A Garden, 2009 – 2010

Sculpture, Terrace Exhibition Level 6, Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington. 

Materials: pigmented cast concrete, galvanised steel, concrete blocks, hose, outdoor light, vinyl flooring.

Cullen’s project takes the concept of the borrowed view, a key idea in garden history where surrounding landscape is incorporated into the garden design, enhancing the vista from the garden and giving a sense that the garden is larger than it is.

The borrowed view has its origins in traditional Oriental gardens and architecture and has also become a technique applied to modern urban architecture and the cityscape.

As an inner city space that operates as a viewing deck over the harbour the Outer Terrace is very much a part of this tradition. Spaces such as this are often developed as outdoor areas for recreation and pleasure and this site is no exception. Cullen’s project responds to the possibilities and meanings of this site within the architecture and ideology of the Museum and its location overlooking the busy harbour.

Cullen’s installation will feature a series of familiar objects – benches, tables, coloured concrete “rocks”, a street light, platforms and concrete block wall. While the objects have an appearance of purposeful intent or usefulness, their function is unclear. Cullen deliberately suggests a rational purpose for the objects, yet he conflates it with their existence as simple forms creating a shift between the recognisable use or origin of the individual elements and the sculptural possibilities that arise from their relationship to each other and the space.

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