Papamoa sculpture almost complete

The Tauranga Eastern Link Spinifex art sculpture is nearly complete at the Papamoa Domain Road and SH2 roundabout. Photo/John Borren

Renowned New Zealand artist Regan Gentry is this week putting the final touches to a 9-metre high sculpture being installed alongside the Tauranga Eastern Link.

The Spinifex sculpture is made of street lights and joins a 138m-long palisade pa sculpture already in place on the opposite side of the TEL.

The pa is made from roadside safety guard rails and wood re-used from Tauranga's Coronation Pier.

The works are funded by the NZ Transport Agency as part of the TEL project and are being installed ahead of the road's opening later this year.

Gentry said his team had been working long days to install the artworks and, despite a few battles with the wet weather, they were almost finished.

"It has been a blast to create and I am really exciting about the whole project. It is really exciting to do something on this scale," he said.

The two artworks cost $200,000.