Meet the People - 29

Another in the Series Meet the People - Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things - Grant Ryan (Ngai Tahu) has a huge and growing list of ideas he plans to work on. That's a good thing when you're a highly successful and motivated inventor and entrepreneur and Grant's commitment to making clever ideas a reality has already come a long way. One of his latest inventions, the Yike Bike (shown below), has been acclaimed the 15th Best Invention of the Year in Time Magazine's Top 50 Inventions of 2009.

For Grant, who was born in the tiny Southland settlement of Otautau and grew up in Invercargill, it is a pleasing and unexpected accolade but true to his quiet persona, he's not one to make a big deal about it. The Yike Bike though, is the smallest, lightest electric folding bicycle in the world. Weighing less than 10kg, it folds down to the size of a laptop and can be carried on buses, trains and cars and stored easily in an office cupboard. Not surprisingly, it is expected to revotuionize urban commuting internationally.
Grant, 40 is a big thinker with a degree in mechanical engineering and a doctorate in ecological economics from Canterbury University and the Yike Bike is just one of many already-successful projects he has embarked upon - and it won't be the last. Following on from the development of a social networking company, a software-as-a-service exporter and an Internet search company, the Yike Bike is just the beginning. Grant, shown above with his cousin, fellow engineer and business associate, Caleb Smith (Ngai Tahu), is excited about the potential the Yike Bike has shown. The company already has orders for the bike from all over the world - despite a handsome price tage of around 3,500Euros (NZ$7000), which puts it at the Porsche end of the market. The first models are due off the production line some time this year and Grant is sure they will herald the beginning of an all-new approach to transport in congested urban centres around the world. It's a long, long way from Otautau and Grant is already thinking about his next big idea. www.yikebike.com

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Another in the Series Meet the People - Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things - Corban Te Aika (Ngai Tahu/Ngai Tuahuriri) is confident te reo Maori (Maori language) has changed his life. Taking a break from his duties as a tutor in Te Reo Maori and Maori Indigenous Studies at Canterbury University, he talks about the power of language immersion and the benefits of attending language programmes and workshops run by Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu.

"My learning te reo was driven by a desire to learn more about myself, my heritage, my culture. My father is Maori but we never spoke te reo at home. For me, studying for my BA in te reo Maori and Political Science was a natural progression after my introduction to Maori language at high school. I haven't even graduated from university yet and it's already given me lots of opportunities," he says.

Corban, 19, has been attending Ngai Tahu's Kotahi Mano Kaika language workshop, Ka Pari Karakaraka for the last six years - six times in all - and he speaks highly of the positive impact they have had on his linguistic abilities. "The wanaka give you an opportunity to totally immerse yourself in all things te reo and Maori. I've found that a huge benefit. They put you in an environment where you are expected to speak te reo yet at the same time, it's a caring and encouraging environment where it's okay to make mistakes."

"Te reo Maori is in danger but Ngai Tahu's 25-year language strategy, driven by the vision of having te reo o Ngai Tahu spoken in 1,000 Ngai Tahu homes by 2025, is a terrific approach. It takes one generation to lose a language and three to get it back. I'm from the second generation of new learners and while we have a long way to go yet, the Kotahi Mano Kaika, Kotahi Mano Wawata initiative is an excellent one - and one that has definitely set the pathway to my future." www.ngaitahu.iwi.nz

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Another in the Series Meet the People - Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things - Rob Martin (Ngai Tahu, Ngati Mahaki) never turns away from a challenge. There’s nothing he likes better than testing his own limits and if that comes with a competitive edge, so much the better. Rob, 43, who lost his lower right leg after a motorcycle accident in 1985, is fresh from his third New York marathon, raced on a hand cycle in November last year.
“I’m very competitive and getting 5th this year was just the best feeling ever. I was second in the 2008 marathon but I finished in a better time this year so I was happy. Being part of the New York marathon is amazing. There are over two million spectators and they all go mad. It’s a real party atmosphere for the whole 42 kilometres. That’s a real buzz,” says Rob. Rob is no stranger to success. In 2007 he raced in two demonstration stages of the famous Tour de France; he is the only hand cyclist to have ever completed Le Race between Christchurch and Akaroa; and he is both the 2009 Canterbury and National Hand Cycling Road Race and Time Trial Champion. He also played in the first New Zealand wheelchair basketball team in Australia in the late eighties; but when someone lent him a hand cycle he was hooked.

