Garden club hits sculpture trail

LARGE SCALE: A giant artwork by Anish Kapoor sits among the rolling hills of Gibbs Farm. 

After a long Christmas break and our February meeting, the Mangawhai Garden Club went on its first outing for 2013. Our destination – Gibbs Farm on State Highway 16 on the Kaipara Harbour. Many of you have probably visited or at least passed the farm and marvelled at the huge sculptures visible from the highway. 

Once a month the farms owner, Alan Gibbs, generously opens his 1000 acre property for others to enjoy. Over 20 years he has commissioned artists from around the world to design and create mega-sized sculptures. Looking around the farm, people resemble ants, dwarfed by these enormous structures. 

As we walk up the hill we pass various animals that make up Alan Gibbs’ private zoo collection. A stag with massive antlers paces the fence line, roaring loudly. Three beautiful giraffe, tame enough to feed and stroke, so silent and regal, and one amazing replica, cleverly crafted from corrugated iron. From a distance, only his stillness gives a hint that he isn’t real. A small herd of bison sits quietly beside the road. 

One of the most impressive sculptures comprises eight, 27 metre tall, curved, rust coloured steel columns. The silhouette against the bright blue sky is awe-inspiring and you wonder how far into the ground the foundations go to stop them toppling over in those often ferocious westerly winds. 

Further on, the ridge of a hill has been cut away to accommodate a huge red cone, rather like an enormous megaphone. We peer into its mouth that stands 8 metres high by 25 metres wide and it appears to be made from strong vinyl with metal struts for support. Its sleek 85 metre length passes through the hillside and the other end of the horn changes to a vertical position. It’s bold colour and massive dimensions make such an impact on the landscape. 

What appears to be a huge piece of corrugated iron atop a hill constantly changes shape as you view it from different areas of the farm. As you get close to it you discover that it is in fact not corrugated at all and your eyes have been fooled into thinking it was 3D rather than flat. Did I really see those bison move? 

Even the largest sculptures on display are completely dwarfed by the vastness and splendour of the Kaipara Harbour on this brilliant sunny day. It provides a perfect backdrop for the farm and a wonderful place for the garden club members to rest, eat and take in their surroundings. We can look with envy at dams full to the brim and cascading water fountains and think of our dry, cracking gardens in Mangawhai. 

As you look around the farm at the various cleverly placed pieces of contemporary art, you wonder if all the hillsides and valleys have been carefully sculpted too, or if mother nature is, after all, the most creative, talented artist.

- Viv Martens