the complex was closed when I stopped by, I photographed this rather impressive front gate instead. The prominent lintel over the gateway is called Te Amorangi. The two top carved human figures are of Governor William Hobson (the Queen’s representative) and a Maori Rangatira (chief), who represents the three Ngai Tahu chiefs who signed the Treaty of Waitangi. Both represent the coming together of Maori and Pakeha (Europeans) at the Marae. If you are interested in Maori culture please click on my other blog http://maorilifestyles.blogspot.com for much more.

Window Art

Ng Gallery, Christchurch. Jan. 2009. Ajr

Someone has been painting on the windows of Ng Gallery - intentionally and with permission obviously - and it looks great. I'm not sure who the artist is and as the gallery was closed for the holidays when I walked by, I'll have to wait a few more days to find out.

StreetscapeNZ - 9

High Street

Christchurch.

For others in this series click on Streetscape in the label line below

Peering Over My Shoulder

Cathedral Square, Christchurch. Jan. 2009. Ajr

As far as public sculptures go, this Terry Stringer bronze might be one of the most overlooked works in Christchurch. Yet oddly, it is in one of the most prominant positions in town - right outside the doors of Christchurch Cathedral, which receives thousands of visitors a week. Perhaps it is overshadowed by the dramatic architecture of the Cathedral itself; or maybe it is dwarfed by the more obvious, much bigger (and shinier) sculpture, 'Chalice' by Neil Dawson? And it is the kind of thing I WANT to overlook - it is kind of shapeless and ugly after all. That said, I do wish there was a little plaque somewhere with its name and artist information so people could at least find out more about it. Maybe there is. Maybe that's easily overlooked as well?

The Collectors - 8

From the John Perry Collection. Image supplied by Christchurch Art Gallery

John Perry of Helensville, north of Auckland knows a thing or two about collecting. He was the director of the Rotorua Art Gallery and Rotorua Museum from 1978 to 1997 and he now runs Global Village Antiques and Collectables in Helensville’s old Art Deco picture theatre, The Regent – recently described in the NZ Herald as “a shop that thinks it’s a museum.” Now he’s coming to Christchurch - with a suitcase full of surprises – to present “The Business of Collection: Man-made and Natural Curiosities,” at Christchurch Art Gallery, on Wednesday, January 21st. It’s a talk that ties in perfectly with the gallery’s current exhibition Wunderbox, which brings together eccentric collections from some of New Zealand’s best known contemporary artists. (I wrote about it here in December 2008). John is reluctant to reveal what’s going to be in his suitcase but the audience can expect to see something unusual and extraordinary – including a little something from overseas that is 4,700 years old. He has a passion for collecting man-made and natural curiosities that reflect New Zealand’s cultural heritage – everything from stuffed birds, Kiwiana and mineral specimens to books and etchings. If it’s arresting and unusual, he’ll collect it; and he’s a firm believer that much of what we are currently throwing away – from junk mail to cell phones – will, 50 years from now, be considered highly collectable information by social historians and collectors. “That’s something to think about isn’t it,” says Adrienne, as she glances around her many chaotic piles of hoarded STUFF!

Meet the People - 33

Another in the Series Meet the People – Ordinary and Extraordinary New Zealanders Doing Interesting Things – Artisan baker Evan Kiddey has a passion for bread that is easily explained: “Bread is simply a combination of flour, water, salt and yeast, yet those few ingredients have huge potential. You can make so much out of very little,” he says. Evan worked as a chef for four years before turning his attention to bread-making. Self-taught, he now works at Ferrymead Heritage Bakery, where he creates hundreds of loaves a week in a wood-fired oven. The bakery was built at Ferrymead in 1973 as a replica of the 150-year-old oven that once operated at the old Rakaia Bakery. Baking six days a week, Evan makes eleven different styles of bread, wholesaling the product around Christchurch and selling in Lyttelton on Saturdays – and of course you can also buy his bread directly from Ferrymead Heritage Bakery. The rich, dark, crusty Rye & Stout loaves are among his most popular but I think you’ll agree, it’s hard to be fussy when you’re faced with freshly-baked bread of any sort. To see others in this series click on Meet the People in the label line below

Loafing About

Lyttelton. Jan. 2009. Ajr

Rain, hail or shine, each Saturday Evan Kiddey of the Ferrymead Heritage Bakery takes up his stand outside the Lyttelton Coffee Company in London Street, Lyttelton. He has legions of fans among the locals and it's easy to see why.

