http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/art-and-stage/visual-art/84860935/new- gormley-sculpture-unveiled-in-christchurch The second part of Sir Antony Gormley's Stay, installed at the Christchurch Arts Centre. A twin to a controversial Christchurch statue has received an "overwhelmingly positive reaction" to its new home in the Arts Centre. The second part of Sir Antony Gormley's Stay, a work comprising twin humanoid cast-iron statues, was unveiled on Saturday. The first statue was installed in the Avon River last year. The new statue has been placed in an outdoor corridor at the neo-gothic Arts Centre, which has undergone major repairs after sustaining earthquake damage. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/art-and-stage/visual-art/84860935/new- gormley-sculpture-unveiled-in-christchurch It is identical to the sculpture installed in the Avon River last year. Its installation was delayed for about a year due to the repairs. Scape marketing and communications manager Carolyne Grant said there had been a constant stream of commentary over Gormley's first sculpture, but Saturday's unveiling to the public attracted an "overwhelmingly positive reaction". About 570 people were counted in the quad over a half hour period. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/art-and-stage/visual-art/84860935/new- gormley-sculpture-unveiled-in-christchurch "It was really important that the opening was to the public, so it wasn't a grand opening with senior officials . it was very much what we wanted it to be." Unlike its river-dwelling twin, visitors can walk up to the Arts Centre sculpture. A campaign encourages them to take a selfie with it. Both statues were made to Gormley's own physical dimensions, and feature a notably hunched demeanour. The commission of Stay had been a three-year process, which was now complete, Scape Public Art director Deborah McCormick said. "He [Gormley] doesn't want the work to be a memorial, but he does want it to speak to the physical condition and human condition of Christchurch following the earthquakes." The twin statues were intended to represent two sides of post-earthquake Christchurch – one in the natural, largely untouched river and the other in an enclosed, quake-damaged space. The decision to wait for repairs at the Arts Centre had been worth it, McCormick said. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/art-and-stage/visual-art/84860935/new- gormley-sculpture-unveiled-in-christchurch "We did consider putting it in at other sites, because there's obviously been a delay, but to be true to the concept we decided to wait until the Arts Centre is complete." Stay was provided by the artist at a discounted rate. The Christchurch City Council contributed $500,000 to its cost. It was called exorbitant by some critics, who felt the money was better spent elsewhere. Stay forms the centrepiece of this year's Scape Public Art exhibition, titled Presence. It includes 12 public artworks linked by a 30-minute walk through the city. Managing curator Heather Galbraith said Stay had been a "massive coup" for the city. It was a good launching point for the other art works in the public art festival, which would now happen every year. "It's a great opportunity to be drawn back into the city," she said. "There's already been strong interest and curiosity about what works have been selected and what sites are being used." Other works include Diminish and Ascend by Auckland artist David McCracken, a 13-metre staircase installed in Kiosk Lake at the Botanical Gardens, and Mark Catley's Sign O' the Times at Re:Start mall. .