Buggyrobot Gallery

Ōamaru may be small, but its charm is mighty. Many unique and independently owned stores make up the town’s character, and Buggyrobot Gallery is one such place. A quirky gallery and workshop in the heart of Ōamaru’s Victorian Precinct, it’s a must-visit.

Martin Horspool originally hails from Wales, and for the last 15 years, he has been building metal art and doing watercolour illustrations and paintings - Buggyrobot is his chance to showcase his creations. No two pieces are the same in the gallery, and as you wander around the showroom, each new piece you come across will make you pause and consider it.

The process around creating these artworks is very unique, and Martin is a big proponent of upcycling items he finds and extending their life in a new way. He will often find discarded items from kerbsides or source materials from antique stores, markets and scrap yards. The robot creations on display in the gallery often involve now-extinct devices or machines that are reimagined into characters from Martin’s imagination. And some of his favourite pieces to make are large, wall-mounted taxidermy-style trophy heads, combining antlers with vintage appliances.

A visit to Buggyrobot Gallery will put a smile on your face, and chances are you won’t have experienced anything quite like it before.