Karen Wrigglesworth writes about her project, "With Friends of ANZAC Bridge's theme this year being ‘Praise to the families’, my ANZAC Bridge Fellowship project considers why we choose to build memorials to those we love, and explores the different forms these memorials take.
"After World War I had ended, there was considerable debate in New Zealand around whether it was ‘better’ for memorials for fallen soldiers to be symbolic or useful. At Kaiparoro, the ANZAC Memorial Bridge is, unusually, both of these. By comparison, memorials at nearby Eketahuna and Nireaha are practical, while elsewhere in the Tararua District, the ubiquitous cenotaph is more common.
"During my time at Kaiparoro, I am interested in engaging with people about their preferences for practical or symbolic memorials, and I also want to explore the ways we would each prefer to be memorialised ourselves."
Posted: Tue 02 Apr 2019