Diamond-studded statement on ecology | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

There is half a million dollars worth of art on the wall at Statements Gallery, and that's just in one piece.

Oyster Catcher, Gerard Smith's artwork worth $500,000, was unveiled to a crowded gallery yesterday evening.

Set with 38.00 carat, conflict-free and brilliantly-cut diamonds, it is one of the most expensive commissions undertaken by a New Zealand artist.

It will become part of a collector's extensive private collection of contemporary New Zealand art.

"I used precious metal and diamonds because of the way they reflect light and pick up colour from their surroundings as well as the mixture of brilliance and scintillation that only diamonds can produce," Mr Smith, from Napier, said.

As well as highlighting the importance of sustainable mining of diamonds he aimed to use the artwork to underline another global issue. His inspiration was the Falmouth dredging boats which harvest oysters by sail to preserve the natural ecology of riverbeds by not using motorised equipment.

He abstracted and stylised the forms of the sails on the boats to also resemble the wading birds that share the estuary.