Matt Pine's Pole Piece is a sculptural construction with an odd purpose - to make a hunk of clay look interesting. The photographs show the construction in place under the overhang of the home of Margery and Gary Blackman in Maori Hill, Dunedin.
The two-storeyed timber house was designed by architect Ted McCoy and built in 1966. The post and beam construction left much of the clay at the main entry site exposed. The Blackmans toyed with ideas for 'improving' the area, perhaps with a water feature, but in the event they left it alone, deciding that the raw clay was in keeping with the brutalist architectural character of the off-form concrete of the basement.
In 1979, they invited Matt Pine, that year the Frances Hodgkins Fellow at Otago University, to visit their home: Gary had taken photographs in Matt's studio. During the visit Gary asked Matt whether he could make the hunk of clay at the entrance look interesting. Matt said he would have a go, and came back with a drawing. The idea was to suspend a telegraph pole at an angle above and parallel to the slope of the clay. The pole would look as if it was emerging from the concrete wall at the back. The angled suspension cord would articulate the space.
Matt got the materials, which included the pole, a length of 6 by 6 inch timber, galvanised hardware and a length of cord. Gary agreed to dig the square hole in the clay to firmly hold the square length of timber vertically. The lower end of the pole was suspended by the cord running through a pulley fixed to a beam above the entry door. The other end of the cord was anchored by a turnbuckle to the timber stair wall and was passed horizontally through a hole in the upper part of the pole to a pulley on the 6 by 6 timber piece and from there at an angle up to the beam pulley. The arrangement shows in the photographs. Not visible is a steel rod driven into the clay that supports the upper part of the pole. The rod acting as a pivot allows the pole to swing from the pulley on the beam.
Last year Pole Piece was 30 years old and though sheltered from rain, metal items had rusted and the cord was looking tatty. Gary considered replacing them, possibly with marine stainless steel items. During a visit to the house in 2009, Stephen Mulqueen agreed it was justified. He believed Matt would approve. Stephen offered to do the job and he and Gary scouted round for suitable replacements. The pulleys they chose were galvanised like the originals, but the other items were all stainless steel including the cable replacing the cord. The photographs are of the refurbished installation. One question remains. What will happen to this Matt Pine sculpture when Margery and Gary decide to vacate the house?
Gary Blackman, 14 January 2010
Frances Hodgkins Fellow 1979
Matt Pine's Pole Piece, 1979. Detail.
Photo: Gary Blackman
