Rotorua artist Glenys Courtney-Strachan invites community to experience bilingual geometry

Rotorua artist Glenys Courtney-Strachan with a number of the 3D shapes. Photo / Shauni James

Rotorua 3D artist Glenys Courtney-Strachan is inviting people to take part in a hands-on, community art-making project.

It is called Āhuahanga with G and is running across three days at Te Manawa.

It started yesterday, and is running today and tomorrow from 11am to 2pm.

Last year Glenys was selected as artist in residence for the annual arts festival Colour the Night, where festival goers experienced first-hand her glow-in-the-dark installation of āhua ahu-toru (3D shapes) at Rotorua Arts Village.

For this weekend project, Glenys has extended this concept and gone bigger and better, designing a creative space for adults and children to experience "Hands-on-Bilingual-Geometry".

Glenys emphasises the community aspect.

"It's not just an opportunity for kids to make something, but for everyone to be part of a process, working together and using their strengths by helping one other.

"I'm all about whānau/people coming together to create and have fun."

Glenys says this project is a wonderful opportunity to learn and make a whole set of these platonic shapes, some of which are a bit of a challenge.

"There is something for everyone."

As well as being a creative opportunity, the project is educational, exercising mathematical intelligences, developing spatial awareness, and encouraging the use and learning of te reo Māori which is in line with Rotorua being New Zealand's first bilingual city, she says.

Courtney-Strachan wants people to "fall in love" with these geometric shapes as she has, and this is one of the reasons she has made them larger than life.