MTG's Pin Wall arises

MTG is recording the installation and plans to put a time lapse video on display. Photo / Duncan Brown

Award-winning artists are set to transform one side of MTG Hawke's Bay into a mosaic of colour with their new installation.

Pin Wall is the collaborative effort by award-winning artists Sara Hughes and Gregor Kregar, which will comprise 5000 glazed porcelain balls that project from the building on stainless steel rods of varying lengths to create a colourful 3D effect.

Installation of the work began on MTG's Marine Parade Facade on Monday, with hopes it will be completed by the July 1. By then, Ms Hughes says, the work will resemble a "brightly coloured oversized pin cushion".

"We are thrilled to be creating this work for Napier and hope it will become a real landmark," she said.

It was inspired by a group of 19th-century pin cushions from the gallery and the Avis Higgs design archive, in particular a Higgs textile print depicting New Zealand flora and fauna, which Pin Wall turned into a colourful mosaic, with each colour pixel represented by a pin head.

The pin holds a special place in the work, as it was an expensive and rare item in the 19th century.

Sara Hughes is a renowned New Zealand artist whose work is held in many collections throughout Australasia, while Slovenian born Gregor Kregar's work is held in collections across the world, including New York, and Abu Dhabi.

MTG is recording the installation and plans to put a time lapse video on display.