First Thursdays was a success, and its street festivals like these that inject a dose of culture into an area. Auckland City can be a disparate place at times. We need more events like this one to bring our communities closer together…
Thursday 3rd December was the re-launch of the cultural extravaganza aptly titled ‘First Thursdays’, occurring on the first Thursday of every month. Combining art, music, performance, and craft stalls, the community event really lit up the section of Karangahape Road between Queen and Pitt Streets.
Many of the businesses, radio stations, and various creative collectives in the general ‘Newton radius’ came together, putting on an incredibly well organised event showcasing what K Road has always been about.
The first stop on our early evening tour du jour was St Kevins arcade (above), which has been the cultural heart of K Road since, since, well, the start of Auckland really. For Thursday’s event, the arcade was transformed into a market, with stallholders selling creative goods of all varieties.
Sitting in the entrance of St Kevin’s Arcade, Hunter Gatherer had the most visually appealing stall setup of the fair. Husband and wife team, Gem and Nathaniel Speeden sell bowties and necklaces, but what set them apart from the surrounding market are the storylines they speak into each of their handmade products. What we wear on our body, (or in this case, around our neck), always says something about us. Hunter Gatherer have taken this idea seriously creating quite a unique concept, one which I’m sure we’ll see more and more of in the next year or so.
I bought a necklace from the Treasure Island Series called ‘Strike the Jolly Roger’. This series forms a part of the larger ‘Forgotten Book Collection’.
Ferrit also had an aesthetically compelling stall, selling wares of the gothic/romantic variety. Velvety goodness, and again, a lot of thought put into creative products that I’m sure were well received.
A very charming George FM DJ sets the mood on the decks with actual vinyl (a nice change). The fact he was spinning the new Erykah Badu record gives him an A+ in my books.
We wandered on from St Kevins and stumbled into some kind of ‘white overall-ed’ street performance group. Their quirky dance routine got a few curious looks from various passers by, though the resident drum line didn’t seem to mind, being more than happy to provide the tempo for these rather zany dancers.
Across the road from St Kevins Arcade lies the recently constructed Ironbank building. The only time I have visited this architectural award winning building was at night-time, for its first ever Christmas party. That evening, the creative business hub resembled some kind of Anime alleyway with its primary colour scheme and intricate array of stairs and ladders. In the Thursday evening sun, the whole place lit up, providing a warm, open atmosphere.
Amidst this modern grandeur, I found this fellow (above, left). In many respects his appearance resembled that of the late John Lennon. You can’t see the close up, but he even had the Lennon glasses, which were the exact same hues as the glasswork of the lift shaft (above, right). To top it off, they had the word ‘love’ painted across each lens. It was very cool.
Spoken word jazz, (above, left) and a silent art auction, with the art being made before our very eyes (above, right) in the Ironbank courtyard.
Freshly decanted coffee and lots of it (above)!
First Thursdays was a success, and its street festivals like these that inject a dose of culture into an area. K Road is a leader in this area, and the other quadrants of the Auckland CBD could learn a lot from the First Thursdays concept. Auckland City can be a disparate place at times. We need more events like this one to bring our communities closer together.
Words and photos by Theo Sangster.
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