Rob immediately decided to ride the handcycle from Hokitika to Christchurch with his mother, Win Martin, as support crew.
“That took me 15.5 hours over two and a half days and I was the first person to cross the new Otira Viaduct. Afterwards Mum checked with the Guinness Book of Records and they awarded me the Guinness Record for the longest journey (247km) by a hand-cranked cycle. That record no longer stands but it was pretty special getting it back in 1999,” Rob says. Among Rob’s many achievements since, is his participation in the Gold Coast Half-Marathon on elbow crutches in 2000; his crossing of Cook Strait in a kayak with former Olympian Ian Ferguson in 2002; his first New York marathon on a hand cycle in 2001; and his sixth placing in the European Hand Cycle Circuit in 2007. Now he has his eye on the big prize – participation in the 2012 Paralympics in London and he’s prepared to continue his punishing weekly training schedule of boxing workouts and training rides with able-bodied road cyclists to make sure he’s fit and ready.

Sacred Memories

Nga Kuri a Wharei - The Four Dog Jewels. Rua Pick.

Te Kohurau (Kurow), in North Otago in the South Island and its surrounding areas is sacred to the Waitaha people – the tribe believed to be one of the first tribal groups to occupy the South island from around 850 AD. It is fitting then that the exhibition, “Waitaha: Nga Ahi Kaa, Lighting the Fires of the Sacred Memories” is now showing at Kurow Museum.

Uku. Rua Pick


Kokowai. Rua Pick.
It is an exhibition of sacred taonga (treasures) from the Waitaha people and includes both ancient and modern taonga - from old stone taonga toki and whao, mokihi and raranga to modern paintings and sculpture by artists like Rua Pick (Waitaha, Ngati Ruapekapeka), whose works are shown here; and Warren Thompson. I’ve featured Rua previously in Meet the People (8) and you can read more about his work by clicking on Meet the People in the label line below. As these new works show though, he continues to be inspired by the Maori rock drawings of the South Island, many thought to have been created by early Waitaha. The top work – Nga Kuri a Wharei – The Four Dog Jewels is a tribute to the Waitaha nga hoanga tuhituhi (rock drawings and paintings). The exhibition continues at Kurow Museum until March 30, 2010. www.ruapick.vc.net.nz

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – At just 14, Hokitika’s Holly Robinson (Ngai Tahu), knows exactly where’s she’s going in life and she plans to get there fast. The fact that she was born without a lower left arm has never stopped her from doing anything and she certainly hasn’t let it stand in her way of incredible athletic success. “I was seven when I decided I was going to win everything I entered,” says Holly. “I’ve always had big plans and my main goal now is to attend the 2012 Paralympics in London as part of the New Zealand team.” Holly already has more trophies, certificates and national records than you can poke a stick at and for her, it’s just the beginning. Her parents, Steve and Pauline say she’s always been competitive – “right from when she started playing football at four,” says Steve. “She’s very outgoing and very determined. We got her an artificial limb when she was small but she kept throwing it away and even without it, she could tie her own shoelaces by the time she was three.”

Holly started with rugby and netball at four. She still loves netball and is currently a member of three teams - the Westland High School team, a regional rep team and the South Island Secondary Schools team; but athletics are her real passion. She currently holds the Paralympics New Zealand senior and junior records for discus, javelin, shot put and long jump. She is a member of the Greymouth Senior Athletic Club, Parafed Canterbury and now, the Paralympics New Zealand Under-20 squad, which competed in the Australian Paralympics Youth Games in Melbourne in October. Since 2006 she has accumulated a string of awards and selections into representative teams; and in 2007 she was a finalist and runner-up in the Hokitika Lions Young Achievers’ Award. She was nominated for the Westland Sports Sportsman of the Year award this year and just to top all that off, she recently scored 100% in her netball exams, qualifying her to become a netball umpire. It goes without saying that most of Holly’s time is given over to physical activity. She trains or plays sport six days a week. That includes a gym session once a week, playing basketball, training for her three netball teams and several hours a week with her Greymouth athletics coach, Danny Spark.
Not content to rest just yet, Holly has applied for a place in the New Zealand Academy of Sports fast track programme, ‘Xccelerate 2 Xcellence,’ which aims to identify and support paralympic sports talent. She is also determined to get to the Paralympic World Games in Christchurch in 2011 and then to the Paralympic Games in London in 2012. “That’s my next big challenge. That’s what I want most of all,” says Holly. “Getting to London in 2012 would be the best thing ever.”

