Modern Māori art by up-and-coming ringatoi is on display at a premier art fair at the Auckland Viaduct, showcasing work by over 200 artists from New Zealand and abroad.
The Aotearoa Art Fair opened its doors this week to crowds of collectors, curators and lovers of art, presenting pieces from artists such as Lisa Reihana, who fuse te Ao Māori with modern elements.
Māori Artist Kauri Hawkins says Māori art is some of the best in the world.
“There’s other parts of being Māori that may be aren’t as celebrated, but in the art world it’s a point of difference,” Hawkins says.
His work joins traditional Māori patterns with modern-day signage and high-vis materials, similar to road signs. One piece can be seen decorating the building’s main staircase.
Hawkins’ designs are inspired by kōwhaiwhai from Muriwai, his marae in Gisborne, while reflecting modern life for some Māori.
“Moving down to Wellington to go study and seeing a lot of Māori people in high-vis doing labour jobs...hard labour in a sense, and creating the city but never being thanked,” he says. “That’s where this material comes from”.
“It’s also in a deeper sense within Te Ao Māori the reflection of light and Te Ao Mārama, the world of light”.
Up-and-coming artist Nadia Marychurch says it’s important for Māori to be in these spaces.
“There’s so much richness in our stories, and people want to have access to those stories,” she says.
She says the effects of Toi Māori are felt beyond Aotearoa.
“I spent a bit of time in Canada and speaking with the indigenous there, I think that Māori and the way that we are pushing forward, and the way that we are really having a voice on a global scale, is making a difference for the indigenous people globally,” says Marychurch.
Marychurch uses traditional craft-making styles and materials from the whenua, weaving it with modern concepts and techniques.
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