Discover the Places Behind the Photographs
Places give photographs context. They connect people, events, work, memory and identity to the landscapes and locations in which life unfolded.
The Picture Library brings together islands, farms, marae, homes, towns, workplaces, gardens, roads, coastlines and other meaningful locations from across the MACH BASE ecosystem.
Place Categories
Explore the archive through the physical places where people lived, worked, gathered, travelled and created history.
Islands and Coastlines
Rangiwaea, Matakana Island, harbours, beaches, waterways, fishing grounds and coastal landscapes.
Marae and Cultural Places
Marae, churches, meeting places, urupā, performance spaces and sites carrying cultural or spiritual importance.
Homes and Family Properties
Homesteads, family houses, gardens, workshops, retreats and properties connected with generations of family life.
Farms and Working Landscapes
Dairy farms, orchards, honey operations, paddocks, sheds, machinery yards and places shaped through practical work.
Japan
Kameyama, Nagoya, Kyoto, Keian, Sawatari and other Japanese locations connected with family, work, travel and restoration.
New Zealand
Tauranga Moana, Bethlehem, Matakana, Rangiwaea and other places connected with whānau, friendship, work and history.
International Places
Australia, the United States, Korea and other locations connected through travel, migration, friendship and exchange.
Workplaces and Project Sites
Offices, auction yards, construction sites, workshops, farms, businesses and locations tied to MACH BASE projects.
Journeys and Routes
Roads, ferry crossings, walking routes, travel corridors and journeys connecting one place with another.
More Than a Pin on a Map
A place record brings together the photographs, people, stories, events and changes connected with one location.
Photographs
Visual records showing the location across different seasons, events and periods of time.
People
Families, communities, visitors and workers connected with the place.
Stories
Memories, events, oral histories and personal accounts associated with the location.
Change Through Time
Development, restoration, environmental change and the evolving use of the place across generations.
Places Hold Stories
Some places remain physically unchanged for generations. Others are rebuilt, renamed, restored or transformed by the people who live and work there.
Photographs allow these changes to be traced. They record how homes developed, how farms operated, how communities gathered and how landscapes responded to time, weather and human activity.
By connecting photographs with their locations, the Picture Library preserves not only what a place looked like, but also what it meant.
Every Location Adds Context
A place name, local detail, historical correction or remembered landmark can transform an unidentified photograph into a valuable part of the visual record.