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things - Whirimako Black (Ngati Tuhoe, Ngati Tuwharetoa, Ngati Ranginui, Kahungunu, Te Whakatohea, Te Whanau-a-Apanui, Te Arawa, Ngati Awa), is one of New Zealand’s leading Maori vocalists. I was wandering around town last weekend (here in Christchurch) and couldn’t help noticing all the posters announcing the arrival of this award-winning jazz diva, who will perform with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra at the Christchurch Town Hall on Friday, October 30. Known for her expressive voice (and her traditional chin moko), Black appears regularly at festivals in New Zealand, Australia and Europe. She sings in both Te Reo Maori and English, often works with traditional Maori instruments and has produced six solo albums. Several of her albums have been finalists in the NZ Music Awards, with her debut album ‘Hinepukohurangi: Shrouded in Mist’ being named Best Maori album in 2001. In 2006 she was awarded a NZ Order of Merit for services to Maori music.

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Alex Nathan (Te Roroa, Ngati Whatua, Ngapuhi) works as a contemporary jeweller, referencing the traditional patterns of his Maori upbringing. Up until the late 1980s, Alex’s background and experience in Maori art had been in the traditional materials of his tipuna (ancestors) – bone, stone, wood and shell. That all changed when he was introduced to Hopi silversmith, Michael Kabotie on a visit to the United States. Since then, he has adopted silver as his preferred artistic medium, although his work continues to reflect and evolving process of adaptation and exploration of the traditional taniko designs (as seen on the intricate woven borders of cloaks and mats), kowhaiwhai (painted rafters) and tukutuku (ornamental lattice work in carved meeting houses). His work has been exhibited in New Zealand and in two shows in Vancouver, Canada in 1999 and 2003. You can see examples of Alex’s silver jewellery by visiting www.spiritwrestler.com His work is listed under Maori artists.

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Sandy Adsett (Ngati Kahungunu, Ngati Pahauwera), is one of New Zealand’s leading contemporary Maori artists. And as such he is adamant that Maori artists must work first and foremost for their own people. “A Maori has an obligation to the art of his/her people. It’s the people’s art. It doesn’t belong to you,” he has said. “It must identify Maori to Maori if it is going to remain relevant to statements about our tribal beliefs, values and mana (standing) in today’s and tomorrow’s world.” Born in Wairoa on the North Island’s East Coast in 1939, Sandy’s contribution to Maori art has been immense. Quite apart from his own broad art career as painter, carver, weaver, costume and stage designer (designing everything from postage stamps to full scale stage sets for the Royal New Zealand Ballet), he has been instrumental in furthering Maori Visual Arts within the New Zealand school curriculum.

Ever since he became an arts specialist for the Department of Education Advisory Service in the 1960s, helping to introduce the new ‘Maori Arts in Schools’ progamme, he has influenced generations of aspiring artists. In 1993 he was appointed a principal tutor at Tairawhiti Polytechnic in Gisborne; and in 2002 he settled in Hastings – the heart of his Kahungunu tribal roots – where he established the new School of Contemporary Maori Visual Arts, Toimairangi, Te Wananga o Aotearoa. He is a member of Te Atinga, the Committee of Contemporary Maori Visual Arts of Toi Maori Aotearoa and is on the board of Te Waka Toi, Creative New Zealand.
As an artist in his own right, Sandy has exhibited widely throughout New Zealand and in USA, Canada and Australia. His own works have been heavily inspired by traditional kowhaiwhai (rafter patterns in wharenui or meeting houses); and he has always maintained a balance between the contemporary and the traditional in the materials he has chosen to work with. This week (Oct 9, 10, 11), Sandy will be one of the participating artists in the biennial MAORI ART MARKet, which is being staged at Pataka and the Te Rauparaha Events Centre in Porirua, near Wellington. www.maoriarts.org.nz (All images courtesy of Toi Maori Aotearoa).

