“Painting by Numbers evolved from the desire to gain a more thorough knowledge of Auckland, its occupants and their relationship with wider issues of urban growth and community,” said Brendon Cleaver. “It was pertinent to this project that the focus remained centered on new and alternative approaches of representation. Only then was it possible to create fresh perspectives of these areas and their inhabitants. The study concentrated on three Auckland areas of Kingsland, Karangahape Road and Takapuna. A survey of these areas on foot was conducted, with over one hundred people from each area interviewed. The resulting raw information collected for this study was in itself not inherently useful. It was not until it was translated, categorized and visualized that we then began to see underlying patterns and idiosyncrasies of each individual area, to which we could facilitate sensible comparisons and conclusions.”