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Waiohiki Community Charitable Trust
This Charitable Trust was established by members of the small Waiohiki community just south of Taradale in the Hawkes Bay to promote bi-cultural economic and community development. The community has a proud history of bi-cultural partnership and sought to build on this by purchasing a derelict dairy factory and several old cottages on land adjacent to the Napier Golf Course.
The factory has been substantially refurbished and established as a Community Arts Centre providing workshop and display space for local potters, wood-turners, maori carvers and other artists.
The main part of the factory has for several years now been occupied by a large and well-equipped local wood-turning club and by the well-established Taradale Pottery Club. Both organisations have showrooms open to the public displaying and selling their work.
Other buildings in the complex are used by a variety of artists and artisans, including painters, sculptors and traditional Maori carvers. The Arts Centre has proven to be a significant attraction for both locals and tourists, the latter of which often come by in the busload.
Prometheus has provided finance for the Trust on several occasions most recently to renovate one of the cottages at the rear of the site which was badly in need of modernisation.
The cottage was renovated for use as accommodation for artists-in-residence. The renovations included redesigning and rebuilding parts of the cottage to improve insulation, eliminate dampness and move the lounge to the northern side of the cottage to improve the passive solar gain. A deck was also added on that northern side along with a ramp to allow wheelchair access.
The cottage was officially opened by Michael Cullen, Minister of Finance and named after its first artist-in-residence, Helen Mason.
