Cultural Mountain Story

Maori Legend of Mounts Ruapehu and Taranaki (Egmont)//

Ruapehu, the beautiful maid, was married to Taranaki. One day, while her husband was away hunting, she was wooed and won by Tongariro. When Taranaki returned at the end of the day he surprised the guilty pair. A titanic battle ensued in which Taranaki was defeated. He retreated towards the west coast, carving out the course of the Wanganui River as he went. When he reached the coast he moved northwards to the western extremity of the North Island, where he rested. There his great weight made the shallow depression which afterwards filled with water and became Te Ngaere swamp. Taranaki, or Egmont, as Cook named him, now sits in silence looking towards his wife and his rival. In spite of her infidelity, Ruapehu still loves her husband and sighs occasionally as she remembers him, while the mist, which drifts eastward from his head, is the visible sign of Taranaki's love for her. For his part, Tongariro, who despairs of ever possessing her again, smokes and smoulders with anger. To this day travellers in the Tongariro National Park see the basin called Rua Taranaki, “the Pit of Taranaki”, which lies to the east of the Tama Saddle which was the original home of Taranaki.

The name Ruapehu does not appear to commemorate any event in Maori legend. Broken into its components it means rua (two) and pehu (to explode or make a loud noise). But this method of breaking down Maori place names in order to explain their meaning is far from reliable.

http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/ruapehu-mount/page-3

Nature Interpretation Centre

Stover Country Park Nature Interpretation Centre//

In Stover Country Park, Devon, UK, the Nature Interpretation Centre, opened in 2000. The space offers classroom facilities for school groups as well as high quality displays interpreting the wealth of plants and wildlife found in the park. 

Within the centre there are two CCTV camera links, one to a fixed camera in a nest box and the other, user controlled with a joystick, to a camera on a pole in the lake showing the unusual and changing perspective of the park.

Function of the Centre//

• The Centre enhances the visitors’ use and understanding of the Park, acting as a point of contact between the visitor and the County Council Rangers.
• As it is well located at the entrance to the Park it gives visitors information about Stover before they embark on a walk or activity.
• Visitor Centres give people confidence about exploring the countryside and provide a comfortable environment to start off their visit.
• The Centre consists of an interpretation area and a classroom providing a base for the large number of school and college groups who visit the Country Park every year. Within the interpretative displays a Close Circuit Television transmits live pictures of the wildfowl on the lake back to the Centre.
• The displays were designed thematically so that a particular conservation message is subconsciously being put across to visitors. Interpretation is the art of communicating the significance of cultural and natural sites to the visiting public. It is essentially a process of informal learning which is more about provoking and inspiring people than instructing them. Thematic interpretation is based on a ‘theme’ which is the specific message to be communicated. Each new element is consistent with, and a further elaboration of, the main theme. Research shows that themes help people remember and understand material presented to them.

Sustainability of the Interpretation Centre//

• The centre was designed to blend into the woodland surroundings, and have a minimal impact on the local environment.
• Habitat removal was limited. 
• By building the centre off the ground, the foundations were in the form of a small number of concrete pads which support the feet of the building. This meant that excavated ground material and incoming concrete amounts were minimised. Where possible the building was constructed using materials which were either recycling or reusable, e.g. timber, glass, rubber tiles and recycled newspaper for the insulation.
• The reduction of the ongoing energy usage of the building was an important aspect and has been considered carefully. The positioning of windows on all aspects of the building maximises natural light entering the building and saves energy by reducing the need for internal lighting. 
• Natural ventilation via the windows and doors. 
• A system of heat pumps drawing energy from the lake has been adopted, connected to an under floor heating system.

Lighting, Signage and Display Practice//

Lighting incudes ceiling lights and probable spot lights. Being a sustainable interpretation centre I think the space relies of natural lighting through high wall windows as it has a high ceiling stud. The space is very much interactive and educational. It appears to have text and interactive objects at both a child and adult level and this will help with  the density of the information so that different age groups can understand. They have used the display of hanging birds in the space making the outdoors feel indoors. The space uses the theme of outside to help in communicating the key messages about the outdoors. A Close Circuit Television is inside the centre which transmits live pictures of wildfowl on the lake back to the centre. This feature is quite a nice idea as the public wouldn't be able to get this close to the wildlife otherwise. The cameras also on a joystick allowing the uses to change perspective on the park. Of which there are two of them. 

http://www.devon.gov.uk/interpretation_centre

http://www.rtpi.org.uk/media/10082/Stover-Country-Park-Newton-Abbott.pdf

Interpretation Centre Research

Interpretation Centre//
Is an intuition for dissemination of knowledge of natural and cultural heritage. They are a kind of museum, associated closely with visitor centres and ecomuseums. They are generally located in connection to cultural, historical or natural sites. There aim is to communicate the significance and meaning of heritage. The main presentation strategy tends to be user-friendly and interactive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interpretation_centre

Mackintosh Centre//
The Mackintosh Interpretation Centre or 'Mack' Centre was designed by Gareth Hoskins Architects, celebrating Glasgow's famous architect and explores his life and work. The centre is separated into two areas. The first containing and relating to the present day, along with the building guide, tours and The Lighthouse section. The second creates a series of smaller spaces devoted to the narrative and interpretation elements of the exhibition. 

