Dunedin sculptor Peter Nicholls yesterday saw for himself the re-creation, in South American purpleheart hardwood, of his 1989 sculpture Toroa (albatross).
"I’m very pleased," Mr Nicholls (84) said after viewing the re-created sculpture back at its Steamer Basin home.
"It [the re-creation] means a great deal.
"It’s a fairly important work of mine," he added.
The original sculpture had been made of macrocarpa, which had lasted only about 25 years, he said.
The more recent version is likely to last much longer.
He was "very grateful" that the Dunedin City Council and Dunedin Public Art Gallery had enabled the work to be re-created and to survive.
Careys Bay Marine Services undertook the project and employee Phil Wilson did much of the work. which amounted to about two and a-half weeks undertaken since early June.
"It’s a different thing and we like to do different things," the firm’s owner Eldon Donaldson said.
When they had moved the previous sculpture away from its site, some of it had rotted and much had collapsed. The art work had carefully been put back together at the firm’s premises and matching hardwood parts re-created.
"It was something that had fallen down and left for dead — now it’s going to last for a long, long time," Mr Donaldson said.
The firm arranged for the re-created sculpture — now weighing more than a tonne — to be returned to its original site by truck yesterday morning.
Gallery public programmes and collection manager Tim Pollock said Toroa was part of the gallery’s collection but was cared for in partnership with the council’s parks and recreation department, in consultation with the artist.
"Clearly, they’ve done a terrific job," he said.
