Massey Documents by Type

Permanent URI for this communityhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/294

Browse

Has files: YesSubject: search.filters.subject.Art, Maori

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Haehae and the art of reconciliation : cutting through history to generations of artistic expression : an exegesis presented in partial fulfilment of Master of Fine Arts, Massey University, Wellington
    (Massey University, 2018) Bigham, Bonita
    At the heart of the Parihaka story is its people. Its origins, its resistance, its desecration, its desolation is its people. A place where its people have shaped its legacy, but one that could never be told or acknowledged without the survival of those people. Today its restoration, rejuvenation and revitalisation are still about its people. My people. From August 2000 to January 2001 an exhibition at Wellington’s City Gallery, curated by the late Te Miringa Hohaia, titled ‘Parihaka: The Art of Passive Resistance’ took the artistically interpreted story of those people, of that settlement, of that injustice and a hugely important but conveniently ignored part of this nation’s history to a wider public audience than ever before (Hohaia, O’Brien, & Strongman, 2001). It cut a swathe through the heart of ignorance, of cultural amnesia, of colonial government corruption and introduced thousands of unknowing citizens to a story purposefully forgotten and unspoken and one that, ironically today, still remains a largely unknown aspect of Aotearoa’s history. To date there has not been another single collection or exhibition of this magnitude brought together to speak directly of the Parihaka experience, but while the opportunity for continued education from an exhibition on that scale has not yet been realised, many other artworks, projects and exhibitions during the ensuing years have featured work which continues to educate by reflecting that painful legacy. That enduring pain continues to cut deep, into the consciousness of those of us who are descendants and into the psyche of those who come to the knowledge later in life, asking why they were never told (Warne, 2016). This thesis proposes to examine the integrated notion of cutting – or haehae, in its literal and figurative manifestations, on materials in creative output, within the hearts, minds and skin of Parihaka uri (descendants). It will examine its representative aspect within the art that relates to my Parihakatanga and is exemplified through many artforms created by other artists, with whom I share whakapapa to the Kipa (Skipper) whānau (family). I will also explore my own artistic response to that legacy, leading to the development of my final project, inspired by two specific personally experienced events – which on the surface seem totally unrelated, but in actuality are intrinsically linked. The first is ‘He Puanga Haeata,’ the Parihaka-Crown Reconciliation Ceremony held at Parihaka Pā on Friday 9 June 2017 (‘He Puanga Haeata’, 2017), while the second event is the May 2018 mass beaching of parāoa (sperm whales) along the South Taranaki coastline (Boult, 2018). Developing a cultural narrative and artistic transition from art reflecting pain, anguish and trauma to hope, promise and reconciliation is an ongoing challenge, a journey that myself and others may continue to articulate within various aspects of our work, cutting across history and generations.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Māori curatorship at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki 1998-2001 : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Museum Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2006) White, Anna-Marie
    This thesis documents the experience of Ngāhiraka Mason, the first appointee to the Māori curatorial position at the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. It examines the development of her curatorial practice with specific focus on contemporary Māori art. The purpose of the thesis is to describe the conditions and relationships which influence Ngāhiraka's practice as a Māori curator. The thesis identifies the Māori curatorial position as an important development in the Gallery's relationship with Māori. In order to understand its significance, a history of Māori representation at the Gallery is constructed. Based on acquisition, exhibition and archival data, recurring patterns of racial prejudice and discrimination against Māori are revealed. The thesis then investigates the events which gave rise to the position in order to understand the Gallery's motives and present the complex environment in which the Māori curator practises. Ngāhiraka's personal narrative is at the heart of the thesis, a narrative that chronicles the cultural and educational experiences that brought her to the Gallery. Ngāhiraka then describes the conditions and expectations she encountered and the conflict between Curator and Kaitiaki as models of practice. The development of her first Māori art exhibition Pūrangiaho: Seeing Clearly (2001) is analysed to provide evidence of her agency within the site. The exhibition is then deconstructed as an expression of Māori identity and its impact is evaluated from several perspectives. The thesis contends that the Gallery exerts a level of influence that compromises Ngāhiraka's ability to effectively represent Māori. It is argued that the art museum is threatened by the practice of Māori values. The Māori curator then, carries a different kaupapa (framework) which inevitably challenges the balance of power at the Gallery. There is however, a level of intransigence in the art museum that cannot be affected by the incursions of a single Māori employee. The thesis concludes that Ngāhiraka's practice primarily advantages the Gallery and is of limited benefit to Māori. Despite this, Ngāhiraka takes what opportunity is afforded to her and issues a wero (challenge) to contemporary Māori artists. She postulates a new criterion upon which they should be judged which involves making a positive contribution to the viability of Māori at a social level. In doing so, Ngāhiraka engages her practice with Māori-self-determination and becomes an activist against institutional racism.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Wha : an exhibition of Māori stereotypes in contemporary New Zealand : an exhibition report presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Māori Visual Arts, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Findlay, Fraser
    The purpose of this project was to explore the idea of Māori stereotypes within society through a creative practice based approach. Packaged artworks were displayed in an exhibition space challenging conventional exhibition expectations. The packaging of artworks, was applied as a metaphor for how Māori are boxed into stereotypes that define Māori as a product, object or thing. The study investigated how packaging and labellingartwork allows discourse around how epistemologies seek to define indigenous cultures within socio-­ethnological contemporary frameworks. This research involved seeking examples of Māori stereotypes in media and the arts and exploring how they affect self-­perception. Research was also conducted around the work of contemporary Māori artist models who explored the theme of identity. The methodological framework aligns itself with theories around stereotypes and how these affect opinions about identity. This exegesis seeks to contribute to discourse around culture, indigenous values, and contemporary interpretations of Māori language and cultural property rights. This exegesis explores the questions;; How can ideas around stereotyping and the construction of identity inform my art practice? How does the packaging of culture, people/s and belongings affect Māori self-­determination? How can packaged and labelled artworks create a context where bicultural partnership may be considered?
