People of the land; A place to grow
Our second project for Scion, a scientific Crown Research Institute of New Zealand, is two welcoming additions to the atrium of Te Whare Nui o Tuteata. The interpretive signage explores the history of tangata whenua, the people of the land, and the future of forestry innovation that is centred at this special location.
Our role
- Museum consultants
- Stakeholder and cultural engagement
- Experience design
- Spatial design
- Exhibition design
- Interpretive design
- Fabrication and installation
- Ongoing site support and maintenance
The future of the whenua is ours, together
The award-winning and sustainably designed public entrance to the Rotorua research campus is host to a cafe, exhibition design previously installed by Gibson International offices, events and more. Te Whare Nui o Tuteata, ‘the great house of Tuteata’, is named for the ancestor of all three hapū (tribes) whose land the campus occupies – Ngāti Hurungaterangi, Ngāti Taeotu and Ngāti Te Kahu.
As visitors enter the building’s atrium, they are greeted by two low lying interpretive displays. The wooden signage appear sculpted into rolling hills, interweaving colourful panels of history and information. On one side, tangata whenua, their connection to the land, historic sites, practices and future intentions. On the other, the history of New Zealand’s forestry industry all the way to today’s challenges of climate change.
Together, they signal the strength found in partnership.
The sustainably designed interpretive display was launched at an important event where Scion and Ngā Hapū e Toru signed a Kawenata / Memorandum of Understanding, further solidifying the partnership between tangata whenua and the Crown Research Institute.
To learn more about the exhibition design we designed for Te Whare Nui o Tuteata, visit our Scion Innovation Hub case study.
Gibson International collaborated with
Scion and Te Uru Rākau, New Zealand Forest Service, Anderson Design Ltd
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