Waka Moana, Graham Tipene’s public work in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter, has won gold in the Toitanga category at the 2026 Designers Institute of New Zealand Best Design Awards.
Opened in October 2025, the work comprises nine waka rising six metres from the rain gardens of Daldy Street Linear Park. Handcrafted tōtara frames are wrapped in translucent composite hulls reinforced with muka, and integrated lighting turns the group into lanterns after dark. Two hull types refer to river and ocean-going waka, and the sequence follows the Taratara-ā-Kae carving pattern.
The site is reclaimed land, once part of the domain of Tangaroa and a place of passage across Te Waitematā. Commissioned through Auckland Council’s Public Art Programme with the Auckland Urban Development Office, the project was shaped by mana whenua from brief to artist selection. Three mana whenua artists developed concepts, which were assessed against mātauranga Māori, site suitability, technical feasibility and artistic merit. Tipene’s (Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Manu) was chosen. He then invited artists from that process to contribute to the final work. Janine Williams developed the pūhoro pattern for the hulls, while Ted Ngataki, Maaka Potini, Caine Toatahi Taihia and Uira Nahi each gave an individual identity to a waka. Tipene worked with landscape architects LandLAB and master waka builder Hine Waitai Dye, who advised on the authenticity of the hulls from design through to fabrication.
The approved budget for the project was $1.8 million, covering design, fabrication and development of the waka forms, and installation. It was funded as part of the wider regeneration of Wynyard Quarter and the waterfront, which returns revenue to council through ground leases to development partners. Fabrication of the hulls, led by SRS Group, began in November 2024. Civil works for the foundation plinths started on site in May 2025.
The judges described the project as a civic taonga rather than merely a public artwork.
