Lyttelton: what makes an artist’s town?

An arty energy is a hard thing to describe. Everyone knows it when they feel it, though, and there are certain places on the planet which carry a whole lot of this mysterious creative magnetism. They are places to which artists have historically flocked, whether for the ineffable vibe, the presence of other artists or cheap rent. Leonard Cohen’s Hydra, in Greece, was one. San Francisco was another. And, of course, there’s Lyttelton.
Lyttelton is (and has been) home to musicians like Marlon Williams, Delaney Davidson, Adam McGrath, Aldous Harding, Ben Woods, Phoebe Woods, Carmel Courtney and Al Park - to name a few. It has housed writers like Ben Brown, Joe Bennett and Gary McCormick, and visual
artists of the likes of Bill Hammond, Laurence Aberhart and Jason Grieg. This is in no way an exhaustive list - the town is home to painters, sculptors, musicians, poets, ceramicists, carvers and creatives of all imaginable disciplines. In this story, Frank Film explores what it is that draws them in and keeps them close.
First off, as potter Grace Uivel points out, Lyttelton is an interesting geological place. “We’re inside the crater of a volcano,” she tells Frank Film from her shared studio, Ata Ceramics, on the main street. The steep flanks of this volcano, stacked with houses, all lead down to the singular
main street and below it, the clanging, working port. There are cafes and gig venues everywhere you look. And then, of course, there’s that feel in the air. Ceramicist and long-time local Cheryl Lucas, who has a major exhibition coming up at the Christchurch Art Gallery, says you do slightly feel like you’re on holiday when you come through the tunnel. “It always feels good here,” she says.
So what is it? Writer Ben Brown reckons it's the port which gives the town its character. “It’s an egalitarian place and I think that’s a union ethos,” says Ben, who called Lyttelton home for 20 years. “It’s a border, it’s an international gateway, so you’re forced to rub shoulders with diversity.” Saxophonist Carmel Courtney says that while visual artists have always talked about the hue of Lyttelton, for her as a musician, it’s the ‘feel’. “You don’t ever want to not feel as an artist,” Carmel says.
It was this feel (and the cheap house prices) which brought musician Al Park here in ‘78. “I remember walking down Voelas Road with Bill Hammond…and Bill said to me, ‘I’ve found my place.’ And I went, ‘I’ve found my place, as well’,” Al says, and remembers buying his house for
$3k. Those were the days. According to Al, Lyttelton was at that time considered by anyone who lived on the other side of the tunnel to be dark and poor and rough.
Artist Asher Newbury grew up in Lyttelton, and remembers it being pretty rough when he was a kid, but full of artists. His entire brood of siblings are also artists, actors, poets and playwrights, and he puts this down to their environment. “Growing up in the 90’s, there were working artists
all around us, and on top of that, it’s like we live in a painting,” says Asher.
There seems to be one unanimous answer from most local artists: it’s the community which gives Lyttelton its magic. As potter Grace Uilart puts it, she came to Lyttelton and felt immediately at home. Asher points out that with much of the town being in the shade for the winter, people are forced to congregate. “Everyone has to come to the main street to get their
vitamin D. That creates community,” he says.
This sense of community, according to Al, only grew stronger after the 2011 earthquakes. Along with many of the other musicians in Lyttelton, he helped to form The Harbour Union, a musical collective initially set up to fundraise for the aftermath of the earthquakes.
Whilst there is, as musician Ben Woods describes, a romanticism today associated with the Lyttelton name, the genuine sense of community is obvious - even to townies. Unfortunately, just like Hydra, San Francisco and Berlin, Lyttelton is starting to feel the effects of gentrification.
Both house prices and rent are going up, forcing Asher and his young family to move up to Palmerston North.
But, as Asher says, they’ll be back. It seems once you fall in love with Lyttelton, it’s hard to stay away. This film is an ode to a beloved town of artists - watch it in full here. www.frankfilm.co.nz
A special thanks to Lindon Puffin, Martin Sagadin, Dylan Hawes, Al Park, Amiria Grenell, Marlon Williams, Jacob Bryant, Rosie Smyth.
Accreditations:
Bill Hammond, The Fall of Icarus (after Bruegel), 1995, Acrylic on canvas,
Reproduced courtesy of Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū
Lyttelton Street Images:
Andrea McHarg, Source: 2013 Christchurch City Libraries Photo Hunt and Dave Reynolds,
Source: 2013 Christchurch City Libraries Photo Hunt
Dispeller (short film): Music by Ben Woods, directed by Martin Sagadin.

[@Seawithinyou]

I so Love Lyttelton As I have such fond memories of when my ex hubby Mum and I used to fish off no 6 Wharf to catch untold Red Cod and never had any with sea lice let alone one poor Stingray which was massive A good hard workout for an hour till we cut the string to let it live another day Even still catching Cod till late warm summer evenings Get Shark n Tatey for a feed with our refreshments 🎣🕊🌊🌞🌖💖

[@winstonsmith2079]

This is such a fantastic channel. Always enjoy your fantastically filmed and paced mini docos. Great drone work as well.

[@anncurrie6478]

I couldn't agree more. Love them all.

[@mierypesado6740]

Lyttelton always had a strange and unique pull. Through the Port Hills, it always felt like a million miles away and a different world from Christchurch, a calm yet irreverent energy summed up by Joe Bennett and his editorials. Shame that it gets dark at about 4pm year round (as far as I can remember), such a great spot as is Governor's Bay and the entire area

[@mikegaffney64]

like the vibe of Lyttleton, but house prices are too high now

[@annegribben444]

I wonder what the maori name for Lyttelton was ...OHINEHOU .... just read... formally PORT COOPER..... then named LYTTELTON after GEORGE WILLIAM LYTTELTON from THE Canterbury Association ...which lead the colonization of the area.