Camera Obscura & the Obscura Room

Whangārei’s Camera Obscura is the largest publicly owned camera obscura in the world — an 8-metre-high spiral steel sculpture built through the collaboration of photographer Diane Stoppard, architect Felicity Christian, and sculptor Trish Clarke. At its heart is a functioning camera obscura room, celebrating the surrounding landscape and the iconic Te Matau ā Pohe bascule bridge.

A decade in the making, this ambitious project was made possible through generous local support, especially from Culham Engineering, and has since been recognised in both national and international architectural awards.

This immersive structure reflects Diane’s fascination with the science of light — a principle at the core of her work. Just as the Whangārei sculpture brings the outside world in through a simple aperture, Diane’s camera obscura rooms and images explore the wonder of light travelling in straight lines, turning everyday surroundings into quiet, dreamlike projections.