Warren Daniel's experience of the Hundertwasser Kunsthaus in Vienna (Advocate, June 1) couldn't contrast more starkly with my own. We made a point of visiting the gallery on our 2013 European trip because of the Whangarei controversy, and found it captivating.
Prior to the visit I had been a Hundertwasser nay-sayer at worst and a fence-sitter at best. However, the unique building design, art and philosophies quickly changed that. I came away convinced of its rightness for Whangarei and its potential to build colour within the city and become Whangarei's point of difference.
If not packed, the place was busy, as was the outside cafe afterwards where we felt the need to sample some of the local fare while also digesting the building's entrancing exterior and setting.
My partner asked a curator how many visitors the gallery received each year and was told up to 200,000. We can't verify this, although the visitor figures for 2009 are on the internet and come in at 174,000. The Hundertwasser Kunsthaus was one of the highlights of our overseas tour, and I hope travellers to Whangarei will be able to say the same in the future.
John Gardiner.
Whangarei
