The Auckland Harbour Bridge will display a white feather in lights - a symbolic quill - leading into Waitangi Day.
The story on the bridge in the Vector Lights for Waitangi show this year has been created by Waikato-Tainui illustrating the legacy of each of the Upoko Ariki (chiefly leaders) of the Kiingitanga since its inception through to 2020.
Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland Council and Vector collaborate with one of the region’s 19 mana whenua each year to build the light show narrative. For Waitangi 2020, the iwi is Waikato-Tainui.
The white feather appears on the bridge four minutes into the show after a sweep of purple light. It is part of the sixth phase in the story honouring Kuini Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, the longest-serving leader of the Kiingitanga.
The other phases of the story – each lit in a different colour of the rainbow – depict the legacies of the other Kiingitanga Ariki.
The show closes with 180 stars appearing on the bridge commemorating 180 years since the first signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi.
The six-minute light show will play every half hour from 9pm until midnight until the evening of Thursday 6 February, Waitangi Day itself.
Aucklanders will be able to visit vector.co.nz/lights for dates and times and to sync to a real-time narration by Rahui Papa of Waikato-Tainui explaining the story as it unfolds in lights on the bridge.
