The Viaduct and newly opened Wynyard Quarter in Auckland City’s harbour received an artistic makeover just in time for the opening of Wynyard Quarter on August 6 and for the Rugby World Cup in September.
The Auckland City Council contracted Auckland-based fashion designer, Miranda Brown, to design a 50-piece flag installation to be displayed along the waterfront in the city’s central business district. They hope that the flags, detailed with colours of the rainbow, will transform the predominantly concrete area around the waterfront into an attractive environment for overseas visitors. Says creator Miranda Brown, ‘It is amazing to bring such colour and life in to celebrate the waterfront being opened up to more people.’
With the Auckland City Council expecting an additional 60,000 people to visit the city during the game period, it is important that the flags project both an air of festivity while celebrating the elements that make New Zealand exceptional. The installation, consisting of ten sets of five identical flags, was inspired by New Zealand’s unique terrain, people and culture.
Each flag, reaching three metres tall, will be embossed with a large circular motif to represent the odyssey to and from New Zealand. This design was specifically chosen for the flags to symbolise the journey that people will make to New Zealand to watch the RWC.
The installation, entitled Ecology to Cosmology, is, says Brown, ‘a vibrant expression of the navigation cycle.’ The flags were installed at the waterfront on August 5 and were officially presented to the public during an opening ceremony the following day.—Sabine Ernest
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