On Saturday June 28, New Zealand’s national museum reopened its two-level gallery space Toi Art.
The suite of exhibitions at Toi Art feature a mix of new Te Papa acquisitions and beloved works from the collection by iconic artists like Ralph Hotere, Michael Parekōwhai and Maureen Lander.
A beautifully woven piupiu (flax garment) installation by Lander — which Te Papa purchased in 2014 — is a standout for the museum’s Curator Mātauranga Māori Isaac Te Awa.
“For me personally, Maureen Lander’s ‘Huna’ is my favourite, that representation of a wāhine atua (female deity) made out of harakeke, I’m also a weaver, so that’s my bias.”
Diversity of media is certainly a feature of the new Toi Art exhibitions, Te Awa says.
Clay, harakeke, wood and even neon strings all have a place as part of the mahi toi (artwork), which he puts down to the rich history of Māori artistry.
“We have a huge history of creativity and that hasn’t stopped with colonisation, our practices continue to evolve, our people are really clever, and we look for new ways to tell our stories and our pūrākau and our kōrero.”
When entering the revamped Toi Art space, visitors are greeted by two monumental artworks — one made of burnt timber and the other of fired clay.
Nga morehu by Shona Rapira-Davies (Ngāti Wai) features a group of wāhine made of fired clay performing a karanga.
Opposite that is Black Phoenix by Ralph Hotere (Te Aupōuri), built from the charred timber of a Dunedin fishing boat which Hotere saw burning on TV in 1984.
“Ralph is iconic in the story of New Zealand art, not just Māori art, but New Zealand art. He redefined and he changed what Māori art can look like for a generation. He passed away in 2013, and his legacy is still really strong, really inspiring and really beautiful,” Te Awa says.
The new Toi Art exhibition is quite a “mixed bag” of new commissions and acquisitions, and beloved works from the national art collection, he says, including Maureen Lander’s installation String games, which was created for Te Papa’s opening in 1998.
“It’s part of our heritage, and it’s an opportunity for people to see some of the old taonga that we have in our collections. But we also have new acquisitions that have come out for the first time, too, so it’s that mix of old and new and a chance for people to see their heritage and history.”
Other installations by Yona Lee and Hariata Ropata-Tangahoe are new acquisitions which have never before been on display at Te Papa.
Te Awa hopes visitors to Toi Art will take their time to enjoy the works and just let their imagination run wild.
“There should be something for everybody, hopefully. It’s just a really exciting suite of exhibitions to put together.”
Toi Art opened to the public on 10am Saturday.
Over the weekend, Te Papa is also hosting the annual kaumātua performance festival Taikura Kapa Haka, with over 600 elders from around the country expected to take the stage.
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