At the entrance a curved glass screen suspends between the floor and ceiling creating two exhibition areas dividing the present and interpretative sections of the display. The glass screen bends around a central column and in this space The Lighthouse building story is told. The building history is also illustrated through original drawings and objects. 

The interpretive section is organised into three areas. A series of video narratives deals with specific aspects of Mackintosh's work, while in the adjacent wall, there are detailed studies of four key buildings. These displays are in chronological order that outline both Mackintosh's and his wife's careers. The final section looks at the latter years of Mackintosh's life. It details the changes in how his work has been perceived since his death by commenting on contemporary designers and examples of how he is viewed in today's media. 

Lighting, Signage and Display Practise// 

The Mackintosh centre relies heavily on lighting. The lighten screen is a divider into the separate areas and also acts as a back light for some of the exhibited work. It also makes use of ceiling lights and spot lights. Screen lights to back light text and imagery. Probable use of lighting for cabinets and other objects. Signage isn't commented on and I visually cannot see any obvious signage in any imagery on the centre but the light screen divider acts as a piece of directional signage without the use of text. Display practises used are audio and visual recordings and there also appears to be some use of display cases. Not much is commented on in this area so can only find this information by photographs. 

http://www.thelighthouse.co.uk/visit/mackintosh

Mt Egmont National Park

Mt Taranaki or Mt Egmont is an active but quiet stratovolcano located on the Taranaki region on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. It has to official names under the alternative name policy of the New Zealand Geographic Board. The mountain is 2518m high with the most symmetrical volcano cones.

Name//

The mountain has even called Taranaki by the Maori for many centuries. tara meaning mountain and naki is thought to have come form ngaki meaning shining.

January 11th 1770Captain Cook  named the mountain Mount Egmont after John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont who has supported the concept of an oceanic search. Cook described the mountain "of prodigious height and its top covered with everlasting show" surrounded by a "flat country...which afforded a very good aspect, being clothed with wood and verdure."

March 25th 1772, Marc-Joesph Marion du Fresne made landfill off Taranaki and he named the mountain Pic Mascarin unaware of Cook's earlier visit.

Until May 29 1986, the mountain appeared Mount Egmont on maps until the Minister of Lands ruled that "Mount Tarankai" would be an alternative and equally official name. The Egmont name still applies to the national park that surrounds the peak and geologists still refer to the peak as the Egmont Volcano

Maori Mythology//

According to Maori mythology, Tarankai once reside in the middle of the North Island, with all the other New Zealand volcanoes. The beautiful Pihanga was covered by all the mountains, and a great battle broker out between them. Tongarrio eventually won the day, inflected great wounds on the side of Taranaki, and causing him to flee. Taranaki headed westwards, following Te Toka a Rahotu and forming the deep gorges of the Whanganui River, paused for a while, creating the depression that form ed the Te Ngaere swamp, then heading north. Further progress was blocked by the Pouakai ranges, and the sun came up Taranaki became petrified in his current location. When Taranaki conceals himself with rainclouds, he is said to be crying for his lost love, and during spectacular sunsets, he is said to be displaying himself to her. In turn, Tongarrio's eruptions are said to be a warning to Taranaki not to return.

National Park//

In 1881, a circular area with a radius of six mules (9.6km) from the summit was protected as a Forest Reserve. Areaas encompassing the older volcanic remnants of Pouakai and Kaitake were later added to the reserve and in 1900 all this land was gazetted as Egmont National Park, the second national park in New Zealand. With intensively-framed dairy pasture reaching right up to the mostly-circular park boundary, the change in vegetation is sharply delineated in satellite images. There are parts of the national park where old growth forests are found. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Taranaki

Great War Exhibition

Entering the space was quite a contrast after being just outside and the setting of the village really drew you into the feeling of the time era.  The dim lighting was throughout the village and I liked how some of the windows were open and lights were on. Some of the storefront shops needed some more lighting as it wasn't all that easy to see the detail of what was in them. I was amazed with the amount of detail of all the little things throughout the exhibition. The exhibition led you through a linear time period of the war following the story of Peter Jacksons grandfather Will. The spaces were broken up by large tombstone arches into the next year. In these small spaces your eyes were drawn up and the light was much brighter which also helped with breaking up the separate year spaces. Throughout the exhibition was quite a large use of diorama and cabinet of curiosity, the exhibition space relied heavily on visuals and detail rather than worded information. I did see text but none of this stood out enough for me to actually read it or want to read it. There were stations throughout where you could open the lid to boxes and smell what different types of grenades would smell like. The other sensing aspect of the exhibition was being able to put your hand inside the tank and feel the warmth the soilders would have felt in the tank. Another feature of the exhibition which is quite an old technique was the use of a peppers ghost. With the use of glass, mirrors and lighting along with two models of the same setting before and after the effects of the war, the illusion makes for a great display practise. Other than the vast displays of original models from the war, mostly contributed by Peter Jackson himself, there was also a huge use on wax people throughout the exhibition. These wax people look very much realistic and were important for telling the story of Will and the war. The exhibition is a G rated version of telling the war story with only one gruesome wax figure of Will towards the end, the exhibition has been developed for people of all ages so that it is not restricting to the general public.

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