Tweet Cathedral

'Tweet Cathedral' represents the most famous symbol of Christchurch - the Anglican Cathedral at the heart of Cathedral Square. In the Canterbury earthquakes of 22 February and 13 June 2011 the Cathedral lost its tower and famed stained glass Rose Window.

The image is a digital silhouette of Christchurch Cathedral by night formed from a random selection of almost 1000 tweets (approximately 98,000 characters) from around the world received since the 22 February earthquake. Although many of the tweets are from New Zealand, there are several international tweets, some of which are in Asian characters. The composition and background of the artwork are inspired by Vincent van Gogh's 1889 masterpiece 'The Starry Night', which artist and Kunst Buzz CEO Jeroen van der Most felt fitted with the idea of this work.

To many people the damaged Cathedral is the key symbol of devastation. But in 'Tweet Cathedral' it has become whole again. This imagery taps into Christchurch's determination to restore and/or rebuild the Cathedral and its city.

'Tweet Cathedral' was originally given by Kunst Buzz (Art Buzz) in the Netherlands to TEDxEQChCh in Christchurch, and was gifted to Te Papa jointly by Kunst Buzz and TEDxEQChCh. TED is an international non-profit organisation devoted to world-changing ideas. TEDx is a programme of local, self-organised events that bring people together to share ideas (x = independently organised event). TEDxEQChCh was a one-day event held on 21 May 2011 'to re-imagine Christchurch as a world-leading city of the 21st century, and to provide inspiration that will directly impact the future of Christchurch' (press release, tedxeqchch.com).