Busting out for breast cancer - Cardrona bra fence nets $150,000
Its true foundations may be shrouded in the secrecy of a Banksy artwork, but Cardrona’s bra fence has also become a worldwide phenomenon, raising almost $150,000 for breast cancer research in the past seven years.
From bling to downright busty, new implants still hook on daily and, like the size of some of the cups displayed, the collection is now massive, topping the hundreds of thousands.
Cardrona farmer John Lee, whose roadside fence mysteriously became decorated with bras on Christmas Day, 1998, was soon receiving boxes of bras posted from around the world from women wanting to contribute. Within a year or two there were 800 bras lining his farm fence on Cardrona Valley Road to his delight, creating something of a media and tourist frenzy. Traffic hazards soon became a concern as motorists suddenly stopped on the road to check out the bras with the council eventually insisting on a layby, that the Lee’s stumped up $6000 for. Equally as mysterious as its origins were those – never busted, who secretly cut them all down with hundreds of bras disappearing on several occasions, John doing his best to tie them back on, says wife Mary. “John would’ve loved to turn it into a fundraiser then, but there was some animosity and controversy. Some saw it as an eyesore.”
Most in the valley loved it though. “Leah Alison brought a whole bunch one night after she encouraged a busload of schoolteachers heading to the Cardrona Pub to whisk off their bras,” says Mary.
In 2014 the bra fence was moved along the road to a safer spot opposite Cardrona Ski Area turn-off on their daughter’s property where Cardrona tour guide Kelly Spaans turned it into a popular NZ Breast Cancer Foundation fundraiser. The valley was even dubbed ‘Bradrona’ in a bid to attract passers-by to remove their own support to help others.
Local sculptor Liz Hall even created a limestone bust installed by the donation box.
The Cardrona Bra Fence has its own Wikipedia page and even stars on Trip Advisor.
Men have tried to steal the limelight hanging up their underwear, which is hastily removed by disapproving locals.
“There have been numerous naked boobies revealed at our gate,” says Kelly. “A lot of girls get their kit off and then donate. There have been some pretty raunchy ones, then those I can stick my whole head in,” says Kelly. “There are some huge boobs out there.” Donations are usually pouring out of the box in all different currencies, some very generous ones coming in.
“It’s touched so many lives.” It's become a beautiful way to pay tribute to lost loved ones and friends with husbands bringing their late wives’ bras after they’ve passed from breast cancer, and patients bringing theirs. “I get a lot of bras posted to me by grieving families, often with beautiful letters, asking me to put their bras on the fence,” she says. “It’s quite heartwarming.”
So, who would’ve thought? Certainly not the two local Bra-Banksy culprits who started it all, and still insist on remaining anonymous. The pair, who broke loose to create the craze on Christmas Day, 1998, say, while it’s not exactly artwork, the fence they started does have “contours and movement”. “Everyone else in the valley had had three Christmas dinners and we’d had two so there was no-one around,” says one. They’d been planning to strike for some time with the other perpetrator having visited Wastebusters, burying a dozen bras beneath a cardigan he bought. “I thought I might look like a deviant,” he grins. They’re amazed at how the idea, mirroring Aspen’s Bra Tree, started a life of its own. “It’s fantastic, phenomenal that it’s now raising all that money!” says the other. “The Lees really embraced it and big credit to John as the custodian. He really took care of it.”
On occasions, John received help from Cardrona identity, ‘Mrs Turner’, renowned for her vacuuming of the ski area road to the amusement of punters. She once turned up with an old washing machine on site to clean the bras after complaints they’d become dusty and dirty.
Female Cardrona staff would go braless as part of an end of season pilgrimage down the mountain each year, donating their bras.
To donate stop by the bra fence or go to:
https://www.breastcancerfoundation.org.nz/donate
https://daffodilday.org.nz/donate