Meet the People - 22

Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Kelli Tuuta (Ngati Mutunga/Taranaki), Rocky Roberts (Ngai Tahu) and their son, Monahan Tuuta-Roberts of Christchurch, are all learning te Reo together. As Te Wiki o Te Reo draws to a close for another year it seems fitting to feature a family keen to support and nurture their cultural heritage through the learning of the language. Rocky and Kelli see it as an investment in their future. “It’s about who we are,” says Kelli. Monnie, now 7, was first exposed to te Reo as an 11-month old toddler, when he was enrolled at Te Waka Huruhurumanu, the bilingual Early Learning Centre at Christchurch Polytechnic. Rocky was then studying at the Christchurch Polytechnic Broadcasting School (he now works for MoreFM) and Kelli was working as a nurse at Christchurch Hospital. Monnie is now a pupil at Te Tikanga Rua Reo, the bilingual unit at St Albans Primary School and keen to support him fully, Rocky and Kelli began te Reo lessons themselves – at Te Wananga o Aotearoa – three years ago. For Rocky, it has been a journey of personal discovery. He had little contact with, or knowledge of his Maori ancestry while he was growing up and says when he met Kelli, the only Maori word he knew was kia ora (hello). Kelli on the other hand, had a strong Maori upbringing in Taranaki but she lost touch with that when she left New Zealand for overseas adventures in Europe. “For me, learning te Reo again has been about the rediscovery of my Maori roots. It’s made me question my life and it’s made me much more aware of my own Taha Wairua – my spiritual side. But the best thing of all is knowing that Monnie with be fluent in two cultures, that he will be equipped with the knowledge that willo enable him to walk tall in both the Maori and the pakeha worlds.”

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Meet the People 21 – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Linzi Hodge (Ngati Wai, Northland), grew up in Whangarei and then left New Zealand five years ago to explore what lay beyond. She’s been living in Sydney ever since where she now works as a florist. Her ties to New Zealand though, remain strong and she returns every six months to reacquaint herself with her roots. “Living in Sydney has made me realise what a beautiful country New Zealand is and hopefully I’ll move back within the next five years,” she says. Linzi, 26, says her Northland upbringing included learning Maori at school. “When I was young my birth father’s family was very traditional and we spent a lot of time going onto the marae. I didn’t enjoy it then but now I look back and think it was an important part of my upbringing.” More recently she returned home to get married to her Australian partner, Kirk Macdonald.

Linzi completed a floristry course in Sydney and now works as a florist, incorporating traditional Maori harakeke (flax) putiputi (flowers) into her work. “It can be difficult to get flax here so I buy it from a foliage man at the flower markets. I’ve based a lot of my work on putiputi. I enjoy using Maori designs in all of my work and it’s great to show that to people here, who have no idea about Maori, the designs or the meanings behind them. I’ve had a huge response to my woven flowers over here.”

But Linzi doesn’t stop at floristry. She’s inspired by anything creative including acrylic painting and sewing clothes and cushions (made from old, woollen New Zealand blankets). She sells her Kiwiana-inspired cushions on Etsy, the global creative Internet site that presents the creative work of hundreds of thousands of people from over 150 countries. And on top of that, she runs her own blogsite – http://pinkpixiepants.blogspot.com/ – where she indulges her passion for photography and all things creative. You can check out more of her work there and read about what she makes of living in Sydney.

It's All Too Luscious!

A Lime Green Tiki Treat

Earrings by Too Luscious

Rotorua

www.tooluscious.com

Meet the People - 20

Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Jo Tito (Taranaki, Ngati Pikiao Tuhourangi-Ngati Wahiao), grew up in the small village of Waipa, 5km south of Rotorua and now lives in Gisborne with her partner, Todd (Taranaki, Te Ati-Haunui-a-Paparangi) and two of his children. Both are fluent Maori speakers. “I learned a little Maori while I was at school – maybe an hour a week – but it wasn’t until I experienced total immersion back home in Taranaki that I became fluent. It’s definitely the best way to learn,” she says. Jo is very much driven by her passion for Maori language. It is at the root of everything she does – including in her work as an artist and photographer. “I am inspired by the patterns of nature as my ancestors were, but my work is not solely based on Maori culture. The spiral for instance, appears in my work regularly and while it is a common Maori design element, it is also seen in many other cultures. But I am very much driven by our Maori language and wherever I can incorporate this into my work I will. It’s a whole different world when your whakaaro, your way of thinking, is in Maori. This inspires me to create.”