Welcome to River Birches

The Bleibtreu Family. Image Supplied by River Birches

Former New Yorker, Jason Bleibtreu and his wife, Rebeca (from El Salvador), visited New Zealand in 2003 and fell in love with it. For that we can be truly grateful because this globetrotting pair were so enamoured of our little country that they were inspired to create River Birches, a classy retreat on the lower reaches of the North Island’s Tongariro River, which is world famous for its fly fishing. With just three gorgeous rooms, easy access to all the area’s best fishing spots, superb cuisine and all the peace and tranquillity you could wish for, River Birches should be marked into everyone’s travel plans. “Hip without Hype,” is how Jason describes it – and he and Rebeca should know because, as former journalists working in some of the world’s most volatile spots, they’ve literally spent thousands of nights in hotel rooms. They met in Central America during their coverage of conflict there; and then, in the 1990s they moved to Cambodia to cover the implementation of the Paris Peace Accords, which brought warring Cambodian factions together. Then there were three years in Hanoi, where they opened the first US TV bureau in Vietnam since the US-Vietnam war; and these days they’re based in Bangkok, where they own a television equipment rental company, which deploys gear as far afield as New Zealand, Peru, Ethiopa and throughout Asia. Interior Images by Deiderich van Heyningen To create River Birches, they worked with architect, David Page of the award-winning Page Henderson practice in Te Puke, taking out first place in the 2007 NZ Institute of Architects Awards. Since they opened the doors in 2006, there has been a steady stream of satisfied customers – “and they’re not all fishermen,” says Jason. “We get a lot of people who just come to chill out.” And with lodge managers Anthea Tidswell and her husband, Bill on hand to indulge guests, it’s easy to see why Travel & Leisure magazine included River Birches in its list of top hotels, resorts and spa in 2007. www.riverbirches.co.nz

HOOKED!

Jason Bleibtreu fishing the Major Jones Pool, Tongariro River. Images supplied by River Birches

You don’t have to be a fisherman to enjoy River Birches, but if you ARE a fisherman, you’ll think you’ve landed in seventh heaven. Located near Turangi – the trout fishing capital of the world - at the bottom of Lake Taupo, this small boutique lodge is truly a fisher’s paradise. Three renowned fishing pools – Major Jones, Breakfast and Hydro – are literally steps from the lodge’s back gate and a tackle room stores high quality fishing gear and waders available to guests. On top of that, there’s a Rivercam, which shows all three pools throughout the day and lodge staff can recommend the best fishing guides. Lodge owner, Jason Bleibtreu, a keen fisherman himself, says: “We established a weather station beside the webcam to show current temperature, wind direction and speed. This allows keen fishermen to check out the conditions from the comfort of their own computer and they can then decide at a moment’s notice, to head to River Birches.” The Tongariro River (above) is the epicentre of trout fishing. “People come here from all over the world just to fish these waters,” Jason adds. www.riverbirches.co.nz

Vive La France!

Christchurch. Jan. 2009. Ajr

This morning's French Farmer's Market in Struthers Lane was a quiet affair.

Mind you, I was there early and several of the stall holders are apparently still on holiday. That must explain the complete and unfortunate lack of a French baker! Surely you cannot have a French market without a French baker? But it was a mellow morning and it was nice to sit there regardless, sipping on espresso, watching people come and go.

It's Sunday Again......

Christchurch Cathedral. Jan. 2009. Ajr

I slipped into Christchurch Cathedral the other day to escape Canterbury's heatwave - and of course to test my new camera on this very splendid interior architecture. I wasn't alone. A volunteer was busy straightening pews; another was pointing out architectural highlights to tourists, cameras were snapping left right and centre; and just one man was seated quietly as if in contemplation of the scene - or perhaps immersed in a little spiritual reverie. Who could blame him? It's a beautiful place. www.christchurchcathedral.co.nz

A Small Sunday Moment

The Crucifix

Christchurch Cathedral Altar

Carving A Living

Maori Carvings

On Sale

At The Cathedral Square Market

Christchurch

Jan 2009. Ajr