Created in 2023 by artist Ephraim Russell, the Kōpūwai sculpture is a contemporary work developed in partnership with Transpower and mana whenua from Kāti Huirapa Rūnaka ki Puketeraki and Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou.
Located opposite the Idaburn Dam in the Ida Valley, the artwork tells the story of Kōpūwai, the kaitiaki (spiritual guardian) who traverses the Manuherekia catchment, the Mata-au (Clutha River) and the surrounding hills of Central Otago and the Māniatoto. Central to the sculpture is Kōpūwai himself, accompanied by a loyal pack of two-headed dogs, while kōwhaiwhai patterns in the background symbolise the warm north-west winds. A central vertical form represents the flow of the Mata-au, linking the narrative elements into a unified expression of landscape, story and guardianship.