"Kohatu (rock)" Painted rock by Jo Tito
Jo works in a number of mediums including photography, which she has been doing professionally and as a love for 15 years. Much of her artwork also focuses on natural materials like the kohatu (rock), which she hand-paints and the paper she makes from harakeke (flax). Many of her photographs are printed on her own handmade harakeke paper. “I’m passionate about the land and sustainable living; and by working in rock and flax, I feel very connected to the land and its stories,” she says. Her work has been exhibited in Rotorua, Taranaki, Gisborne, America Samoa and Arizona; and she travelled with a New Zealand delegation of artists to Palau in 2004 and American Samoa in 2008, for the International Festival of Pacific Arts. She’s won awards for both photography and fibre work; and while she was living in Taranaki, she curated an exhibition called “Wahine,” for the Taranaki District Health Board, to highlight the importance of cervical screening for women. “I love hauora (personal health and wellbeing).”

"Whariki (Mat)" Photo by Jo Tito
Factor in the writing of “Matarakau – Healing Stories of Taranaki,” a collection of Taranaki whanau stories on traditional Maori healing; research for another collection of stories looking at the effects of colonisation on indigenous peoples around the world; her own marketing business; digital storytelling, reading and self-development and you begin to see why Jo, 35, is a terrific role model for young Maori women everywhere. You can read more about her online here. - http://inspirationalwebsite.net/ Jo’s wrist moko (tattoo), shown in the top photograph, were created by Mark Kopua. The moko on her feet, legs and back (not shown) were created by Julie Kipa.

Another Luscious Moment

Image courtesy of Too Luscious, Rotorua
Hot Orange
A Tiki Bracelet
From Too Luscious
http://www.tooluscious.com/
You can meet the two talented girls behind the Too Luscious range by clicking on Meet the People in the label line below this post.

Tiny Tiki

Image courtesy Too Luscious, Rotorua

Multi-Coloured Tiki

Resin Treasures

From Too Luscious

www.tooluscious.com

Too see more of the Too Luscious jewellery range and to meet the owners click on Too Luscious or Meet the People in the label line below this post.

Meet the People - 18

Kahungunu Marae, Nukaha, Eastland. May 2009. Ajr

Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Cairo Otene (Ngati Kahungunu) did not want me to take her photograph (she was shy) but she was quite happy for me to write about her and my lovely experience at her home marae, Kahungunu in Nuhaka, Eastland. Cairo and her husband live just across the road from the marae and act as caretakers. I had pulled up outside and was taking a photograph out my car window, when Cairo came out of her house and told me to park my car and “come in and have a real look.” I was delighted – especially as earlier than morning I had been told to “go away” when I stopped at one of the marae at Tokomaru Bay. It was the only unfriendly response I had had at a marae in all of New Zealand but it had left me feeling uneasy and disappointed. Cairo Otene soon put all that to rest as she unlocked the mare door to reveal a spectacular interior – one of the largest wharenui (meeting houses) in all of New Zealand in fact. She turned on all the lights and told me I was welcome to take some photographs. I was almost overwhelmed by the scale and the beauty of the place and feel sure my photographs do not do it justice.

Cairo (named after an uncle who served in Cairo during WWII), was born in Nuhaka and grew up there. “As a child I learned to skate on the concrete courtyard in front of the wharenui,” she laughed. She told me that if I promised not to take any photographs, she would take me inside the Whare Te Poho o Te Tahinga – the small ancestral house to one side of the wharenui. I agreed and she darted off to get the key.

Nuhaka, Eastland. May 2009. Ajr
Once inside, she took me around the room ‘introducing me’ to her ancestors. Their photographs were hung around the walls of the small, quiet room. “I was one of 13 children,” she said. “I had nine brothers and three sisters. There are ten of us left and we have a very strong sense of family. We have a family reunion every three years.” She pointed out the five generations of her family on the wall. I was most taken with an old photograph of Ihaka Whaanga (1808-1875), Cairo’s great-great-grandfather – a handsome fellow with full facial moko, who was a respected military leader and said, in some accounts, to have had three wives.. He was painted by artist Gottfried Lindauer and photographs of him are in the collections of Alexander Turnbull Library and the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Another famous face on the walls of the Whare Tahinga was Maori All Black, George Nepia. The rear wall was a memorial to local soldiers of the 28th Maori Battalion who lost their lives in the Second World War. I lingered there awhile while Cairo went about the business of vacuuming; and then I wandered back into the magnificent wharenui. The timber floors glowed. I stood there a while, wondering what stories that intricate tukutuku panels could tell. (I’ll bring you photographs of them another time). www.kahungunu.iwi.nz www.kahungunu.com

Pounamu Taonga

Queenstown. May 2009. Ajr

Last Tuesday I wrote a Meet the People piece about Invercargill-based carver, Nathan Jerry (scroll down to read that). His favourite carving medium is pounamu (greenstone or jade) and his works are usually based on traditional designs - as are his bindings, which are shown in good detail here. Nathan sells his work every weekend at the Queenstown Market and I must say it is a pleasure to come across such beautifully crafted pieces.

