Te Maori

 

(photo of exhibition staff at the Auckland City Art Gallery just before the opening here)

The Te Maori exhibition was a milestone in the Māori cultural renaissance of the 1970s onwards. The exhibition of 174 taonga opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in September 1984. From there Te Māori travelled to the Saint Louis Art Museum, the de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco and closed in 1986 at the Field Museum in Chicago.   In New York over 202,000 people visited the exhibition. Many more were exposed to Te Māori through cable and national television coverage and the exhibition made the front page of the New York Times.

Maori artworks had left the country for exhibition purposes before, but it was the first time Maori were actively involved in the process. The management committee adopted a policy, negotiated at the outset, that ensured tribal groups had the right ‘to exercise a veto over their taonga’. But Maori involvement went beyond ‘agreeing or disagreeing’ to participate. They recommended that Maori accompany the exhibition as caretakers, ensured Maori were trained as guides, and assisted in ‘protracted negotiations’ for a dawn ceremony to open the exhibition at the Met in New York.  As an historical moment, the exhibition raised the mana of Maori art, revitalised Maori culture and drew the people of New Zealand closer together.

www.aucklandartgallery.govt.nz

www.teara.govt.nz

 

Moana Maniapoto

Moana has consistently pushed the boundaries of Maori music in both her recordings and live performances, fusing taonga puoro, haka, chants with soul, reggae and classical ‘to produce her own blend of traditional and contemporary styles without compromising either.’ ( New Zealand Herald, 2003).

Maori sovereignty was challenged by the arrival of the first white man, Captain James Cook in 1769. Missionaries began a campaign to erode traditional notions of Maori spirituality. Wars over land and power were fought between Maori and the British troops. In 1840, a Treaty was signed. The fighting continued – on the battlefield, in the courts, the media, even at the United Nations today. The issue of sovereignty has yet to be fully resolved. Maori continue to assert it through a variety of ways today. Taonga puoro (traditional Maori instruments) had almost disappeared from Maori culture. Missionaries had dismissed them as tools of paganism. Over forty have now been identified and revived by exponents Richard Nunns and Hirini Melbourne. Some have been recorded for the very first time courtesy of Moana and the Moahunters. Richard and Hirini lend their talents to Moana’s recording and live performances. Haka (a war-like dance made famous by the All Blacks) have also been incorporated into Moanas music, providing a spinetingling, accompaniment to modern beats. Tauparapara, (traditional chanting) replaces rap. Moana and the Moahunters sing about land and people. They speak of a connection to Papatuanuku (Mother Earth), of justice, the renaissance of the Maori language and traditions and touch on a variety of political and social issues that are universal. © Copyright Moana Maniapoto Moana Maniapoto, PO Box 78074, Grey Lynn, Auckland, New Zealand e-mail: moana@moananz.com or Sol (Agent/Manager) sol@sol-de-sully.de

www.moananz.com

 

Oregami Ducks

I love this example of scale!

 

Mannequin on koru sofa

In our class ‘scale’ we made mannequins.  With corrugated card, we designed a support for the body.  To check scale we photographed.  This was a successful shot. I

Snow Carving

 

Snow carving

80m x 17m

35 ice and snow artists worked on this piece

Juingyuetan National Forest Park, Changchun, Northeast China.

‘Love the use of scale’

Childs view of Jigsaw puzzle

This picture was taken in Drawing in Space.  I was given SCALE to deal with.

I thought this was successful but more so with the title ‘Childs view of Jigsaw puzzle’

 

 

Childs chair and Giant Jigsaw puzzle

 This photo was taken in our ‘Drawing in Space’ class.  I was asked to deal with scale and found this giant jigsaw puzzle.  I think it works well with the childs chair, as generally the jigsaw puzzle is small in comparison to a chair.   This photo challenges the norm.

Triaxle Weaving

Dense Triaxle weave

Various sizes 

I included this piece because of the different type of weaving.  It is the first time I have ever seen or heard about triaxle weaving.  This fabric has three layers of material at any point – and is stronger than a rectangular woven fabric made using the same elements.

 http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://hexdome.com/weaving/triaxial/weaving/graphics/triaxial_weave.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hexdome.com/weaving/triaxial/weaving/index.php&usg=__wZW_jqRBEd8tGwkxUDe4sfSELWk=&h=274&w=311&sz=15&hl=en&start=42&um=1&tbnid=6OI_qHwAyIRizM:&tbnh=103&tbnw=117&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dweaving%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-nz%26sa%3DN%26start%3D40%26um%3D1

Cherry Pie

Cherrie Pie

I just had to include this pie as another everyday example of how weaving is used (and because it looks delicious).  You don’t have to be a trained weaver to use the skill of weaving.  With the simple step of under and over, it can be applied on everyday objects to visually enhance just about anything.   

http://merecat.org/food/img/cherry-pie.jpg

Tatua

MATTHEW MCINTYRE WILSON

Tatua

Fine silver and copper from recycled electrical wire

Masterworks Gallery, Ponsonby Rd

I included these pieces because of the innovative material used and beautiful fine weaving.  I named them Tatua (Woven Maori Belts) because at the gallery they were unnamed.  Matthew McIntyre Wilson is a jeweller who several years ago learnt raranga (weaving) from a renowned weaver Rangi Kiu.  He has combined his skills as both a jeweller and a weaver to create these fine intricately woven tatua.  Matthew sees the stripping back of the plastic sheathing to reveal the copper wire has parallels with the traditional preparation of flax for Raranga (weaving).

I will ring the Gallery Monday and update the real name if it has one.