Public Art In Central Christchurch - Christchurch Art Gallery

Rainbow PiecesCategory : MuralTitle : Rainbow PiecesPrimary artist(s) : Patrick HanlyOther collaborators : Barry Lett assistedExecution date : 1972Media : Oil / enamel paint on boardApproximate dimensions : h 2.5m w 78mLocation : Town Hall, Kilmore StreetSetting : Mural mounted on the walls of theconference room on the second floorOwner / administrator : Christchurch TownHall, Christchurch City CouncilThe Town Hall architect Miles Warren commissioned a work from Pat Hanly in 1971 while the ChristchurchTown Hall complex was under construction. The brief was that the work be festive and gay. Hanly’sresponse was a fifty two panel mural called Rainbow Pieces. In a contemporary interview Hanly statedthat the purpose of the art was to emphasise the buildings functional theme, namely to entertain. 1 Thecost, $3 900, was paid by the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council.Hanly claims that the inspiration for the festive work came while playing golf when he saw a successionof rainbows during rainstorms. 2 Flashes of the prismatic spectrum were painted onto fifty two particleboards that were mounted on the outside of the first floor conference room. The panels arrived inChristchurch without instructions for how the workmen were to position them. The result was discontinuityof the kaleidoscopic bands between some panels and a cross over in others. The Town Hall was openedto the public in 1972. When asked, Pat Hanly said he was pleased with the result of vibrant spontaneitythat his work produced.1Journal of Canterbury Society of Arts, No 51, Sept/Oct 19732Correspondence with Patrick Hanly, 1997.