Me te Rangi ka paruhi
Reuben Kirkwood (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Waikato Tainui, Waiohua, Ngāti Ruanui).
Above the Mercury Lane entrance, dark concrete panels form a protective presence that references a pare, or entranceway lintel. Two figures express the relationship between ira atua, the spiritual world and ira tangata, the human world.
Me te Rangi ka paruhi means “like a glorious tranquil day”.
Positioned between the sky and earth elements of the station, these panels visually link the 2 elements.
The surface of the panels uses a pākati (traditional carving pattern) reflecting light and shadow, reinforcing the theme of day and night.
Each panel is solid concrete, around 9m tall, almost 3m wide and weighs more than 11 tonnes.
What do the sky and earth elements mean? Find out how the 4 design elements shape Karanga‑a‑Hape Station.
Kei runga ake i te tomokanga o Mercury Lane ngā papa raima pōuri e rite ana ki tētahi pare.
E whakaatu ana ngā āhua e rua i te hononga o te ira atua me te ira tangata.
Ko te tikanga o “Me te Rangi ka paruhi” he pērā i tētahi rā e tino paki ana, e tino āio ana hoki.
Ko Tāne Pupuke
Reuben Kirkwood (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Waikato Tainui, Waiohua, Ngāti Ruanui).
Within the Mercury Lane entrance are 3 pūpūrangi (kauri snail) shell sculptures. The shells symbolise the connection between people and nature.
They refer to environmental health and the life force of Tāne, atua or deity of the forests.
Tāne Pupuke means “Tāne rises up”.
Pūpūrangi live both high in kauri trees and on the forest floor. When they face into the wind, their shells can produce a soft whistling sound.
Their logarithmic spirals resemble the Fibonacci sequence.
The largest shell measures 9.8m across. The other two are each 6.5m wide. They are about 8m above the floor and are constructed from 225 individual aluminium pieces.
Kei roto i te tomokanga o Mercury Lane ngā whakairo o ngā anga pūpūrangi e toru. E tohu ana aua anga i te hononga o te tangata me te taiao.
E hāngai ana hoki ngā anga nei ki te oranga tonutanga o te taiao me te mauri o Tāne, o te atua o te ngahere.
Ko te tikanga o “Tāne Pupuke” ko te aranga ake o Tāne.
Me te Ōturu
Reuben Kirkwood (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Waikato Tainui, Waiohua, Ngāti Ruanui).
This artwork reflects Maramataka, the traditional Māori lunar calendar. It demonstrates the influence of the sun’s power on the phases of the moon and tides.
Me te Ōturu means “like the full moon”.
The moon’s phases are represented in hand‑carved circular discs made from ancient heart kauri. The material gives the work a strong sense of age and continuity.
A golden sun made from aluminium sits on the vertical face above the moon phases.
The artwork also includes coloured wires stretched across semi‑circular frames shaped like pītau (fern fronds). The wires curve and cross each other, suggesting the passage of time, seasonal change and the movement of tides in the Waitematā Harbour.
E whakaatu ana tēnei mahi toi i te maramataka, arā, te maramataka tuku iho a te Māori. E whakaatu ana hoki tēnei i te awe o te rā ki ngā mata o te marama me ngā rerenga o te tai.
Ko te tikanga o “Me te Ōturu” he pērā i te rākau nui o te marama.
Te Pō
Reuben Kirkwood (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, Waikato Tainui, Waiohua, Ngāti Ruanui).
Te Pō, meaning darkness, is designed as a kaitiaki (guardian or spirit protector). Its colour represents the depth of the galaxy.
A woven pattern wraps around the surface, referencing a bound rākau atua, or god staff.
Te Pō is an air intake for Karanga‑a‑Hape Station.
The structure is 6m tall and made from dark precast concrete to resemble matā (obsidian), a volcanic glass‑like rock. This is the same material used for the atua panels at Mercury Lane, visually linking the two entrances to the station.
Near the top, hand‑crafted bronze manaia figures are set into the surface. They reference kaitiakitanga (guardianship).
A patina finish gives the figures an aged appearance, similar to pounamu (greenstone).
He mea hoahoa a Te Pō hei kaitiaki. E tohu ana tōna tae i te hōhonutanga o te ikarangi.
Kua takaihia tōna mata ki tētahi tauira raranga e rite ana ki tētahi rākau atua kua herea.
Ko Te Pō te arahau mō Te Teihana o Karanga‑a‑Hape.
Tāne te tokotoko o ngā rangi
Pāora Puru (Ngāti Te Ata Waiohua)
Tāne te tokotoko o ngā rangi means “Tāne as the prop of the heavens”. The design of Mercury Lane reflects the moment Tāne separated Ranginui (Sky Father) and Papatūānuku (Earth Mother), bringing the world into te ao mārama, the realm of light and life.
Ochre‑coloured light poles symbolise this separation, as told in the Māori creation story of Tāne Mahuta.
The poles acknowledge both the act of pushing sky and earth apart, and the natural soil forms of the original Karanga‑a‑Hape ridgeline. They stand like the supports Tāne used to hold his parents apart.
At their upper sections, black kaperua kōwhaiwhai patterns represent strength, protection and the balance between darkness and light.
Overhead, festoon lighting and ground projections of whetū rauru (spiral stars) celebrate the emergence of light from darkness.
These elements honour Te Whānau Mārama, the family of light, including the sun, moon and stars, which Tāne placed in the sky to bring illumination and warmth to the world.
The festoon lights are arranged in a kaokao (zigzag) weaving pattern, symbolising the protection of people beneath the sky and stars.
At the upper end of Mercury Lane sits one of 4 basalt kōhatu (stones) representing ngā hau e whā (the 4 winds).
These stones act as mauri (life force) markers, guiding people through the space. Their jagged forms also reference the ridgeline of the Karanga‑a‑Hape area.
The Mercury Lane stone represents Te Hau Raki, the northern wind. Other kōhatu are located on Canada Street, Cross Street and East Street.
E kīia nei ko Tāne te tokotoko o ngā rangi nā te mea nāna i tokona ai te rangi ki runga.
E whakaatu ana te hoahoa o Mercury Lane i te wā i wehe ai a Tāne i a Ranginui rāua ko Papatūānuku, i puta mai ai ko te ao mārama, arā, ko te ao o te ora me te māramatanga.