About 30 people gathered in the Knox Church gardens on Friday to celebrate the opening of Crown by Dunedin artist Philippa Wilson.
The sculpture, which took three months to construct and is made from marine aluminium, is the latest to be installed upon the Peter Nicholls Memorial Plinth.
Wilson said the sculpture was about unity and coming together to stand in solidarity, and was initially made to raise funds and awareness for Women’s Refuge as part of a large outdoor sculpture show in Auckland.
The imagery of wildflowers and botanicals were an analogy to the resilience of women and children who had survived violence and domestic abuse.
"Like the wildflower, they often grow in and come from very harsh environments where they have to be strong and resilient to withstand that."
It was "a salute to all women who have endured and survived forms of mistreatment".
The title, Crown, also alluded to the nobility of the human spirit and how it continued to rise in the face of adversity, Wilson said.
Its installation also coincided with the beginning of the church community’s Week of Prayer for World Peace, which began yesterday.
The memorial plinth for the late Dunedin sculptor Peter Nicholls, located in the upper lawn area of Knox Church, was erected last year and displays a new sculpture every four to six months.
Crown is the third sculpture to be displayed upon it, following in the footsteps of Slava Ukrani, Glory To Ukraine, by Lawrie Forbes, and Lure, by Bryn Jones.
The artworks displayed upon the plinth were, in a way, a collaboration with the church and the plinth itself was set to become "iconic" and a space for change, Wilson said.
