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Te Werowero Sculpture Purchase

  • WE GOT THERE!

      7 June 2019

    Approx 3 months ago I dipped my toe in the water to test whether, like me, others thought the beautiful and meaningful Te Werowero should stay permanently on Matiatia.

    The responses to that Facebook page post reflected an overwhelming "yes" by the community.

    Then the fundraising started .... and Barry Fenton (an unstoppable art fundraising force!) joined the journey with me.

    I am so excited to say "WE GOT THERE!" .... through the support of generous individuals, families, local iwi, the local board, and organisations like "Sculpture on the Gulf", Waiheke Community Art Gallery, Fullers and AT. It has been a true community effort :-)

    Having never done something like this before, I can honestly say I wasn't sure how the journey would go and whether we would get anywhere close to raising almost $50k in such a short time. However, the experience has been so positive and reaffirmed my love of Waiheke and why we live in this great community/on this beautiful island.

    Thank you everyone.

    PS - We have a fair bit of administration still to do, and will keep you posted once we have more details about the unveiling event (likely to be in early to mid July 2019).

    PPS - Due to a private donation (outside of Givealittle) we have been able to close the page below the official Givealittle target of $25k.

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  • Waiheke Community Art Gallery to hold donations on trust

      17 May 2019

    Hi All

    Just a bit of housekeeping .. to let you know Givealittle funds will be initially paid into a Waiheke Community Art Gallery (WCAG) bank account. The $$ will be held on trust, before they are then used to buy the sculpture etc.

    WCAG has also been a great partner so far in helping make this campaign happen.

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  • 80 donors and over $14k raised ...

      13 May 2019

    How amazing! In such a short time, we’ve had so many people jump on board. It’s really exciting and humbling

    Next milestone: 100+ donors and $20k!

    Naturally the money is crucial, but equally important is the depth of community involvement. I’d love to see hundreds or even thousands of Waiheke locals/visitors take a stake in this (no matter how big/small). That was my intention from the outset.

    So if you like Te Werowero and you want to walk past it in future knowing you helped “save it”, now’s your chance!

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  • WOW. WOW. WOW.

      11 May 2019

    We have blasted through the $10k mark in no time at all. Thank you so much everyone!

    As we now only need $25k, with just another $1.5k of donations, we will be HALF WAY!

    What an achievement in just 1.5 weeks.

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  • Auckland Transport is doubling all our donations

      9 May 2019

    Great news! We’ve received a massive boost with Auckland Transport agreeing to do a "dollar for dollar match" of all donations.

    You can read the Gulf News article published today for all the detail.

    With AT matching all our donations, the goal is so much more achievable, as we now only need to raise $25,000. As was originally intended, everyone will still have the opportunity to play a part in this, no matter how big or small - and now past and future donations will have twice the impact!

    AT has also agreed to be the custodian of the sculpture (which makes sense as it resides on AT land). So that will ensure the artwork is looked after and maintained well into the future.

    Thanks again to you all for your continued support!

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  • What a way to start!

      4 May 2019

    What a fantastic couple of days since the campaign launched!!! Almost $5.5k raised so far. Thanks so much to all of those of you who have donated. And it’s so awesome that so many people will be a part of ensuring the permanency of this special monument at Matiatia. Keep up the good work Waiheke - let’s push it up to the next milestone of $10k!!

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  • Some key questions answered

      24 April 2019

    Who's behind this fundraising campaign?

    The two key drivers are:

    Dan Harrop - a local of 6+ years, Dan saw the sculpture one day and thought it was far too beautiful (both from an art and cultural perspective) to be here temporarily. Dan isn't an art aficionado by any stretch, but he is a project manager - so he will bring those skills to the fundraising campaign.

    Barry Fenton - Barry lives on the Island for half of the year and is a great lover of Waiheke and the arts. Barry co-founded the Sculpture on the Gulf event and have supported Waiheke public arts for many years. Barry will therefore bring loads of art fundraising experience to this campaign.

    What is the sculpture made of and how big is it?

    Te Wero wero is cast bronze and stands 1.7m tall x 900mm x 900mm.

    Who will own the work once purchased?

    We are currently working with Auckland Transport to see if the work could become part of ATs Public Art Collection with conditions attached that the piece is to remain at Matiatia, Waiheke Island.

    Who will maintain the sculpture in the future?

    The creator Chris Bailey is passionate about the piece and therefore happy to maintain it (and feels it would require very little in this regard anyway). However we are also considering a more formal body ( eg AT also ) to take responsibility for this, so it remains in tip top shape into perpetuity.

    What is my money being spent on?

    The sculpture itself costs $40,000 and this money will go to the artist, the $10k balance will be used to have a new slightly higher stone plinth made, a plaque explaining its significance, structural reports and foundations, possible lighting, consent fees to have the piece located permanently, crane hire to relocate the work to its final location, possible future maintenance etc

    The target is only $25k as Auckland Transport has agreed to do a $1 for $1 match of all donations. This means we only need $25k as AT will fund the other $25k.

    Will the work stay in its current location or will it be moved?

    The piece will remain at Matiatia Wharf once purchased and we are currently in discussions with Auckland Transport who own the wharf to have the piece moved into a higher profile location at the wharf so it is not squeezed up next to the building as it currently is. We want the sculpture to be as visible and accessible as possible, so everyone can appreciate it.

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