Wellington City Council Office Fit-out — 68 Jervois Quay (2026)
The Wellington City Council fit-out at 68 Jervois Quay transformed the city's new council building into a workplace grounded in the history and identity of Te Whanganui-a-Tara. Working alongside artist Ngataiharuru Taepa and architect Matamoana Nuku from Designgroup Stapleton Elliott, Human Dynamo Workshop provided the specialist production expertise to realise two significant artworks integrated within the space.
Collaborators:
Client: Wellington City Council
Artist: Ngataiharuru Taepa
Supporting artists: Veranoa Hetet, Kereama Taepa and Glen Skipper
Architect: Matamoana Nuku, Designgroup Stapleton Elliott
Creative Production Partner: Human Dynamo Workshop
Situated within the Te Ngākau Civic Precinct, 68 Jervois Quay brings together around 1,200 Wellington City Council staff, councillors and visitors in the heart of the capital.
Working alongside artist Ngataiharuru Taepa, architect Matamoana Nuku and the wider Designgroup Stapleton Elliott team, Human Dynamo Workshop was engaged as Creative Production Partner to help realise two significant artworks integrated within the building — an opportunity to help create a space that reflects the history, culture and identity of Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
Boardroom ceiling artwork
At the heart of the building is a large boardroom where a magnificent carved ceiling artwork, shaped like a waka, sits above those who gather there. Inspired by traditional whakairo (carving), the work draws upon the artistic traditions of Te Ātiawa, bringing ancestral carving language into a contemporary setting.
Human Dynamo Workshop provided the specialist production expertise that enabled Ngātai's artwork to be realised in the space. Using digital modelling and precision CNC machining, we carved the work from thermally modified pine before meticulously hand-setting individually inlaid pāua discs, representing the stars in the night sky. The pāua also references the eyes of Papatūānuku (Sky Father), Ranginui (Earth Mother) and their children.
Wall artwork
Flowing through the offices is a second carved timber installation, also designed by Ngataiharuru Taepa. The work references the historic waterways that once flowed through Te Whanganui-a-Tara before entering the harbour, reconnecting the modern workplace with the landscape that has existed beneath it.
Embedded within the carving are three white feathers (Te Raukura) representing peace, spiritual harmony, compassion, hope and the relationship between people and the land. Geometric ritorito weaving patterns further acknowledge the traditions of Te Ātiawa.
Beyond the build
Embedded within Wellington's civic heart, these works will continue to welcome, teach and inspire for generations to come, ensuring the artist's vision - and the cultural knowledge it carries - remains part of Wellington's story.
Image credit: Magdalena Podbielkowska Bisley
