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The environmental threat posed by an oil-filled shipwreck lying off the Mangawhai coast is the subject of a new solo art exhibition that opens on Thursday, February 8 at Mangawhai Artists Gallery in Moir Street.
Gold and Oil, the Legacy and Menace of the Niagara features works by Nicola Everett highlighting the history of RMS Niagara, which sank just off Bream Head after hitting a German mine in 1940, and what could happen to the local coastline if the rusting wreck breaks up.
It is believed that the ship’s tanks are still full of oil, with estimates putting the volume at three to four times more than that spilt from the Rena in 2011, creating the potential for extensive pollution along the coast and islands from well south of Mahurangi up to Whangarei. Nicola Everett’s exhibition illustrates her concern about the impact such an oil spill would have on the Upper Gulf Harbour, and she wants to make sure people are aware of a threat that is “waiting to happen”.
“Loving our coastline as we do, I want to tell the story of the Niagara – I want people to know what is lying on our seabed ready to implode,” Nicola says. “It is being ignored and we are waiting until a catastrophe happens – this is a disaster we can prevent!”
A montage from the exhibition.
The exhibition is a mix of storytelling, installation and powerful images showing the potential impact of oil on the ocean, fish, sea plants and bird life using various media and methods, including ceramics, metal, oil, rust, bitumen, collage and printmaking.
Nicola hopes that by increasing awareness of the Niagara, something can be done now, rather than waiting until the situation worsens.
“Today, our priority is saving what we have, not letting it be destroyed, and ensuring the sustainability of our environment,” she says.
Gold and Oil, the Legacy and Menace of the Niagara opens at 6pm on Thursday, February 8 at 45 Moir Street, Mangawhai and runs daily until Wednesday, February 21 from 10am to 4pm. Free entry.
