| Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu | |
|---|---|
| Christchurch_Art_Gallery_Te_Puna_o_Waiwhetu.jpg Gallery exterior |
|
| General information | |
| Inaugurated | 10 May 2003 |
| Design and construction | |
| Owner | Christchurch City Council |
| Architecture firm | Buchan Group |
The Christchurch Art Gallery, with the formal name of Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu, is the public art gallery of the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is funded by Christchurch City Council. It has its own substantial art collection and presents a programme of New Zealand and international exhibitions. The gallery opened on 10 May 2003,[1] replacing the city's former public art gallery, the Robert McDougall Art Gallery, which opened on 16 June 1932 and closed on 16 June 2002.[2]
The Māori elements of the name are explained as follows: Te Puna honours waipuna, the artesian spring beneath the gallery and Waiwhetu refers to one of the tributaries in the immediate vicinity, which flows into the River Avon. Waiwhetu may also be translated as ‘water in which stars are reflected’.
Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu was designed by the Buchan Group. The gallery's forecourt has a large sculpture, Reason for Voyaging, which was the result of a collaboration between the sculptor Graham Bennett and the architect David Cole.[3]
The building was used as Civil Defence headquarters for Christchurch following the 2010 Canterbury earthquake, and again after the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.