Great South Road is a major arterial route leading out of Auckland City, New Zealand. The road weaves through volcanic cones, industrial centres and a multitude of suburbs into the rural landscape of the Waikato region beyond.
This short film (about a long road) explores the urban fabric of the territory which is defined by generic utilitarian structures and a postmodern vernacular that includes single storey houses; car yards; brightly coloured, corrugated steel clad buildings and hand painted signage. But more than anything else, the lives of the people encountered along the way are shaped by a rich mix of local and international Asian Pacific communities.
This short film (about a long road) explores the urban fabric of the territory which is defined by generic utilitarian structures and a postmodern vernacular that includes single storey houses; car yards; brightly coloured, corrugated steel clad buildings and hand painted signage. But more than anything else, the lives of the people encountered along the way are shaped by a rich mix of local and international Asian Pacific communities.
"His examination of some building frontages along part of Great South Road is a little like a movie version of Ed Ruscha's concertina book images, except that Cowlard mixes them in with a community focus, such as teenagers taking shots at a hoop with a basketball."