Banksy’s legacy to Tauranga

“Watch this space.” – Gallery director Karl Chitham.

The paradox was taking street art into what's often considered to be the exclusive and rarified environment of a traditional art gallery.

'And breaking down those barriers and knocking down the walls so to speak,” says Karl Chitham, director of the Tauranga Art Gallery.

So it was ‘Paradox' by name and paradox by nature because the signature exhibition was a ripping success from every aspect - and if a paradox is something that appears absurd but on reflection is well founded, then that exhibition, that artistic event and those numbers were a true paradox. Because 49,185 people in three months passed through the gallery doors.

'Incredible for us,” says Karl Chitham. 'Because that's an audience that previously hadn't been coming to the gallery.” And the director deserves to feel ever-so-slightly smug. 'It was enormously satisfying wandering down the stairs and seeing crowds in the galleries, seeing lines of people – queues out the door is always a pleasure.”

He has worked in other institutions and seen queues out the door, but not a dedicated art gallery and certainly not a regional dedicated art gallery. 'And for us, that's where the sense of achievement and excitement came from - all these people wanting to come to our gallery in Tauranga. Amazing, great!”

Especially the Auckland City councilor who made three trips down for the exhibition – and he hadn't even been to all the galleries in his own city. That was perhaps the true litmus test of Paradox.

If there was one thing that sparked interest, it would have been recognition of the Banksy brand. 'But once they were inside, it was all the other components that came with it,” says Karl. Like the big street murals up on the gallery walls. 'For a lot of people they became the favourite works as opposed to Banksy.” Combine that with the street walks and other associated activities and it gave people a broadened understanding of what street art really is.

There's a very traditional sense of what a gallery does. 'But this exhibition kind of blew that open.'

And how does the director follow up Paradox? 'That's the happy problem of having a successful individual project – there's an expectation you will do this every time. It was successful because of the excitement of having Banksy in town and because so many people saw it multiple times, but we can't do that again.”

What the gallery can do is a signature project each year – but not on the same scale as Paradox. 'That drew on a lot of resources so you can only do that every couple of years maximum. But the idea is to do a project which will appeal to a much broader audience at least once a year.”

Yes, they have a thousand ideas, nothing is nailed down yet, and there's nothing for the press.

The director's also expecting many of the Paradox audience to return to the gallery. 'I think a lot of those people who came might have been anxious entering this space, but they won't be anxious about doing it again.”

They don't know what they will find, it certainly won't be Paradox, but the gallery is certain they will find something they like. 'That's the ethos behind the way we programme for the gallery – having a really diverse range of projects on at the same time so anyone who comes can find at least something they like.”

The Tauranga Art gallery was closed today – a demolition site transitioning into a building site. One show finishes and a new starts. There's a scissor ladder in one corner, a dinghy from Paradox centre stage in the down stairs exhibition area, ‘restricted area' signs and plinths and pedestals for the gallery's next outing are scattered about.

Six new exhibitions featuring 'something you will like” open early next.

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