THE ART OF THE NEW

IN DETAIL

WORDS Kim Newth

In Avenues ‘Fashion issue’ of October 2012, Takaaki Sakaguchi was one of five featured designers credited with ‘dressing the city in style’. Back then, his eponymous label was busy supplying not only the local market but also stores across Australia.

Why then, in 2015, did the label’s founder call time on his highly successful fashion enterprise? And what is he up to now?

‘Sakaguchi’ had started as a dream, stitched together on a borrowed sewing machine in an Ōtautahi flat that was Takaaki’s first home after moving to Aotearoa from Japan in 1998. The Osaka-born creative was already an accomplished fashion designer by then, having made it to the top as head designer at eminent Japanese fashion house Koshino. Within a few years of launching his label in Christchurch, he had conquered New Zealand Fashion Week and was running his own flagship store in Merivale.

Today, Takaaki looks back on those years as a wonderful adventure with no regrets about having closed the label down after 17 years in business.

“It was a very hard decision. I loved the brand, but I was finding it more and more difficult to find the beautiful materials I needed to feel inspired and coupled with that, I needed a break from the pressure that comes with having to make a new style every season.”

Over the past seven years, Takaaki has completely transformed his creative practice having discovered a new outlet for his originality: ceramics. It has been a liberating experience for him to explore an art form where the options are literally endless.

“In the world of ceramics, you can make whatever you want in any colour and any shape. I had been curious about the Canterbury Potters Association and started going to classes there. The tutor was fantastic and had a lot of knowledge on technique, yet I was also encouraged to make something in my own style. I found that very exciting.”

Takaaki displayed his kiln-fired work for the first time at a combined exhibition (with Andrew Carran, Revisions) last August at Christchurch’s Form Gallery. Even though last year’s Covid lockdown meant the exhibition had to close earlier than expected, Takaaki was delighted at how it went. “Even before opening, half the pieces had been sold – it was amazing; I feel very lucky that people like the work.”

A self-proclaimed reductionist at heart, Takaaki’s ceramic art practice channels Japanese art and aesthetics such as wabisabi that implicitly accepts imperfection and transience.

“You see a lot of simplicity in Japanese traditional art, and that’s something I really love, along with texture and natural, earthy colours. With every piece I make, I want it to be very fresh and new. The right piece will start a conversation and be inspiring for other people.”

Takaaki received the Avice Hill Memorial Prize in 2017 and was a finalist in the Waiclay Ceramics Award 2019. Last year he was a featured artist at The Arts Centre sculpture festival exhibition.

This month, he is in a group exhibition at Form Gallery (Hemisphere, April 2–29) and later this year will again be taking part in The Arts Centre’s sculpture festival.

IN DETAIL

The attitude of living well

WORDS Anna Scaife

Arvida Good Friends at Park Lane is a vibrant community hub in Addington where older people from all around Christchurch gather. The architecturally designed centre is a place to meet family and friends, enjoy superb food and make the most of all that’s on offer for fitness and wellbeing. Arvida has ambitious goals, and that’s great news for older residents in the city and all around the country. Arvida’s new Chief Executive Jeremy Nicoll says, “In ten years, we want the world to notice how well older New Zealanders live. We hope it can be traced to Arvida’s commitment to transforming the ageing experience through person-centred care – what we call the Attitude of Living Well.”

The Community Centre’s beating heart is Café Natter, the domain of chefs Josh Monaghan and Nitesh Bijalwan. Josh recently returned from Switzerland and has a food philosophy based on fresh, nutritious meals with plenty of options for special diets. You can even have wine or beer with your meal and the micro-bakery turns out fresh bread and sweet treats to accompany the fabulous coffee.

The welcoming interior is airy and fresh and opens into an expansive outdoor area surrounded by the orchard and shaded by one of the area’s stunning protected oaks.

Next door, the Gorgeous George hair and beauty salon offers grooming and pampering for men and women. Adding to the all-encompassing approach and supporting fitness and wellbeing, members can keep on top of their game and enjoy the state-of-the-art exercise centre led by Laura Organ, a qualified exercise scientist. The facilities include a 15-metre swimming pool, hydrotherapy spa, and a specialist 50+ gym with electronic equipment that’s easy to use with automatic resistance settings, so there’s no setup or heavy weights required.

On the Go Physio is also based in the centre with physiotherapists who specialise in strength and rehabilitation for older adults. On the second floor, club meetings, technology tutorials, yoga, line dancing, wine tasting, and brain gym classes are all held in the generous events space that opens onto a balcony overlooking the courtyard.

While you don’t need to be a member to enjoy the centre, Arvida Good Friends’ members do enjoy discounts and special events – including a recent Valentine’s Day performance by the CSO. A subscription can be for personalised gym programmes, safe rideshare transport or in-home care delivered by trained and verified helpers. These options will help to make it possible for people to remain in their homes and adjust their levels of support over time.

The services are all backed by intelligent technology, carefully designed to make it easy and secure. “Living Well is about having choices on how and where we live, being able to find the help we want when we need it and finding it easy to stay active and connected with friends, family, and hobbies.

