From public art to coffee culture: Ara tutor's artwork featured nationwide

A public artwork created by kaiako (tutor) Nathan Ingram is finding a new audience through a major campaign by Hummingbird Coffee, which officially launched on Ara’s city campus.

Nathan is the co-lead of Ara's Bachelor of Design (Fashion) programme. His artwork Signal-1, originally commissioned by Christchurch City Council for a basketball half-court in the central city, has been selected as the featured artwork for a limited-edition release of Hummingbird's RE:START blend.

The bold geometric design will feature on coffee packaging, cups, merchandise and promotional material as part of the company's It's Giving Art initiative.

The campaign marks 15 years since the launch of the blend, which was created in response to the Canterbury earthquakes and celebrates Christchurch's creativity and resilience.

Originally designed to transform an underused public space, Signal-1 uses colour, geometry and movement to create an immersive experience for those using the court.

_{Then and now: The orginal Signal-1 and the art work reimagined}

In a recent interview with Christchurch contemporary art platform Fiksate Gallery, Nathan reflected on seeing the artwork take on a new life beyond the basketball court and move from the city streets into homes and cafés around the country.

"As a coffee drinker myself, I'm excited that the artwork is going to become part of people's everyday coffee rituals. There's something quite nice about a work that started as a public artwork in Christchurch ending up in people's homes and daily lives in a completely different way."

The collaboration has also given Nathan insight into the commercial side of creative practice, including art licensing and adapting artwork for different applications while maintaining its original integrity.

Alongside teaching at Ara, Nathan maintains an active artistic practice spanning painting, sculpture and large-scale public installations.

His work often explores themes of spontaneity and control, and the ways images can be deconstructed and reassembled in new contexts.

Readers can learn more about the project and Nathan's experience in Fiksate Gallery's interview, 10 Minutes with Nathan Ingram.