Park(ing) Day 2022 - Friday 4 March

Car Parks on Cuba Street will be that in name only on Friday 4 March – for one day 30 parks will be transformed into something quite different

Every year over an 8-hour period 20-30 car parks in Cuba Street are taken over by the Wellington Sculpture Trust for PARK(ing) Day. The event is an opportunity for Wellingtonians to enjoy a huge variety of activities and creative installations placed on spaces usually reserved for cars. Over the eight years it has been running, hundreds of individuals and organisations have taken up the challenge to provide a temporary public space one car park at a time in Wellington’s most vibrant precinct.

The idea has been embraced by Wellingtonians as people have come together to create memorable, thought-provoking, and entertaining spaces that provide a window into what public spaces can be, albeit in miniature.

This year's PARK(ing) Day event will be held on Friday 4 March from 9.00 am to 5 pm.

Sue Elliott, Chair of the Wellington Sculpture Trust, which arranges the event with the co-operation and support of the Wellington City Council, said “those who have answered the call in the past have included: dance studios; architectural firms; artists, actors and musicians; environmentalists; designers; secondary school and university students; and landscape architects to name a few.”

“The many who have taken over a car park have contributed enormously to this event and, in so doing, contributed to the vibrancy and creativity of our city. This year will be no exception. And, with increased funding of $500 being provided for each space, we have all 30 of the spaces occupied. With so many opportunities for creative expression limited during Covid-19 and many larger events canceled, this has proven a wonderful outlet for Wellington’s creatives, and a wonderful opportunity for Wellingtonians to get out in the open air and enjoy the variety of art and ideas – always at a safe distance.”

“This year’s parks promise to engage, entertain and challenge with a very eclectic range of distinctive spaces: you can explore the sort of city which you want, through a cardboard city block, or a black and white mural of the city which you can change; you can decorate your bike in drag for a “drag” race; you can paste your ideas about housing on a bike cart and trailer; play with an inter-active installation about the effects of climate change or with a maze game based on Wellington streets; have your portrait painted in one minute, do some drawing yourself or watch some spin paintings being created; be entertained by a group of dancers or dance yourself to the music of an electric fiddle and piano and violin and a saxophone; think about the destruction of our forest or how to interact with strangers across the street; take away a card with original quotes of humour and hope; learn about old forms of printing and photography; ask the Wizard of Wellington a question; reflect on the impact of Covid on our care for one another and our connectedness. And many more . . . “

The challenge of PARK(ing) Day is to think of a novel yet engaging way to occupy a parking space for a day and engage with or entertain the public as they pass by.

“How do we use our public spaces? And how can we use them better? These are the questions for the day.

“Go to Cuba Street and see how this year's applicants have responded to the challenge,” Sue said.

The Trust has also provided for a back-up day the following Friday 11 March should the weather on 4 March prove too challenging for participants.

Background Information

Information about the event is available on the Trust's website http://www.sculpture.org.nz/news-and-events/events/parking-day-wellington-2018

PARK(ing) Day is an annual open-source event where citizens, artists and designers collaborate temporarily to transform metered Parking spaces into living Parks. Usually held in September in the Northern Hemisphere, in our case it is scheduled in March when the weather is more suitable. The project began in 2005 when Rebar, a San Francisco art and design studio, converted a single metered parking space into a temporary public Park in downtown San Francisco. Since 2005, PARK(ing) Day has evolved into a global movement, with organisations and individuals (operating independently of Rebar, but following an established set of guidelines) creating new forms of temporary public space in urban contexts around the world.

The mission of PARK(ing) Day is to call attention to the need for more urban open space, to generate critical debate around how public space is created and allocated, and to improve the quality of the urban human habitat . . . at least until the meter runs out.

This year's event in Wellington is organised again by the Wellington Sculpture Trust with the support of the Wellington City Council and grants from the Wellington City Council’s Creative Communities Scheme and its Arts and Culture Fund.

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