Rangi Williams wants to bring together art and community spirit to make visitors to New Zealand feel welcome. The Auckland man has made it to the final five out of an original 6,500 entrants in a national competition to find the artistic director of an effort to welcome visitors to New Zealand for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
His idea involves lots of paint and community energy to create a giant artwork that will be used to say "Haere mai to the world" as a welcome to visitors for the sporting event. 'Haere mai' is Maori for 'welcome.'
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Planning a collaborative approach that draws on the talents of local artists and enthusiastic communities, Rangi hopes to make huge banners countrywide that will represent the local flavour of each area. These banners will be displayed at World Cup games held around the country in September and October.
If selected Rangi will work with a team of experts to implement his idea. He says it is the opportunity of working collaboratively with the community that is most inspiring, as it offers "the chance to unite cultures and communities."
Also inspiring, he says, is the ability of art to uplift and transform.
Rangi is a member of the Avondale Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in Auckland's west.
"As members of the Church we're used to working with the community on local projects such as Helping Hands," he said. "We know the benefits that come with improving community grounds, such as painting walkways or designing murals at primary schools."
Rangi says he would like to extend his World Cup idea with another project called 'Paint the Town.' He says that communities benefit significantly from brightly painted murals and shared artwork. He has begun meeting with local businesses in West Auckland who are interested in his idea.
Rangi is not native to Auckland and has only recently moved from Upper Hutt. He is currently working at Unitec as a lecturer in the Maia Maori development unit. Rangi's hometown is Palmerston North where, coincidently, he attended Palmerston North Boys High School with Pulusea Seumanu, another finalist in the competition.
Find out more about Rangi's 'Haere mai to the world' idea by visiting here. To learn more about Rangi's 'Paint the Town' project visit facebook.