''Stay'' are identical

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...

human form sculptures made by Antony Gormley and installed in two locations in the

central city In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, New Zealand. The first sculpture was installed in the Avon River in September 2015. The second in the Northern Quadrangle of the

Christchurch Arts Centre The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora is a hub for arts, culture, education, creativity and entrepreneurship in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located in the Gothic Revival former Canterbury College (now the University of Canterbury), Christchu ...

was unveiled on 1 October 2016.

Background

Gormley visited Christchurch in 2007 and remembers it as a city "blessed with open spaces and relatively wide streets and no great high-rises". The central city received massive damage in the February

2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the entire of the Canterbury region in the South Island, centred south-east ...

. Gormley was approached in 2014 about contributing an artwork to Christchurch, and he provided two identical cast iron sculptures that can contribute to the 'healing' of the city, as he called it. Gormley stated that he made his work available at a discounted rate, and had therefore asked for the price not to be revealed. The purchase and installation was funded by

Christchurch City Council The Christchurch City Council is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Christchurch is Phil Mauger, wh ...

(CCC) and the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA). CCC contributed

NZ$ The New Zealand dollar ( mi, tāra o Aotearoa; sign: $, NZ$; code: NZD) is the official currency and legal tender of New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, Tokelau, and a British territory, the Pitcairn Islands. Within New ...

502,500 towards the cost, whilst CERA would not disclose the size of their contribution. The first announcement about the legacy (i.e. permanent) artworks by Gormley was made in April 2015, when it was revealed that his work was to be installed in Christchurch as part of the Scape8 public art exhibition, to be held from 3 October to 15 November 2015.

Avon River installation

Avon River coordinates: The local newspaper, ''

The Press ''The Press'' is a daily newspaper published in Christchurch, New Zealand owned by media business Stuff Ltd. First published in 1861, the newspaper is the largest circulating daily in the South Island and publishes Monday to Saturday. One comm ...

'', reported on 22 September 2015 of the pending installation of the first sculpture in the Avon River, just upstream from the Gloucester Street Bridge. A pile was screwed into the riverbed, and the sculpture installed onto this foundation on 29 September. This was the first work of Gormley installed in New Zealand.

Arts Centre installation

Arts Centre coordinates: The second sculpture was unveiled in the Northern Quadrangle of the

on 1 October 2016.

References

{{Antony Gormley 2015 sculptures 2016 sculptures Christchurch Central City Outdoor sculptures in Christchurch Sculpture series Cast-iron sculptures Sculptures by Antony Gormley