Free fire festival lights up Waiohiki

A raku pit firing of pottery at a previous Waiohiki Creative Arts Village festival. Photo / Simon Shaw

Earth, Food and Fire is a free community fire festival happening at the Waiohiki Creative Arts Village near Taradale this Labour Weekend.

On Friday, October 21, from 5 - 10pm, 20 fire sculptures will transform the arts village into a garden of flickering flames. Six musical acts will provide entertainment while people enjoy food from Black Betty BBQ and vegetarian fare from The Dosa Project.

The village has been running fire arts workshops for several weeks, and a troupe will perform with fire poi, fire staves and other fire toys several times during the evening.

Napier face-painter Cherie Meerlo will be painting flames and the like onto willing cheeks.

A key focus of the event will be two Te Ahi Kaaroa sculptural tributes to the village's master carver Hugh Tareha, who died in May. The two sculptures are being designed and built by Hawke's Bay artists Ricks Terstappen and Lance Greaves and supported with funds from the Hastings District Council's Creative Communities fund and the Port of Napier. Sculptors contributing work to the event include John Woodham, Glen Colechin, Asaki Kajima and Katie Metcalfe.

The Waiohiki Creative Arts Village is a community of more than 100 potters, painters, sculptors and mixed-media artists. The village nurtures the flame of a long-established creative tradition on the site, once the location of Tareha Te Moananui's famous Pa Whakairo, renowned for the quality of its carvings. Over the four-day Labour Weekend, come out to see artists at work or sign up for pottery and stone-carving workshops.

Support for the festival has also been provided by the Waiohiki Community Charitable Trust, Napier City Council Creative Communities, Pan Pac, Tumu Timbers and the Hawke's Bay Arts Festival.

Key events:

Labour Weekend – Friday to Monday, 10am to 4pm.

● Taradale Pottery Club open studio - talk to the potters at work and play with clay yourself.

● Stone carving - carve a small piece of Oamaru stone in an hour or two with sculptor Chris Elliott. Tools and stone supplied, adults and children welcome. Bookings advised but not essential.

Sunday, October 23, 10am to 4pm

● Award-winning potter Scott Brough will help people create small pottery pieces which will be open-fired the following Sunday, October 30. Bookings essential.

● Children's Treasure Hunt – Unravel the clues that will lead you through artists' studios towards art prize treasures.

■ Waiohiki Arts Village, 1184 Korokipo Rd, Waiohiki, Napier. For bookings phone 06 6511076 or email office@wcct.org.nz. For more information visit www.waiohikiartsvillage.com.