NZ Visual Diary - entry 435
Silo 6 exterior window
The close companion of my SubStack blog will know that I return my focus regularly to my home precinct to photograph Wynyard Quarter, where my wife and I have lived for the past four years. I have been incurably bewitched by the magical ambiance of our seaside neighbourhood.
Wynyard Quarter was conceived as the Western Reclamation, a project to reclaim the tidal shoreline of the Waitematā Harbour at the western-most edge of Auckland Harbour. The marvel of the reclamation project is further dramatised by the adaptive reuse or re-purposing of utilitarian artefacts found throughout the precinct that chronicle the area’s maritime and industrial histories as well as extend each artefact’s utility in aesthetically pleasing manner.
Within the latter category of industrial activity sits a collection of cement silos located within the area of Wynyard Quarter known as Silo Park. It is here in Silo Park that adaptive reuse shines.
Today’s entry features a photograph of several sculptures by architect and sculptor Logan Bow. The display sits at one of the exterior windows of Silo 6, a collection of six tightly compacted cement silos of Silo Park that have been converted into art studio & exhibition space.
Interior arched doorways have been cut in silo walls to create passageways that permit tentative movement amongst the six silos, ensuring that the individual studios can be both isolated and cautiously discovered. Ceilings soar to heights of 35 metres, greatly extenuating the palpable sensations of mystery, enchantment and cavernous disorientation.
Randolph and I plan to attend an upcoming art show at Silo 6, and I will attempt to capture with photographs the alluring charm of the exhibition venue.