Arvida is here to help older New Zealanders choose to live well wherever they decide to live,” Jeremy Nicoll says.

goodfriends.co.nz

IN DETAIL

Local presence

WORDS Liam Stretch

Holmwood Real Estate’s Harcourts Merivale office on the corner of Office Road and Papanui Road has recently been redeveloped. The building formerly housed an ANZ branch on the ground floor, with Harcourts Holmwood on the second. Last year, the team made the move to acquire the bottom floor. Holmwood CEO Tony Jenkins says the Merivale office has occupied the top floor for over 14 years. And it was a natural progression to move into the highly visible downstairs office. Jenkins believes “that this would be one of the best real estate positions, if not the best, in Christchurch city”.

Jamin Marshall, business owner and sales manager of the Harcourts Holmwood Merivale office, said the team loved the position, but it was important that they have a greater street presence.

Jamin said the reason for the development of the downstairs space, aside from providing offices for 24 agents and seven admin staff, was to create a better space for clients – both for the sale of their properties and for one-onone engagements.

“The reason why we wanted to and needed to do the downstairs is, when you list your house with us, you need presence. We have window cards and TV screens which show off our clients’ properties in the windows so that it is good value to the clients with such a busy stream of walking and vehicle traffic. When they list their property with us, they are getting more coverage.”

The redevelopment has also allowed for a more inviting space for people to visit. “It provides our clients with a great place to come to when they list and sell their house.”

This increased visibility is key in a strong and record-breaking housing market in Christchurch, Jamin says.

“People realise that the method of marketing a property now really does matter.”

This extends into their multi-media sales approach across their social platforms.

“We’ve taken video, we think to the next level. We have our very own in-house videographers, and we also have an in-house marketing team that works solely on the agents’ properties and the profile for the agents as well.”

Jamin says people are more likely to click on a listing if it has a video, “that’s why we put the big screens up in the office’s windows.”

This attention to video is backed up by social media statistics that show users are much more likely to click on a video than a traditional post – with viewers retaining 95 per cent of a message when they watch it in a video, compared to 10 per cent when reading it in the text.

On top of the better deal for prospective clients, Jamin also mentions that the existing location was a must for the local team, with Merivale being such a dynamic place to work and reside.

“It is a great place to live. And it’s also great to be so close to the mall and in the heart of Merivale.”

Jenkins is very satisfied with development saying, “the Holmwood team and their clients are loving the new surroundings”.

holmwood.co.nz

All about the people

The McKenzie & Willis name is synonymous with stylish furniture and interiors of the highest quality with the expertise and service to match. Founded 116 years ago, this family-owned Christchurch business now has eight stunning showrooms throughout the country.

Across its showrooms, this leading interiors brand boasts an extensive collection of furniture, beds, linen and homeware, curtains and blinds, flooring, and a range of interior design options and inspiration from the best New Zealand and international brands.

Though having a changing face over time, one thing has remained the same – a commitment to excellent service. This is demonstrated by the constant investment into its people, which guarantees there is always someone to help with customers’ needs, from young design graduates through to those with lifelong experience in the industry.

General Manager Bill Willis said, “our greatest asset is our people, and we are lucky to have built an incredible team of consultants who are experts in their field. McKenzie & Willis has always had proud tradition of customer service and quality, which would not be possible without the right people.”

This attention to the team means that McKenzie & Willis has been able to go beyond a traditional department store model and grow into a complete interiors business, where they can offer a bespoke, one-on-one service. Offerings like complimentary in-home interior design consultations are available or working from the plans of your new build.

“The interior furnishing market has an everchanging dynamic, so we continue to improve our offering to ensure we are market leaders and providing our customers with the very best. We are continuously looking to improve on our retail environments to increase our range of products and services and allow customers greater access to a total home furnishing and décor experience.”

As a proudly local business, McKenzie & Willis has built a network of like-minded businesses and has well-established relationships with many New Zealand and international brands such as Belle Interiors Collection – an iconic brand founded in Christchurch by renowned Interior Designer Colin Foggo – which is now exclusively available at McKenzie & Willis.

With established stores in Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin, Queenstown, Wanaka and Wellington, a passion for Kiwi business has led them to expand further into the North Island with the recent acquisition of The Design Depot and its showrooms in Hamilton and Mount Maunganui. As family businesses, The Design Depot and McKenzie & Willis have worked together over the years and aim to bring ‘everything interiors’ to New Zealand.

The current Christchurch showroom at 181 Blenheim Road was fully refurbished last year.

“We completely redeveloped our showroom in Christchurch into a beautiful design store where customers will feel inspired. They will be able to view our entire collection, engage with our expert consultants and draw inspiration from their beautiful surroundings.”

Looking to the future, Willis is excited about what the next chapter will bring.

“2022 will see McKenzie & Willis able to provide an even greater interiors offering nationwide thanks to our new partnership with The Design Depot. We will grow and improve our services and product range while continuing to build on our proud tradition of customer service and quality. In essence, we will continue to work towards establishing McKenzie & Willis as a one-stop-shop for everything interiors.”