Anzac Angel: wearable art at Bill Richardson Transport World

Lest we forget.

A stunning new piece of wearable art has arrived at Bill Richardson Transport World. Anzac Angel, designed in 2015 by Arrowtown woman Charlotte Graf to commemorate the centenary of the landing of Anzac forces at Gallipoli, has arrived at our Invercargill museum just in time for Anzac Day 2023.

Anzac Angel joins an impressive line-up of wearable art at Bill Richardson Transport World.

If you are keen to see this spectacular piece of wearable art, click here to book your tickets to Bill Richardson Transport World today.

Wearable art at Bill Richardson Transport World

A whopping 2779 RSA poppies were used to create the train of the Anzac Angel dress – one to remember each of the fallen Kiwi soldiers during the military offensive at the Gallopoli peninsula in Turkey. Anzac Angel featured in the Wanaka Wearable Art Show in 2016, and was displayed at the Warbirds Museum until its closure in 2022.

Transport World executive director Joc O’Donnell says Anzac Angel is a stunning addition to our Invercargill museum.

“Charlotte’s dress is not only jaw-dropping and spectacular, but it is also a wonderful tribute to our Anzacs. We feel incredibly privileged to be able to showcase this meaningful artwork here at Bill Richardson Transport World,” she says.

“When we opened Bill Richardson Transport World in late 2015, we wanted to ensure it offered something to interest everybody – no matter where their interests lie. Having a diverse range of exhibits and elements, from wearable art through to a movie theatre and dedicated kids zones, as well as our collection of vintage vehicles, means there is something for everyone.”

The legacy of the Anzacs

Early on in the morning of April 25, 1915, Allied forces landed on the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey. This marked the start of the Gallipoli Campaign, a land-based element that was part of the offensive to defeat the Ottoman Empire as part of WWI. During the next eight months, the Anzacs – made up of New Zealand and Australian soldiers – advanced little further than the positions they had taken on the day they landed. By November, it was clear the stalemate was unlikely to be broken, and in late December, the Anzacs began to be evacuated from the peninsula. By January 20, 1916, all Allied troops had been withdrawn. The campaign was a military defeat, but the battles waged at Gallipoli established the military reputation of the original Anzacs.

The first Anzac Day was commemorated here in New Zealand in April 1916.

View Anzac Angel and our wearable art display here at Bill Richardson Transport World. Buy your tickets to our Invercargill museum here.