MODEST DISPLAY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20095, 15 November 1939, Page 11

MODEST DISPLAY

GISBORNE PUBLICITY

| CENTENNIAL EXHIBITION

ILLUMINATED PHOTO

SMALL RETURN FOR £250 “If Gisborne contributed anything like £250 to the cost of the model of New Zealand, now one of the major features of Dominion publicity at the Centennial Exhibition, it has not received its money's worth,” stated a Gisborne resident to-day, discussing his visit to the exhibition in Wellington. “Representation of this district is

; limited to an illuminated protograph ; which does not show more than half of Gisborne, and gives but little idea of the topographical features of the district j i

“The metropolitan districts, on the other hand, have been given adequate treatment, and visitors must leave the country with the feeling that New Zealand has four cities and a number of towns of no importance at all.”

He stated that the publicity feature was a large scale map of the Dominion, built up in relief, and constituting a really line work so far as tourist attractions were concerned. He was much disappointed to find, however, that Gisborne had nothing but a photograph to show its location and nothing whatever to indicate its importance either as the principal port of the East Coast,- or as the potential centre of tourist attractions sucli as might entice overseas tourist interest.

The cost of the photograph would be trifling, lie thought, and though the work of building up the model must have been expensive, he considered that the main centres had been given everything, and the provincial towns almost nothing.

Only Part of Town Shown “I have an idea that the photograph of Gisborne was not even taken specially for the display. It looks very much like one published some time ago in a magazine, with quite a misleading title,” he added. “Only part of the business area and the Waikanac foreshore is shown in the picture, and nothing of the extensive suburbs of Mangapapa, Whataupoko and Kaiti. Surely it. cannot be true, as I have heard, that the Borough of Gisborne contributed £250 to this model simply to have a photograph of part of the town included?”

The subject-matter of this complaint having been 'referred to the Mayor, Mr. D. W. Coleman, M.P., he said that he had to agree that Gisborne seemed to have been treated very modestly in the making of the model. He had inspected the work, and had found that the provincial centres generally had been dealt with in the same wav.

Mr. Coleman was afraid that most Gisborne people would feel a little disappointed concerning the representation of their town; just as those of other provincial centres would in their respective cases.

Napier was a little better o(T than Gisborne, lie added, for there the use of some houses had helped out the publicity motif, but even Napier could not compare with the main cities, in the treatment received in (lie model. Auckland, Wellington. Christchurch and Dunedin had received very adequate representation, he considered, by comparison. Publicity Scheme Modified

It was obvious, the Mayor said, that the original plans for publicising the provinces had had lo be modified. Nevertheless, while he felt disappointed himself concerning _ the return for the Gisborne Borough's investment of £250, he had met _at the Exhibition many former Gisborne residents who expressed satisfaction at seeing this town pictured on the model.

Discussing the choice of a picture, Mr. Coleman said that while tiie photograph showed only the business area and the sea-front—which might be described as Gisborne proper —it was a fairly good picture, and had been well treated in its mounting and illumination. He did not see that there was any means available of improving Gisborne's representation at the Exhibition, tor even if money were available, space was unobtainable in the neighbourhood of the model. A display made elsewhere hardly would be worth what it would cost, he thought. Tiie Dominion model was really a line work, apart from the question of local representation, said Mr. Coleman, and an enormous amount of work must have been put into it. Gisborne people would realise that a large part of their contribution to the cost had gone into the background, which was faithfully reproduced.