March 16, 2005 16 March 2005 Absolut Ingenuity in Auckland’s Viaduct Harbour

In the fine tradition of kiwi ingenuity, a seven metre tall sculpture made from no. 8 wire named ABSOLUT INGENUITY floats on a barge in Auckland’s Viaduct basin, joining other ABSOLUT SPECTACULAR projects that have been created worldwide by the vodka company.

Renowned for its creation of innovative advertising, ABSOLUT VODKA has commissioned by five pieces of art by emerging New Zealand artists who have each interpreted ‘Kiwi Ingenuity’ using No. 8 Wire, to be displayed in Auckland’s Viaduct Harbour from Wednesday 16 to 29 March. (more inside this article).The aim of the worldwide Spectacular projects is to celebrate the local insights and culture in various countries and to reflect the lifestyle and personality of the country and its community. This is the first time New Zealand has been involved. Susan Ralston, Brand Manager of ABSOLUT says it is a real tribute to New Zealand to be invited to create a Spectacular.

“ABSOLUT INGENUITY pays tribute to that attitude and celebrates being Kiwi, it is a celebration of New Zealanders’ ongoing culture of boxing above their weight.”

The young New Zealand artists who have contributed to the ABSOLUT INGENUITY SPECTACULAR project are Abbie Read, Scrap Wall, Mike Crawford, Dane Mitchell and Sue Pickernell and Bern Dell. They will join such illustrious company as Andy Warhol, Tom Ford (Gucci), Stella McCartney, Jean Paul Gautier and the legendary Gianni Versace (to name a few) who have worked creatively with ABSOLUT.

Pieces by the five artists are displayed in premium bars throughout Central Auckland and mixologists have developed special cocktails to complement the art:

ABSOLUT CHANDELIER created by Abbie Read and displayed in Spy Bar, matched with ABSOLUT LUST cocktail.
Says Read, “The stereotypical inventive ability of any given New Zealander to produce almost anything out of almost nothing is rightly a source of national pride. This artwork is a celebration of this fact.”

ABSOLUT RADIO created by Dane Mitchell and displayed in Lenin Bar, matched with Chitty Bang cocktail.
“ABSOLUT RADIO uses only the energy of the electromagnetic waves, or radio waves sent by radio transmitters to power itself. In short, ABSOLUT RADIO allows us to tune in to the radio spectrum that surrounds us.”

HOW THE KIWI GOT ITS WINGS BACK created by Mike Crawford and displayed in Soul Bar, matched with Flying Kiwi cocktail.
“The flying Kiwi symbolises the unlimited scope of our creative capabilities, literally saying ‘the sky’s the limit’. The work draws on the iconic ‘three flying ducks’ evoking memories of times gone by - of 60’s lounges, beach baches and grandparents houses - a time when the No.8 wire approach was the norm.”

ONEWHITESOURCESHADOW created by Scrap Wall (AKA Andrew Taylor) and displayed in The Green Room, matched with Green cocktail.
“Constructed with the intentions of the founder in mind; Lars Olsson Smith’s face is mirrored from one source of light from behind. From the source the light is distilled, through hundreds of compressed columns, refined and directed to a lens that is etched with the face of the founder and mirrors the light in many directions and back through the casing of the structure, where the materials stand raw, pure and untainted; their character remains, only compressed and contained, not unlike the fluid in the bottle.”

ABSOLUT AVIATION created by Sue Pickernell and Bern Dell and displayed in Sponge Bar, matched with Flight of Fancy cocktail.
“Inspired by the shape of the ABSOLUT Vodka bottle and by early New Zealand aviator and inventor Richard Pearse, this is a tribute to the indomitable spirit of a man who pursued his dream of flight and has come to personify the concept of ‘Kiwi ingenuity.”