British sculptor Tony Cragg, widely recognised as one of the most acclaimed artists of his generation, is announced as part of Our Braided Future the curated element of the SCAPE Public Art Season 2018.

The artwork is being shipped to Christchurch from Europe and will arrive ahead of the annual six-week SCAPE season (Saturday 6 October – Saturday 17 November), but will remain in the city throughout summer. The large-scale 5.5m bronze sculpture will form part of the central city SCAPE Public Art Walkway. The art trail, and SCAPE’s wider programme of events, has become synonymous with Christchurch in spring – drawing large crowds both locally, nationally and internationally.

“We are absolutely delighted to bring Tony Cragg’s Mixed Feelings to Christchurch, his first large-scale presentation of public artwork in New Zealand. In our twentieth year the Season 2018 will be our most comprehensive presentation to date,” said Deborah McCormick, Executive Director of SCAPE Public Art.

“We are thrilled to have been able to collaborate with Gow Langsford Gallery and the Philipp Family Foundation to make this happen and be accessible to everyone. Tony Cragg’s sculptures are comparable to the works of Picasso in terms of reputation and reverence – he’s one of the great artists of his generation. This sculpture will inspire and provide prestige when it comes to Christchurch. An education package accompanying the piece will be delivered in our new Education Zone which has found its home within Tūranga (the new Central Library).”

Mixed Feelings, 2012 will be in residence at Christ’s College Quadrangle, a grass canvas that has become familiar to the annual presentations of SCAPE. The piece is an immense glowing monument, formed by two intertwining bronze towers, pushing together and pulling apart as they spiral towards the sky. As the viewer circles the piece, human profiles come into and out of focus. Each tower of feeling exerts a gravitational pull on the other, creating a unique, pulsating form of energy.

Previously exhibited in London, Prague and Amsterdam amongst others, the artwork is on loan to SCAPE Public Art courtesy of the Gow Langsford Gallery in Auckland who have built a relationship with the artist over many years. A crucial piece to the success of this project was the vision and dedication of one of the Founding Directors Gary Langsford MNZM, to bring the artwork to Christchurch.

“It is wonderful to have the opportunity to work with SCAPE in its 20th year. They’ve been pioneering and ambitious in bringing world-class public art to Christchurch,” said Gary Langsford MNZM, Founding Director of Gow Langsford Gallery.

“Our organisations have enjoyed a long and mutually beneficial relationship, and the 20th anniversary of SCAPE provided the perfect opportunity to bring a monumental work by Tony Cragg to New Zealand,” Langsford said.

“Tony has previously exhibited at the City Gallery in Wellington (1998) and several times at Gow Langsford Gallery in Auckland since 2005. Although these exhibitions featured a number of significant works by Tony, reflecting his varied sculptural practice, none of the works were of the scale of Mixed Feelings. The challenges of bringing such a large-scale work from Europe to New Zealand are many, and Gow Langsford Gallery are delighted to partner with SCAPE and the Philipp Family Foundation to make this a reality.”

The Philipp Family Foundation are also responsible for funding towards the cost of freight, insurance, exhibition and an associated education resource which will bring many children into the city centre to visit, interact and enjoy the artwork.

Peter Sherwin from the Philipp Family Foundation said, “The arts have had a transformative power in Christchurch, touching people’s lives as a modern city is rebuilt, and we are proud to have been, and continue to be, a part of that. We are particularly excited to also be able to support the associated Mixed Feelings children’s education programme. SCAPE’s programme will enable children to visit the site, view the sculpture and undertake art making activities. The children will experience the benefits of the relationship between Arts, Health and Wellbeing.”

The Philipp Family Foundation were also integral in securing Seung Yul Oh’s, Conduct Cumulus, 2017 for the South Quadrangle in the newly refurbished site within the Arts Centre.

In the third season of her three-year curatorial tenure of SCAPE, Heather Galbraith (Professor of Fine Arts at Massey University) has taken the 20th anniversary of SCAPE Public Art as an opportunity to look back at the artworks that have been developed, commissioned, and sited in response to the central city of Ōtautahi, as well as to cast our minds to the possible futures facing the city and its peoples. The 2018 artworks respond to the theme of Our Braided Future.

E kore e taea e te whenu kotahi ki te raranga i te whāriki kia mōhio ki a tatou.
The tapestry of understanding cannot be woven by one thread alone.

– Kūkupu Tirikatene ONZM, Ngāi Tahu kaumatua

The selection will be on show in a range of spaces around Christchurch and are part of a broader six-week event for the city between Saturday 6 October – Saturday 17 November 2018.

Pictured: Tony Cragg, Mixed Feelings, 2012, 550x236x224 bronze. Presented for SCAPE Season 2018. Image courtesy of the artist and Gow Langsford Gallery. Photo by Michael Richter.