The artwork, 'Cone Piece', by Whanganui-born artist Matt Pine (Te Ati Haunui-a-Paparangi, Te Atiawa, Ngāti Tuwharetoa) was specifically commissioned by Whanganui heritage champion and architect, Bruce Dickson, for the War Memorial Hall refurbishment which coincided with Whanganui’s “60 Years a City” celebrations. It is a rare example of modernist minimal sculpture in Whanganui and after being de-installed, was in storage for years.

Pine's work draws in equal part on the evolution of his minimal modernist sculptural practice to date, and significant architectural and spiritual references found in the form of the building and its purpose as a memorial. This work may be the first contemporary sculpture commissioned for the city. This work engages contemporary art values and the architectural space. Six fibreglass cones act as funnels which guide light to the Book of Remembrance, where the artist’s own father and uncles who were killed in battle are listed amongst others from Whanganui. The work amplifies and adds conceptual and emotional 'weight' to the long conical light which symbolically lit the book of remembrance. Being designed by a Whanganui born and educated Māori artist makes this an important first for Whanganui and its duality of cultural heritage.

See also:

• listing by Whanganui District Council

• Cone Piece by Matt Pine, 1986 (Coastal Arts Trail website)