Description:

40.8972° S, 175.1479° E is more than just a set of coordinates. It marks the Kāpiti Coast, a place deeply cherished by its community. But this coastline is under threat. Coastal erosion is rapidly changing the landscape, and while reports and technical documents attempt to explain the risks, they often miss something crucial: people.

Locals describe council reports as inaccessible, overly technical, and even misleading. Many feel left out of the conversation, frustrated by a lack of transparency and emotional disconnect. This growing divide between the community and decision makers inspired a project that flips the narrative, bringing emotion, story, and humanity into how we talk about climate change and place.

40.8972° S, 175.1479° E serves as a window into the ever-evolving tapestry of the Kāpiti Coast. This observational documentation journeys through time, weaving together fragments of the past and present. Through the lens of historical imagery and modern snapshots, it captures the enduring essence of the beach—an intimate witness to change. Stories and interviews breathe life into this exploration, offering voices from the community who speak of the coastline’s significance. Each narrative becomes a thread in a larger story, one where memory and place intertwine. Reading, Looking, and Feeling each explore a different way we process and relate to information: cognitively, visually, and sensorially.

Reading explores Kāpiti’s history through text, personal stories, and interviews, revealing locals’ deep ties to the beach and older generations’ reflections on coastal erosion. Complementing this is Looking, a 3.2-metre-long photographic catalogue that traces landscape change over time, featuring 142 images from 1925 to 2024.

Black-and-white and colour imagery creates visual contrast throughout. Its accordion-fold format allows readers to either stretch the book out to view changes across decades or engage with it like a traditional book. Feeling brings the beach to you with its textures, essence, and emotion. The goal was to evoke a sensory connection to the coast. Black-and-white photography captures the tactile qualities of the beach, while mono printing and sand embossing deepen the physical experience. All three books are covered with Notpla Ocean Paper, a by-product of seaweed processing, which provides the texture and smell of the ocean.

This multi-sensory approach invites people to experience information in ways that suit them best, whether through reading, seeing, or touching. Each book is intentionally simple in form but emotionally rich, allowing space for readers to form their perspectives. There is no set reading order, no one way to engage. It’s designed to be explored freely, even collaboratively.

By collecting personal accounts and making room for emotion, the project helps the community feel seen and heard, reconnecting people with one another and the place they love.