Te Hau–The Wind

Te Hau-The Wind

9 June 2015

Hokia ki o maunga kia purea e koe I nga hau o Tawhirimatea.

Return to your ancestral mountains to be cleansed by the winds of Tawhirimatea.

The work of artists of Ngāti Tūwharetoa descent from around New Zealand will be on display at Taupō Museum for this year's Matariki exhibition.

Maori collections curator Bernise Williams said the theme of the exhibition was demonstrated by the art from Ngāti Tūwharetoa artists returning home to the district.

It's about the idea of the wind, te hau, bringing these fantastic artists' work home and sharing it with our community, she said. Their whanau, relatives and the rest of the community can see what they're doing out in the world.

Ms Williams said the work featured will come from both well known artists such as Matahi Brightwell, the artist behind the Maori carvings at Mine Bay and master carver Delani Brown, along with a whole host of lesser known but very talented artists.

Along with the exhibition, the museum will also be holding a range of wind-themed activities. Children can learn about Maori instruments, storytelling and myths and legends that relate to wind or flying and take part in interactive displays.

A kapa haka performance by Taupō-nui-a-tia College's kapa haka group, Te Awhiorangi, led by Snow Rameka will mark the opening of the exhibition on Friday, June 19 at 5.30pm

The group is also putting on a hangi to fundraise for its upcoming trip to Hawaii during the exhibition. Tickets for hangi meals can be purchased at Taupō Museum from Saturday 13 June until they are sold out and the hangi can be collected from the museum from noon on June 20. Tables will be available to eat the hangi at the museum. Tickets for the hangi meals will be $8.

We want to really bring together locals and visitors with this activity and will be encouraging locals to share a traditional hangi meal with visitors to the district, Ms Williams said.

The hangi is one event from a full programme that will feature performances, talks and workshops during the exhibition which the community is welcome to attend. For information on what's happening, visit the museum's webpage.

Te Hau opens to the public on June 20 and runs until August 3. Taupō Museum is open seven days from 10am to 4.30pm. Entry is free to children and Taupō District residents with proof of address.

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For further information contact:

Kerence Stephen

Exhibitions Officer Taupō Museum

Ph 376 1583

kstephen@taupo.govt.nz

www.taupo.govt.nz