Kā Kaupapa o te Wā
What’s On
Fred Graham: Toi Whakaata / Reflections
The long and distinguished practice of Aotearoa New Zealand artist Fred Graham (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Tainui) is celebrated in this selection of significant sculptures and relief works from 1965 to 2013.
Disruptive Landscapes: Contemporary Art from Japan
Quietly powerful and immersive video works revealing the politics behind our view of landscape.
He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil
Exploring the relationship between tākata and whenua – people and land – through Aotearoa New Zealand’s art history.
E tuwhera ana te wharetoi i kā rā e 7 o te wiki, 10am - 5pm
Ka tuwhera ki te 9pm i kā pō Wenerei
Open 7 days, 10am - 5pm
Late night Wednesday until 9pm
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Free entry, free wifi
Collection
Ross Hemera Ka moe te whaea i te wai
Growing up in Ōmārama in the centre of Te Waipounamu South Island, Ross Hemera was taken to the region’s ana whakairo, or Māori rock art sites, by his father, Boko. As a child, he visited many sites around Waitaki and made studies of the ancient drawings on the walls and ceilings of the shelters. Hemera has formed a deep connection with the ana whakairo which inspires his creative practice. His work aims to conceptually express the cultural values and beliefs of Kāi Tahu through new interpretations of the motifs used by his tūpuna.Ka moe te whaea i te wai is informed by the Kāi Tahu pūrākau about Takaroa and Papatūānuku. Takaroa was the first partner of Papatūānuku before she created a second union with Rakinui. Their partnership is a reminder of the inextricable relationship between land and water, and that whenua emerged from under the moana.
tūpuna ~ ancestors
Kāi Tahu ~ tribal group of much of Te Waipounamu South Island
pūrākau ~ myths, ancient legends, stories
Takaroa ~ the ocean
Papatūānuku ~ earth, earth mother
Rakinui ~ the sky
whenua ~ land
moana ~ sea, ocean
He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil (from August 2024)
Collection
John Vea 29.09.2009 Tribute to Sāmoa, American Samoa, and Tonga
On 29 September 2009, a magnitude 8.1 earthquake ruptured the seafloor south of Sāmoa and generated a tsunami that inundated the coasts of Sāmoa, American Samoa and Niuatoputapu in northern Tonga. Over the following days, months and years, residents worked to rebuild villages and repair damaged properties, while knowing that as well as the risk of further tsunamis, their lives would be impacted by rising sea levels and soil salination caused by climate change. In this tribute, John Vea tries to keep the sea from rushing towards the shore by constructing a wall of breeze blocks on a Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland beach – yet this act is futile, with the power of the waves constantly battering the makeshift structure. Rising tides and warming oceans are evidence of the massive impact climate change will bring for all of us, and this region in particular.
He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil (from August 2024)