Pyeongsang: Whitu Taunga (The Seven Landings)

Pyeongsang: Whitu Taunga (The Seven Landings)

Unrealised proposal for Perpetual Guardian Sculpture on the Gulf 2027, Waiheke Island.

Seven brightly coloured platforms dispersed along 2.4km of Waiheke coastline from Church Bay to Matiatia. Each reimagines the Korean pyeongsang, a low daybed, as a minimal elevated plane built not to be looked at but to be occupied. Sit on the edge with legs dangling toward the sea. Lie across the surface, framed by sky and canopy. Gather around it like a picnic table, defining a temporary social ground. Reposition the mobile units to follow the sun or shift the view. Step onto the floating platform and feel the tidal sway beneath you.

Three typologies respond to the coast. Anchored units sit fixed in sensitive dune zones. Mobile units roll on lockable wheels or sleds, carrying the imprint of every visitor who moved them. A single floating unit, tethered in the bay, turns rest into something kinetic.

Over time, the landscape records what happened. Flattened grass, skid marks in sand, a sled turned to face a different direction. The platforms stay vivid and unchanged. Everything around them softens with use.

The number seven is deliberate. Whitu in te reo Māori echoes Matariki, a cluster of seven stars marking remembrance, reflection, and preparation for the year ahead. Seven landings along the shore, a quiet constellation of rest.