Interior Features
The two huge native rimu rakau (tree) that stand as centre pieces in the Taupō Airport Terminal are the work of local master carver Delani Brown. The rimu had fallen at the base of Mt Pureora, a sacred mountain forest and significant feature within the Central Plateau, situated north-west of Taupō. The tree was salvaged thanks to the generosity Te Kotahitanga o Ngati Tuwharetoa and local hapu Ngati Te Kohera. Delani and his team have debarked and sandblasted the rimu, which are thought to be up to 800 years old, and they now act as very visual anchors for the Terminal’s interior.
“Between the two rimu is a mauri stone that recognises the lifeforce of the building, the land, and its people,” Mr Brown says. “It was sourced from the sacred Tauhara maunga (mountain), which can be seen in the image on the northern wall of the terminal and through the eastern window. Tauhara holds a special place in the hearts of the local hapū (subtribe), as does Horomatangi, a water guardian who is revered by hapū and Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and together the mauri stone and the representation of Horomatangi that appears on the main entrance acknowledge that Ngāti Tūwharetoa and the people of Taupō join in welcoming you to the region.”
“The rimu had fallen across a road in Pureora Forrest at the same time as we were starting to talk about the Airport Terminal Project,” Mr Brown says. “We have the mauri stone from Tauhara and the images of Tongariro and Tauhara on the walls; what we didn’t have was a connection to Mangakino, the third point on the triangle around Taupō. Using the rimu meant we were able to complete that triangle by bringing a piece of Pureora to the terminal, in the same way that by bringing the mauri stone to the terminal people could connect to the maunga (mountain) and be able to touch it.”
Interior Features
The two huge native rimu rakau (tree) that stand as centre pieces in the Taupō Airport Terminal are the work of local master carver Delani Brown. The rimu had fallen at the base of Mt Pureora, a sacred mountain forest and significant feature within the Central Plateau, situated north-west of Taupō. The tree was salvaged thanks to the generosity Te Kotahitanga o Ngati Tuwharetoa and local hapu Ngati Te Kohera. Delani and his team have debarked and sandblasted the rimu, which are thought to be up to 800 years old, and they now act as very visual anchors for the Terminal’s interior.
“Between the two rimu is a mauri stone that recognises the lifeforce of the building, the land, and its people,” Mr Brown says. “It was sourced from the sacred Tauhara maunga (mountain), which can be seen in the image on the northern wall of the terminal and through the eastern window. Tauhara holds a special place in the hearts of the local hapū (subtribe), as does Horomatangi, a water guardian who is revered by hapū and Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and together the mauri stone and the representation of Horomatangi that appears on the main entrance acknowledge that Ngāti Tūwharetoa and the people of Taupō join in welcoming you to the region.”
“The rimu had fallen across a road in Pureora Forrest at the same time as we were starting to talk about the Airport Terminal Project,” Mr Brown says. “We have the mauri stone from Tauhara and the images of Tongariro and Tauhara on the walls; what we didn’t have was a connection to Mangakino, the third point on the triangle around Taupō. Using the rimu meant we were able to complete that triangle by bringing a piece of Pureora to the terminal, in the same way that by bringing the mauri stone to the terminal people could connect to the maunga (mountain) and be able to touch it.”