This humorous, small-scale installation by Tanja McMillan (street artist and illustrator also known as Misery) in collaboration with John Oz, features a little boy fighting with a piglet over a turnip. The sculpture is designed to appeal to children walking along Karangahape Road.



*Thief* is inspired by the history of the area, when the street was lined with fruit and vegetable shops and surrounded by fields filled with farm animals. The small bronze is one of a pair of works that draw on K' Road’s history as fertile farmland, and later, as a busy shopping district filled with department stores. McMillan calls herself a character artist and describes her works as little self-portraits.



The little boy shown in *Thief* has features commonly found in Japanese art and anime, one of the artist’s inspirations. And next to him lies a hatchet, another symbol often seen in the Auckland artist’s drawings. *Thief* was installed on K' Road outside Lim Chhour Supermarket in 2015. It is one of two sculptures commissioned for the K' Road neighbourhood, with [*Twist*](/artworks/3538) across the road, outside the entrance to St Kevins Arcade.

Thief

This petite sculpture by Tanja McMillan (street artist and illustrator also known as Misery) in collaboration with John Oz, refers to the story of the Ridgeway Circus, often told by renowned New Zealand artist Denis O'Connor. The circus used to set up on the roof of the former George Courts department store on Karangahape Road in the 1960s. To transport a baby elephant up to the big tent – known for dancing to 'Do the Twist' by Chubby Checker – it was put into a service elevator in the basement to travel to the rooftop.



McMillan calls herself a character artist and describes her works as little self-portraits. The little girl shown in *Twist*, dancing with a tiny elephant and holding it by the trunk, is typical of many of McMillan's cartoon-like figures. Both are set low to the ground to encourage pedestrians and children to interact with them.



*Twist* was installed at Beresford Square in 2015 and relocated to K’ Road in 2020, to allow for a new railway station to be built, as part of the CRL project. It is one of two sculptures commissioned for the K' Road neighbourhood, with [*Thief*](/artworks/3539) across the road, outside Lim Chhour Supermarket.



"I wanted to create artworks that children especially would find enchanting, and also reflect the characters and magic of K' Road during this period," says McMillan.

Twist

Seated at the base of the stairs leading up to St Kevin's Arcade in Myers Park is this full-scale replica of Michelangelo's *Moses*. The statue was specially commissioned in 1969 by the directors of Milne and Choyce Ltd. for display in their department store at 131 Queen Street, before being toured around the country to their other stores.

The original *Moses* was created by Michaelangelo for the tomb of Pope Julius the second. He is depicted having just returned from recieving the tablets of the covenant and holds them under his right arm. The original now resides in the Church of St Peter in Chains, in Rome.

Carved in Italy from Carrara marble, this is an exact copy of Michelangelo's *Moses* even down to the worn-down foot touched by millions of visitors on their pilgrimage to Rome. He offers a glimpse of the splendour and strength of the original sculpture for visitors to Myers Park to enjoy.

Milne and Choyce gifted *Moses* to the city of Auckland and he has steadfastly surveyed the expanse of Myers Park since 1973.

Moses

As life at the busy intersection of Karangahape Road and Symonds Street swirls around them, two characters sit casually with their faces raised to the sun. Cast in bronze, the life-sized figures have been fixtures at Pigeon Park since 1969. The roughly sculpted figures are central to this large-scale bronze artwork. Behind them are three abstract disc forms, which artist Greer Twiss based on rocks in a riverbed or foreshore.

The Auckland-based artist shaped a seat for his bronze figures in one of the discs and the remaining two discs also feature cutaways. This allows the whole work to open up and become part of its surroundings, because although the piece is static, the light and shadows are constantly changing throughout the day. Decades into its life, the sculpture has now weathered to the familiar greenish colour of bronze that has been exposed to the elements. It covers nearly five metres, sitting within a circle of brickwork so that the edges form another circle, like a picture frame. The background of green grass and trees forms a tranquil setting in this urban location.

Twiss is one of New Zealand’s most respected artists. He was a pioneer of cast metal in New Zealand at the time he created *Karangahape Road Fountain* (sometimes known as *Karangahape Rocks* in recent years) and was rapidly emerging as a distinctive voice in contemporary New Zealand sculpture. As his first public commission, it was pivotal to his career and success. This work also incorporates a fountain, which was switched on by Mayor Dove Meyer Robinson in April of 1969.

Tanja McMillan, John Oz

Thief

"Small in stature, this delightful bronze sculpture of a boy and a piglet playing tug of war over a turnip is big on personality."

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