KARAKIA Nā Ranea Aperahama

Nau mai e Tama, nau mai e Hine

Kia whakamāui ake koe ki te Toiora: Ki te Pō ki te Ao

I āhua mai koe i te pō i te ao

I a Ranginui te ao i Māui

I a Papatūānuku te pō i Māui

I a Ihomatua, i a Ihomariri

I a Io-te-toiora ka whanake

I a Io-te-waiora ka māpuna

Ka waiho i te toi matua

I te toi nuku i te toi rangi

I te toiora ki taiao

Ka puritia mai te toiora

Ka waiho i te kaupapa atua

Ka puritia mai te toiora

Ka waiho i te kaupapa tangata

Ka puritia mai te toiora

Ko ōna āhuatanga ka kitea i waenga

o te rangi o te whenua

Ka eke rā ki te taumata kōrero

Ko au te taiao ko te taiao ko au

Tihei mauri ora!

Welcome oh child

May you be renewed through the Art of Wellbeing: Through Light and Shadow

You were formed in the duality of night and day

From Sky Father whom basked in the sunlight of restoration

From Earth Mother whom bathed in the moonlight of regeneration

In the polarity of positive and negative

In the ever-multiplying life energy of Io the creator

In the ever-flowing life giving waters of Io

Placed in the parent knowledge

In the highest knowledge of sky and earth

In the lifegiving energy of nature

The essence of life is sealed

In the origins of the gods

The essence of life is sealed

In the origins of human existence

The essence of life is sealed

For the characteristics of both are seen

As above, so below

For it is said

I am nature and nature is me

I sneeze – I am aware – I am alive!

Toiora: Ki te Pō ki te Ao The Art of Wellbeing: Through Light and Shadow

Hou mai ki ngā toi auaha ā ngā ringatoi tokoiwa. Ka whakakitea ai te āhua o te whanaketanga mutunga kore o ngā tikanga tuku iho, me te whakaputanga ki Rangiātea.

Ko tā ēnei toi he toko i ngā kōrero mō te ara whanaunga o te kaupapa atua ki te kaupapa tangata, ko te whakatinanatanga o te kupu, Ko te taiao ko te tangata e kotahi tonu.

Experience the innovative artworks of nine artists through the ever-evolving nature of customary art practices, and their expression that seeks balance of light and shadow.

These artworks evoke the traditional narratives regarding the atua Māori and the mutual connection to humankind, the embodiment of the statement, Nature and humanity are one.

Kohai Grace Exhibition Curator

I think a lot about the over-consuming world we live in, with excessive waste, pollution, greed versus environmental care, and other destructive human activity and behaviours that disregard te taiao. Our connection to nature has been lost.

To create this work, I’ve pulled together a mix of things collected over time, such as muka (flax fibre), and a piece of merino cloth I eco-dyed using toatoa tree bark. I also searched second-hand shops for a cylindrical form to create this representation of Hineraumati, the summer deity, and her husband Tamanuiterā, the sun. These two display visual warning signs that could be looked upon as beauty, but they know differently; they dislike what they have become.

This piece is my response to global warming and climate change. ‘Ka hoki te waiora ki te ao’ is a whakatauki or proverbial saying that pleads for all of us to restore health to the world and therefore, to ourselves.