Description:

Cordis Auckland’s Pinnacle Tower, celebrates unique whenua of Tāmaki Makaurau, and is upheld by three central conceptual pou with a narrative developed in collaboration with artist Bernard Makoare (Ngāti Whātua ki Kaipara) and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. Cordis Auckland carries a ‘whole of project’ conceptual underpinning, with all 49 artworks, and built spaces responding to this narrative. This is an example of a development that delivers a holistic approach across their entire site, where all elements are connected through a shared expression of key thematic Māori principles. The result is a richly textured and distinctively Aotearoa story that highlights key ideas in Māori mythology and philosophy within a broader social and cultural framework.

The strength that this multi-layered narrative sets up across the physical spaces delivers a heartfelt, dynamic and coherent environment, where the thematic energy from each artwork and interior element is taken up by the next in a continuous thread across the hotel journey. The art collection, and spaces at Cordis work together to form the foundation of a connection with guests, charging and enlivening the environment whilst delivering a subtle and yet permeating Māori story.

To achieve this depth of connection three key interconnecting Māori concepts were woven throughout. These ideas were te whai ao (the light before dawn), kaitiakitanga (guardianship of the land) and te manawa (the heart line). All of the 49 bespoke, commissioned artworks embody these concepts with each artwork articulating and expressing these ideas.

At the heart of the Cordis Auckland art collection are the large woven panels entitled ‘Ki Mua, Ki Muri’, a collaboration between Beronia Scott (Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei) and Carla Ruka. This key work within the curatorial narrative embodies the ideas inherent within the collection of manawa and kaitiakitanga, and brings the art of tukutuku weaving into the current moment in a distinctly contemporary reinterpretation of traditional techniques and ideas.

Included within the collection is a large, immersive commission by senior Māori artist Lonnie Hutchinson (Ngāti Kuri ki Ngāi Tahu) as well as works by younger Māori artists Nikau Hindin (Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa) and Raukura Turea (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Ngā Rauru Kītahi). Also responding to the narrative are works by artists of international cultural descent, reflecting the multi-cultural nature of Tāmaki Makaurau; Jae Hoon Lee and Seung Yul Oh, both of Korean descent, as well as Joe Sheehan, Amanda Gurenwald and Sane Mestrom, of Pākeha descent.

With these key Māori concepts infused across the entire hotel, deep within the artworks, evident in the vast façade of the Pinnacle Tower, and present in the small, carved details of each guest room, this project can be seen to embody the principles of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. Each carefully considered detail shows how these narratives and philosophies have been ingrained across the design and art curation of Cordis Auckland and, in the spirit of manaakitanga (hospitality) and manawa (heartfelt welcome), so that every guest will feel the power of the whenua throughout their journey.