British Council New Zealand and the Pacific have supported Interlude, a new sculptural stone seat, unveiled at Jardine Park on the shores of Lake Whakatipu in Tāhuna Queenstown. It is the first New Zealand commission from British architecture practice Nebbia, who was introduced to the project by British Council New Zealand and Pacific, via our UK-based Architecture, Design and Fashion team. The British Council co-supported the commission alongside the Edgar family, reflecting the longstanding creative relationship between Aotearoa New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
"Connection sits at the heart of our work. This project brings that partnership to life, with the British Council's Architecture, Design and Fashion team connecting STILL, a New Zealand-based company, with Nebbia to create a design inspired by a tête-à-tête furniture format - a form that invites people to sit face-to-face and come together in conversation,” said Natasha Beckman, Director of British Council New Zealand and Pacific,
Unveiled on 28 April 2026 at Jardine Park, Interlude is part of Paererewā, a national programme led by STILL to create 1,000 public benches or seats across Aotearoa New Zealand that will endure for the next 1,000 years.
Designed by Nebbia, the work is a five-piece assembly of quarried South Island blue stone. Two mirrored rocks, each with a carved seat and ascending steps, face one another across a circular portal - drawing on the classical tête-à-tête, a form of chair built for conversation. Rather than a monument to look at, it is a place to inhabit: to converse, rest, encounter and reflect.
The fabrication merges old and new. Photogrammetry informed each cut and placement, while a local stonemason carried out much of the shaping by hand. Over time, the stone will change - edges will dull, steps will hollow underfoot, and the work will absorb a millennium of weather and touch.
Madhav Kidao and Brando Posocco, co-founders of Nebbia, said: "Rather than a monument to look at, 'Interlude' is a place to inhabit, converse, rest and reflect. We have always passed knowledge down this way, person to person, generation to generation, in places that feel significant enough to warrant it. The stone might last a thousand years. The stories it sets in motion might last considerably longer."
Interlude is also part memorial to revered local philanthropist Sir Eion Edgar, and was co-commissioned by his son Hamish Edgar, Co-Chair of The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi. Sir Eion's favourite greeting, "Another day in paradise", has been engraved on a bronze plaque displayed alongside the piece.