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Nathan Jerry (Tainui) is a long way from his Kawhia (Waikato) roots – he’s lived in Invercargill all his life and it’s there that he’s made a career for himself as a carver. Nathan, 38, was bundled up against the cold the day I found him at the Queenstown Saturday Market selling his wares. I had to talk him into a photograph but he talked freely about his passion for carving and especially for pounamu (jade). “I did my training in traditional wood carving in Invercargill and while I’ve carved in wood, bone, stone, shell, I prefer pounamu above anything else. It’s as if all my years of carving have led me to pounamu. I have a huge respect for it. It’s such a beautiful stone with incredible colour variation. Some pieces just carve themselves. It’s an awesome medium,” he says.

Nathan, who has been carving commercially for eight years, carved the Potuku Manawa (centre post) at Invercargill’s Murihiku Marae. He took those traditional skills with wood and applied them to pounamu. “I’m self taught when it comes to stone but after three and a half years of working with jade, I’ve found my niche.”

All images. Queenstown. May 2009 Ajr.

Nathan also works as a commercial paua diver in the cold southern oceans from Oamaru south, around Stewart Island and into Milford Sound. “I love pounamu and I love the ocean so it’s a happy marriage for me. Most of my designs are quite traditional and I work around several ocean themes – wave forms, whales, hei matau (fish hook).” He was also the lucky recipient of a gift of the sought-after pounamu called Tangiwai (actually Bowenite) – the rarest form of all from Milford Sound. It’s much lighter in colour and is now fully protected. “I was very lucky to know a man who collected it over 60 years ago and he gave me some to work with. It’s a privilege to be able to work with it.”

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Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – William Pepere (Ngati Porou), surprised me greatly when he turned the key in the lock of the rear door of St Mary’s Church, in the tiny East Cape township of Tikitiki. It was 8.30 on a Sunday morning and I had called in to see this exquisite example of traditional Maori craftsmanship. There wasn’t a soul about and, as the church’s front door was open, I thought it would be okay to sneak inside. What I discovered there took my breath away! It truly is THE most amazingly beautiful place – every interior surface a credit to superb craftsmanship. I was standing there taking in the total silence and calmness of the place and trying to etch every detail into my memory, when the front door banged suddenly and then the back door rattled. Next minute, William Pepere came in. I’m not sure which of us was more surprised.
Turns out William is the Kaikarakia, or Lay Reader for the church and he had arrived early, to prepare the church for the morning’s 9am service. We stood and chatted, he pointing out the memorial boards on one side of the church, dedicated – as in fact the whole church is – to the Ngati Porou soliders, who died in World War I. He talked about the tukutuku paneling, the ornate carving, the incredible stained glass windows – and I just stood there in awe. He told me about 1,000 people live in Tikitiki and that he is very pleased to have around twenty at his services each Sunday. I wanted to stay on be part of the service but it would have greatly encroached on my travel schedule; so instead I asked Mr Pepere if he would let me take his photograph. He agreed, switching on all the lights, so I could get better shots of the interior detailing. I left him then, as he was vacuuming the floors. He waved as I made my way out, reluctant to leave.

All Photos May 2009 Ajr

It is an understatement to say that St Mary’s at Tikitiki is one of the finest churches in New Zealand. It was built in 1924 by local Ngati Porou people and the interior was a collaboration between Ngati Porou and Te Arawa master carvers, orchestrated by Sir Apirana Ngata. For anyone with an interest in traditional Maori crafts it must be the penultimate experience! I would visit it again in a flash to once again have that incredible mixed feeling of awe and contentment that I felt there.

