CITY TALKS: 'Ever the Land' - a film by Sarah Grohnert

CITY TALKS: Ever the Land — a film by Sarah Grohnert

Ngāi Tūhoe’s radically sustainable methods seek to mend the wounds of injustice by undertaking the Living Building Challenge.

City Gallery Wellington, Civic Square

Monday 20 June, 6pm

Free entry

Join us this month as we celebrate Matariki — the Māori New Year — with a special screening of Ever the Land, a documentary that tracks the birth of Aotearoa New Zealand’s first ‘living building’, Te Uru Taumatua, Te Wharehou o Tūhoe.

For the past 150 years, longstanding grievances over extreme colonisation tactics such as illegal land confiscation and scorched earth policies have defined the relationship between Tūhoe and the New Zealand government. Then, in 2014 history was made: Te Urewera, Tūhoe’s ancestral homelands were returned, the New Zealand government gave an official apology, and Tūhoe built the first ever “Living Building” in Aotearoa.

Ever the Land explores the sublime bond between a people and their land through a landmark architectural undertaking by one of New Zealand’s most passionately independent Māori tribes, Ngāi Tūhoe, and one of architecture’s most dedicated and passionate practitioners, the late Ivan Mercep. Primarily humanist in style, Mercep’s involvement as the lead architect on the Jasmax project is incredibly significant. Conceived as a testament to Ngāi Tūhoe values and vision of self-governance it is a building of new beginnings, and one that has the potential to give rise to a new dialogue between Tūhoe, the Crown, and the wider world, rooted in shared values of peace, unity, prosperity and a sustainable foundation for future generations. With this in mind the screening of Ever the Land during Marariki, a time to pause for reflection, to learn from the past, and to plan for the future, is pertinent.

Sarah Grohnert is a director and editor with a particular taste for films that fully immerse the audience in the experience of a place, people and story. She originally trained as an editor in her native Germany before studying directing at the Arts Institute Bournemouth, UK. Sarah emigrated to New Zealand in 2010 and since has been working on a number of award-winning projects across film and television. Ever the Land is her first feature documentary as director. She is currently also in development for her first fiction feature film.

City Talks is an ongoing series initiated by the New Zealand Institute of Architects Wellington Branch and presented in partnership with City Gallery Wellington. Its purpose is to foster discussion about architecture for a broader audience in a city that cares about urbanity.

The screening will be followed by refreshments. Film running time: 90 minutes.

For more information on Ever the Land please visit http://evertheland.com/.

City Talks are free to attend and held in the Adam Auditorium, City Gallery Wellington, Civic Square. We’ll be taking a break for July but stay tuned for more information on the next talk in the series when we resume in August...

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