A naked sculpture by Christchurch artist Samuel Harrison has been unveiled at the Christchurch Arts Centre.

Bathing Figure is the final piece to be announced for the Presence exhibition, run by SCAPE Public Art. Its Harrison's first public presentation in New Zealand.

The work, in Market Square, is made of concrete and features a naked female lying on a boulder.

JOHN KIRK-ANDERSON/FAIRFAX NZ Christchurch artist Sam Harrison presents his first public work in New Zealand at the Christchurch Arts Centre.

Harrison said the piece was exposed and vulnerable.

"It is raw and it is naked, but it's not like a nude."

He was inspired when warming up on some hot river rocks after swimming with friends in the Okuku River in North Canterbury last Christmas.

An image formed in his mind, but he had no reason to create it until SCAPE asked for a piece for Presence.

Harrison cast the boulder mould at the river over two days, using the river water to mix the plaster.

JOHN KIRK-ANDERSON/FAIRFAX NZ The figure was created entirely from sketches, with no moulds of the model taken.

A model lay on a replica of the boulder while Harrison sketched her. He created a plaster figure from the sketches, made moulds for the concrete.

The concrete casting was done in the backyard of Christchurch sculptor Llew Summers.

Harrison said using concrete gave the sculpture a lasting quality that would get better with time.

"I love it. It's durable, it sort of has the physical quality that I love about sculpture."

He created the work on a tight timeframe.

"I was a little bit terrified because there were only like nine weeks until SCAPE."

Managing curator of SCAPE Heather Galbraith said Harrison's pieces were "gutsy, but also very sophisticated". It was these qualities that meant they could hold attention in an outdoor space.

"I think that all of his works have quite an extraordinary presence."

Presence opens this Saturday with the completion of STAY by British sculptor Sir Antony Gormley​. The exhibition displays ten pieces from eight artists in public spaces in central Christchurch. The season runs October 1 to November 16.