Meet the People - 15

Lillian Hetet-Owen. April 2009 Ajr

Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – Lillian Hetet-Owen (Te Ati Awa/Hapu:Hamua; Ngati Maniapoto; Ngati Tuwharetoa), of Lower Hutt, needs little introduction. She comes from a highly regarded family that has given us a legacy of five generations of creativity. Lillian manages the Maori Treasures Complex at Waiwhetu, in Lower Hutt, which was set up by her parents, Master Carver Rangi Hetet and his wife, internationally regarded weaver, Erenora Puketapu-Hetet, who passed away in 2006. Rangi Hetet is the last surviving member of a special group of carvers known as Konae Aronui; and the late Erenora, was made an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit in 2002 for services to weaving. Erenora had learned the finely detailed craft of feather korowai (cloak) weaving, from her mother-in-law, Rangimarie Hetet. Today, several members of the extended family all participate in the making of traditional Maori arts and crafts. According to Lillian, the family aim – and the aim of the Maori Treasures Complex – is to develop, maintain and promote the Maori art traditions that they have inherited from their ancestors. “We aim to produce and develop cultural products that demonstrate the essence and spirit of Maori in our region,” she says. “My mother always wanted her pupils to teach at least one other person so we could keep traditions alive. It has been a privilege growing up here and it is a privilege to be able to share it with new students and national and international visitors,” say Lillian.
"Tu Tangata" A feathered Korowai by Erenora Puketapu-Hetet - a patchwork representing all iwi of NZ. Ajr

The making of a feather bag using the Whatu technique. Ajr

The day I visited Maori Treasures to meet Lillian, she was busy being interviewed for a television documentary but she still made time to sit with me and talk about the rich legacy her family is responsible for. We sat in the gallery – filled with exciting works both traditional and contemporary; and she took me through the carving and weaving studios to look at some of the exquisite cloaks that her mother made. Lillian is also an owner of the two Koha shops in Lower Hutt; and she oversees students attending the complex’s weaving and carving studios, which are linked to the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand.

'Te Maori' The Waiwhetu Cultural Centre designed by Athfield Architects, Wellington. Ajr

Waiwhetu Marae, Lower Hutt. April 2009. Ajr

The Maori Treasures Complex is located in a converted house that sits among 60 others in the Maori settlement that snuggles in around Waiwhetu Marae, the Cultural Centre, radio station, a Kohanga Reo and the offices of Te Runanga nui o Taranaki Whanui ki te Upoko o te Ika a Maui. The Waiwhetu area has been settled by Te Ati Awa people since the 1830s. The Waiwhetu Marae was built in 1960 and continues to be the focal point of community activity.

Meet the People - 14

Titirangi, Auckland. May 2009. Ajr

Another in the Series Meet the People – Contemporary Maori Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Things – John Panoho (Parawhau, Ngati Whatua, Ngapuhi), of Titirangi, Auckland is one of the original pioneers of authentic Maori tourism in New Zealand. John is the owner of Navigator Tours, which he set up in 2000 – although his career in tourism goes way back before that. After twenty years in the New Zealand Police force, working in the drug squad in Auckland and the Waikato, John changed his path and in 1984, spying an opportunity to present the best of Maori to an international audience, he started a small tour company, determined to show the world that there was much more to Maori than “singers and dancers in grass skirts.” In the years since he has been involved in a wide variety of Maori tourism initiatives, all aimed at changing people’s perceptions of what contemporary Maori tourism could be. “We started out as a little supplier doing high-end tours and back in 1984 there were no other Maori operators apart from Te Puia in Rotorua,” says John. “And we were promoting the same basic principles then, as we are today. Our idea with Navigator was to capture some of the dozens of Maori suppliers that have erupted onto the scene in the last ten years and take the best of them – those with an authentic tikanga component – to the international marketplace.” The company has now established a number of operational luxury and general tourism brands that include Maori cultural components – all customized to a wide range of clients from single independent travelers to delegates, corporate and inbound tour groups. Whether people are looking to sit down and talk with Maori professor, be taken to a Maori carving studio or into the bush with a Maori chef, John can organize it. “Our luxury food, wine and culture itineraries give people the chance to step into Kiwi lifestyles and to experience some unique aspects of contemporary Maori life. We’re continually looking for innovative ways to get the message across. Hunting and gathering for instance, is a quintessential part of Maori culture and that includes the exploration of core Maori principles involved in that. We want people to leave us with a much deeper understanding of what it means to be Maori in contemporary New Zealand.” In terms of Maori tourism in general, John believes we still have a long way to go yet. "I’m troubled by the fact that we don’t have enough experienced Maori at the forefront of New Zealand tourism; and that we have no real benchmarks for what authentic Maori tourism should be. There is certainly plenty of room for growth yet,” he concludes. www.navigatortours.co.nz