Kokako

Location: corner Durham and Wharf Streets

Artist Shane Walker’s work celebrates what it means to live in beautiful Aotearoa, especially our natural environment within an urban landscape, in this instance a carpark building. His works encourage viewers to pause and be transported to another world.

Created on the curved corner of Durham and Wharf Streets, Kōkako was part of Street Prints 2020 and builds on Walker’s familiar themes. The idea is about regenerating the forest. We have the kokako around the corner, which is the water-bearer. The child’s going to be following in its footsteps planting seeds, and in her footsteps is going to be the green pasture left behind.

In Māori mythology the kōkako is a water carrier - it transports water in its wattles. In this work, the kōkako flies ahead of the young girl, ‘leading the way’.

Water is such a precious resource, Walker says - without it life is not sustainable. “This bird, the North Island Kōkako, which inhabits the Bay of Plenty, is also endangered, so I used it as a symbol of hope for saving this species and our planet.”

Information from: https://cityartwalktga.stqry.app/1/tour/6885/item