Waro Mutu: The End of Coal
David Cook, Rotowaro Township Mine, 2004
If you think this image looks familiar, it was published on the cover of PhotoForum #76: 14 New Zealand Photographers, 2008
Waro Mutu: The End of Coal
David Cook
Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato
1 Grantham Street, Hamilton
14 March - 28 June 2020. Extended to 23 August.
Gallery re-opens 15 May, 2020 after closure due to Covid-19
Artist's Floor Talk: David Cook, Saturday 14 March, 11am - 12pm
Photographer David Cook’s relationship with the North Waikato mining township of Rotowaro began in 1984, when Waikato Museum commissioned him to document the impact of the coal industry. Immersing himself in the life of the township, Cook pursued the documentation over four decades, witnessing the expansion of the mine and consequent demolition of the entire settlement. After 100 years of continuous coal extraction at Rotowaro, the mine was closed and the land rehabilitated as pasture, forestry and lakes. Tainui Holdings purchased the land back from the Crown in September of 2017.
This exhibition draws on the Waikato Museum’s large archive of Rotowaro objects and Cook’s photographs. A new moving image work explores tangata whenua perspectives on the significance of this land in light of economic, ecological and cultural histories.
Education programmes are available for this exhibition.
Artist's Floor Talk: David Cook
14 March 2020
11am-12pm
Free event
Listen to photographer David Cook who creates long-term multi-media documentaries, dealing with communities in transition. Hear him speak about Rotowaro, the centre of the North Island coal mining industry in association with Waro Mutu: The End of Coal.
