Red is the colour of Rutherford house, a colour that has a diverse range of meanings. It can change from love and compassion, to aggression and violence.
“Red is a colour of intense emotion. A colour that exhibits one’s innermost desires and passions. Red can represent a roaring rage, unchecked and repulsive. Whero is for Papatūānuku, our Mother Earth, who sustains our life force. Red is that of Rutherford, my whānau — for whom I cherish dearly.”
-Miss Kobus, Rutherford Teacher
Compassion is one of the main themes that is closely connected with red, and also closely related to the charity that Rutherford House supports: Cure Kids. This charity supports and funds research for severely ill children, such as cancers, heart disease, or the rare Batten disease. Rutherford House makes annual donations to their charity, just like every house does.
“It’s the colour that represents our house and brings us together, it signifies togetherness.”
-Dhruva, Year 9 Rutherford Student
Originally built in 1980, Rutherford House wasn’t actually officially opened until 1982, after Kupe House. Rutherford House’s name originates from Lord Ernest Rutherford, historically known as the father of nuclear physics.
Lord Ernest Rutherford was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1908, for his discovery and study of nuclear elements and radioactivity, like splitting the atom; leading to the development of nuclear bombs. Lord Rutherford was also a physics professor at Manchester and Cambridge University in 1906, before he passed away in 1937.
20th June, 2023
Emma Li
Photography by Kanishk Soni
