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Christchurch Arts Centre has installed a new Kunstautomat – an art vending machine – the first of its kind in New Zealand. The machine is the invention of German artist Lars Kaiser who has been repurposing old vending machines in Europe for several years - instead of junk food or drinks, the Kunstautomat is filled with small unique pieces of international art that people can buy for $6 a pop.

Christchurch City Council Arts Advisor Zara Potts comments “for that price you get a piece of handcrafted art which could be a painting, tiny sculpture, photograph, drawing, a cartoon or any other type of art you can imagine.

“There’s something exciting about not knowing exactly what’s about to come out of the machine. They’ll be great pieces to collect and just a bit of fun.”

The idea of bringing the Kunstautomat to the city began when Potts first spotted the machines on a holiday in Berlin. LArs Kaiser was supportive of the idea and designed a machine specifically for Christchurch as well as reconfiguring the machine to take New Zealand money.

The Kunstautomat is situated in the South Quad of Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre Christchurch and is the first of three machines arriving in New Zealand thanks to a partnership between Kaiser, Toi Ōtautahi and the Goethe-Institut NZ.

The project is also an opportunity for local artists who can apply to have their own work included in the machine both here and in Europe.

Potts enthused “we are super excited to be launching the first one in the Southern Hemisphere and the first one in Aotearoa. It’s going to be a great asset for our Christchurch creatives.

“Work from local artists will feature in the machines around New Zealand, as well as being sent across the globe to machines overseas.”

Kaiser has donated the Kunstautomat and the price of the artwork goes towards supporting the artists and paying for their supplies.

The project is part of the Council’s arts strategy Toi Ōtautahi which has been developed to support the growth of our local arts sector and creative community.

Find out more about the Kunstautomat.

Image courtesy Christchurch City Council

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