Te hīnātore o te toroa = The light of the albatross : an exhibition report presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Māori Visual Arts, Toioho ki Āpiti/Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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Date
2019
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Massey University
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Abstract
This thesis focuses on the Toroa/Albatross and its importance in Māori culture with
particular reference to land markers, colonisation, Iwi Taranaki and Ngāti Porou. The
research, methodology, and subsequent art practice has produced a body of
significant and related works, which will be discussed. Through this research there
have been relevant links made between the use of the feather and teardrop form in
Māori culture. Pounamu and Tōtara are mediums that have mauri, and in turn are
often associated with sacred rituals. The traditional and contemporary practices that
are grounded in the connecting kōrero (stories) and forms are used as a basis for
research and practice. The relationships between the Tītapu Toroa (Albatross feather)
of Iwi Taranaki, the Roimata Toroa tukutuku of Ngāti Porou and the
Tangiwai/Pounamu Roimata (teardrop) of Piopiotahi/ Milford Sounds are explored.
The Toroa is the subject of many stories and artworks in Māori culture. This sacred
bird is often portrayed as a guiding light for Māori and humanity as a whole, both
historically and today. The importance of kaitiakiatanga (guardianship) of whenua
(land), tangata (people), tikanga (cultural) practices in the korero (stories) of Toroa
(Albatross), before and after colonisation, especially in the after effects as we see
them today, will be explored. This enquiry has contextualised the use of Pounamu,
Tōtara, Roimata and Tītapu make up the five works culminating in the exhibition Te
Hīnātore o te Toroa - The light of the Albatross. There has been careful consideration
in applying some of the knowledge acquired due to the tapu nature of these topics and
the relevance of the exhibition taking place 250 years after Captain James Cook
arrived in Aotearoa.
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