Hamilton Arts Trust, AKA Boon Arts, has become a household name, having successfully delivered the Boon Street Art Festival, Boon After Dark and more over the last several years. Now the team is bringing Hamilton’s hottest new event to life, and the Boon Sculpture Trail is finally taking shape.
A true labour of love, the Boon Sculpture Trail brings together twenty-six artists from across New Zealand, to create and install twenty-three temporary outdoor sculptures in Hamilton — including virtual and performance pieces. Spread over eight public sites, Hamilton Central will be transformed into an Artscape for everyone to enjoy, and you won’t want to miss it.
It goes without saying that getting this project off the ground — or more firmly on the ground — is only possible due to the support of funders, sponsors, and key stakeholders. However the spirit of collaboration doesn’t stop there. The Boon Arts team have been working hard to ensure this new offering is part of a wider network of events.
Speaking with Vanessa Williams from Love the Centre, she told us “We are super excited to have the inaugural Boon Sculpture Trail coming to Hamilton in February and March 2024. This unique offering is not only a destination event in itself but is also collaborating with other significant events happening in the central city including the Hamilton Arts Festival, the Chinese Lantern Festival, and Balloons Over Waikato. So many great reasons to Love the Centre.”
The arts feast doesn’t stop there, with many collaborating galleries too: WSA ArtsPost Galleries, Waikato Museum, Blue Gallery, Hanrad Bespoke Rugs, Nancy Caiger Gallery, RAMP Gallery, and Welcome Swallow Gallery. For the duration of the trail, the WSA ArtsPost Galleries are presenting the Our Place small sculpture exhibition – an exhibition of small sculptural work, presented by a selection of Boon Sculpture Trail artists. From glazed ceramics to wood and wool, and everything in between, Our Place celebrates sculpture that you can take home.
With such a wide community reach it was important to Nancy Caiger, the sculpture trail’s founder, to lead the way in another unique offering. Nancy keenly states:
“we are the only sculpture trail in New Zealand to offer free tours, in six different languages: English, Te Reo Māori, New Zealand Sign Language, Mandarin, Spanish and Arabic.”. Bookings for these are essential so please visit www.eventfinda.co.nz to book your free tour.”
So what are you waiting for? Experience this sculpture extravaganza between Saturday 3 February and Sunday 31 March 2024. Join them for their official launch on Saturday 3 February, 10–11am. This is a walking event, so come along for as little or as much as you want: 10am starting at Norris Ward Park; 10.15am at PwC and Civic Square, 10.30am Garden Place for a performance composed by Kirsten Strom, 10.45am Victoria on the River, and 11am Grantham Street. For more information and to view their calendar of events, head to www.boonarts.co.nz/bst
