TypeAgencyOther NamesKupe Statue TrustDate Range13 January 1999-7 May 2001DescriptionThe Trust was registered as a charitable trust 13 January 1999 and was removed from the register 7 May 2001.
The trust was formed by Rex Nicholls, a former city councillor with the intent to recast in bronze the original plaster cast statue of the Kupe Group to make it possible to display it permanently outside on the waterfront. The Griffin Charitable Trust was a major contributor to this project, aiding the trust in raising the necessary $400k, which also included a Lottery Board grant of $65k.
The Kupe Group statue was originally made for the Centennial Exhibition by William Trethewey in 1940. It then stood at the Railway station until the mid 1980s when it was relocated to the Show Association buildings until the Association was wound up in the late 1990s and the statue was transferred to Te Papa Tongarewa.
The casting of the replica in bronze was carried out by Artworks Studios (1996) Limited, with Athfield Architects providing the plinth. The statue was installed on the waterfront with agreement of Lambton Harbour Management Limited and the ownership of the statue was transferred to Wellington City Council in perpetuity on behalf of the public of Wellington.Internal StructuresTrust members:
- Rex Nicholls (chair)
- Mark Blumsky (Mayor of Wellington)
- David Gascoigne (chair of LHML)
- Ngatata Love (CEO Te Puni KÅkiri and leader of Wellington Tenths Trust
- Ray Matthews (CEO of Griffin Charitable Trust)
- Bruce Trethewey (Grandson of sculptor William Trethewey)
