Welcome to Kingsland

Tonight was Peer Review Group. The group member who stays near to the City fringe village of Kingsland, hosted us at a very nice restaurant, which was quiet enough to talk, and had an excellent menu. On my way to the meeting I stopped to take this photo of another Big Hoot Owl

This one is called Karanga by the artists, Charles and Janine Williams. Karanga is a Maori word, meaning a chant of welcome. This owl is placed just outside the Kingsland railway station, and my photo does show the platforms, as well as the access ramp to the far side and the path down to the near platform.

The artists have presented their Hoot Owl as a Ruru, the native owl, called Morepork by British settlers due to its call. The ruru is important in Maori culture and its call is seen as a signal of things to come. Combining a ruru with karanga, makes this truly a welcome to Kingsland, and the artists have put arrows and taniwha designs on the ground to tie their owl to the community of Kingsland.