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The development of Maori art in education : case study of a New Zealand secondary school : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1994) Paama-Pengelly, Julie
    Various theoretical approaches have accompanied the history of art development, with certain cultural products selected to represent 'art' most popularly defined in the Classical and Romantic periods of European art production. The rise of mass culture, and the changing relations of production, in the new industrial world have served to highlight the unequal access to power, status and rewards accorded to cultural products deemed 'art' as opposed to 'culture' under these definitions. The ideologies of what constitutes art seem to disadvantage certain ethnic groups such as the Maori. This highlights fundamental conflicts between the definition of 'art' according to an imported European culture and an indigenous Maori culture. The case of 'Te Maori' exhibition 1984 - 1985 raises the issue as to whether the selection of cultural products in New Zealand according to a European art aesthetic has been congenial to the development of Maori art. Alternatively, has it merely served as 'potent defence' of the current social structure of art. Cultural definitions have increasingly become an issue in education at a broader level, as educational attainment of secondary school leavers has continued to be disproportionately lower for Maori than Pakeha as our nation fails to fulfil its development aims to promote equity for all social groups in New Zealand. Particular theories on the cultural 'mismatch' between Maori culture and the dominant 'habitus' of the secondary school have had some support from research into Maori career expectations, and point to the education system perpetuating social inequalities rather than addressing them. The selection of art as a worthy cultural product, as formalised in secondary school art studies, may similarly act to support the subversion of Maori art forms in their function as communicator, transmitter and recorder of Maori identity and culture. Art is defined in secondary schools according to the prevailing Pakeha dominant ideology. Firstly the recognition of traditional Maori art is considered in terms of correct rendering of basic elements, and for a range of traditional Maori art. The importance of traditional Maori art contexts is discussed in light of the formal elements of Maori art and the wholeness of Maori culture and the school art syllabus is examined for its attention to these factors. Pupil knowledge and attitudes are surveyed in art classes of a particular East Coast secondary school and the results are compared according to ethnic groupings and gender differences, with a small group of Maori students from another East Coast school who have not had formal secondary school art education. Maori art has a history and tradition that has evolved to encompass and embrace new elements, while still holding true to many traditional cultural contexts. It demonstrates continued growth and development in new contexts. Particular contexts are examined; art production and art significance inside the traditional meeting house. Methods and concepts are explored in the test schools to hypothesise on the level and requirements of contextualisation of Maori art in secondary schools. The contemporary presence of Maori art, the viability and nature of this presence, is then examined in the light of judgements made by secondary school students towards certain contemporary Maori art works by Maori and non-Maori artists. This serves to highlight the criteria students are using to judge Maori art as 'Maori' and whether Maori art forms are being accorded a development and continuity - an inherent value - of their own. Explanation of the tendency for education to ignore the needs of Maori and society towards Maori art cultural products is explored in the light of theories of the reproductive nature of education, and the findings in this particular research.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    He tataitanga ahua toi : the house that Riwai built, a continuum of Māori art : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Māori Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, Aotearoa New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2006) Jahnke, Robert Hans George
    Prior to the 1950s, visual culture within tribal environments could be separated into customary and non-customary. In the early 19th century, customary visual culture maintained visual correspondence with prior painted and carved models of the pre-contact period. In the latter part of the 19th century, non-customary painted and carved imagery inspired by European naturalism informed tribal visual culture. This accommodation of European imagery and practice was trans-cultural in its translation to tribal environments. In the 1960s, an innovative trans-customary art form evolved outside tribal environments, fusing customary visual culture and modernism. This trans-customary art form, which maintained visual empathy with customary form of the 19th century, was introduced into the tribal environment, initially, in a painted mural in 1973, and subsequently in a multimedia mural in 1975. In 1989 and 1990, this trans-customary Maori art practice informed the art of the Taharora Project at Mihikoinga marae in Ohineakai. In this Project, the 1970s transcustomary Maori art precedents were extended with non-customary form and practice. The thesis employs tataitanga kaupapa toi as a paradigm for Maori cultural relativity and relevance en-framing form, content and genealogy. Annexed to this paradigm are a range of methods: a tataitanga reo method for interpreting Maori language texts; a tataitanga korero method, conjoining a kaupapa Maori and an iconographic approach, for interpreting meaning in tribal visual culture, and a tataitanga whakairo method, incorporating stylistic analysis as formal sequence, semiology and intrinsic perception, for analysing a continuum of stylistic development from the Rawheoro School of carving to the Taharora Project. The Taharora Project constitutes the case study where tribal visual culture and contemporary art within tribal environments are contextualised in a trans-cultural continuum. The critical question that underpins this thesis is how do form, content and genealogy contribute to art that resonates with Maori? The thesis concludes that trans-cultural practice in contemporary art can resonate with Maori if the art maintains visual correspondence or visual empathy with customary tribal form. In their absence, cultural resonance can be achieved through a grounding of the content, informing the art, in a paradigm of Maori cultural relativity and relevance, a tataitanga kaupapa toi. The genealogy of the artist is a further determinant for resonance.