Mysterious black monolith appears

A mysterious, black monolith has landed in the centre of Christchurch.

The tall structure, which features a metallic diagonal strip and rainbow coloured discs, has appeared outside the underconstruction Te Pae convention centre in Cathedral Square.

A spokesman for Crown rebuild company O¯ ta¯karo Limited said the structure was part of the new public spaces being built around the convention centre, which was to open in December.

The tower, which is called Conduit, was designed by Auckland creative studio Creature Post and cost $52,000 to build.

The $52,000 cost does not include the fee paid to Creature Post to design the tower.

A spokesman for O¯ ta¯karo said the fee was not yet known as the structure was not complete, and Creature Post was providing work for other parts of the convention centre project.

‘‘The goal was to create a feature that was highly visible, both day and night, that would provide interest for people of all ages,’’ the spokesman said. ‘‘Conduit has been conceptually designed to be a representation of the connection between earth and sky through light. Automated lights will hit the tower in varying sequences that will then be reflected onto the ground and surrounding area.’’

Completion of the tower has been delayed by pandemic restrictions as Creature Post staff cannot travel from Auckland to Christchurch to set up the lighting.

The tower was made from a repurposed wayfinding tower donated by the Christchurch City Council.