Sculpture gardens offer kids an Easter egg treat

CHOCOLATE SEARCH: Marea Bamberger found plenty of sweet treats in the Easter egg hunt at last year’s Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens.

Families can find more than a fun day, art work and picturesque surroundings at the Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens.

The Easter Bunny will hop on down followed by an Easter egg hunt along the sculpture trail from 10am to 4pm on April 4.

There will also be free hot cross buns on Good Friday for visitors to the trail which which takes about an hour to walk and features 60 sculptures by contemporary New Zealand artists.

Owner David Bayly grew plants on his father's Kaukapakapa land 20 years ago to create today's plant nursery and garden centre.

Students from Kaukapakapa School enjoyed a recent visit to the gardens.

"The children were fascinated by the array of sculpture in the garden, ranging from the realistic to very abstract. They were able to extend their knowledge about sculpture by looking at what the sculptures were made of, the design and the ideas behind the sculptures," says senior teacher Selma Nicholson.

Standouts for the children included Flock of Sheep by Toy Murchie, Point of View by Sally Lush and Moeraki Series Boulders by Jin Ling. Some sculptures, like Lost lngwg by R K Ick were a real talking point.

Students are planning to make their own clay sculpture, inspired with ideas from their visit.

"Many thanks must go to David and his team, who warmly welcomed more than 100 children and parents and provided a fantastic opportunity for them to enjoy and learn about the wonderful sculpture which is being created in New Zealand," says Ms Nicholson.

The venue is open 9am to 5pm at 1481 Kaipara Coast Highway, 4km north of Kaukapakapa on State Highway 16.

- © Fairfax NZ News