A New Ngai Tahu Whare Tipuna

Close to 1,000 people gathered in the tiny Lyttelton harbour settlement of Rapaki last Saturday, for the dawn opening of Wheke, the new whare tipuna of Te Hapu o Ngati Wheke, Ngai Tahu that has been ten years in the planning and making.

It was always going to be a long day - I woke up at 2am and couldn't get back to sleep, so I was ready for action way ahead of the 4.30am Whakatuwhera - the dawn ceremony. Later in the morning - after breakfast for 600, when the sun was up - a team of waka taua (war canoe) paddlers arrived at Rapaki's Gallipoli Jetty (built in 1916 as a memory to soldiers who fell at Gallipoli) to start the second half of the formal celebrations - the powhiri for invited dignatories.

It was a baking hot day and while everyone huddled under umbrellas, sunhats and nearby trees, local kaumatua (elders) welcomed the guests. I spent some of that time taking photographs - hundreds of photographs - and these are a tiny sample of some of my favourites from the day. I'll be bringing a few more to this blog in the coming days.

I always find a wealth of photographic material at Maori events - the carved tokotoko (walking sticks), the beauty of the hongi (greeting; above), the hats, the splendour of carvings, the luxury of feather korowai (cloaks- below), the intricacy of patterns and ta moko. I'm never short of a subject.

I'll bring you more of the hats, the tokotoko, the hongi and the exterior carvings in future blogs. Unfortunately, I can't show you the exquisite carvings and tukutuku panels and the elaborately painted heke (rafters) inside the whare tipuna. While I was able to photograph them for Ngai Tahu's TE KARAKA magazine, that's where they have to stay, as photography is not generally permitted inside a wharenui. Suffice to say, Master Carver, Christchurch-based Ngati Porou artist, Riki Manuel and his team have created a sublime interior that is completely unique. Manuel has invented what he loosely terms "a Rapaki style" that is based on local whakapapa, birds, plants and kaimoana (seafood) - in short, the unique local lifestyle that sets this divine little community - just across the Port Hills from Christchurch - apart. www.ngaitahi.iwi.nz

Traditional Designs - 14

I love these decorated ceramic tiles by multi-talented, Christchurch-based Maori artist, Riki Manuel, who is perhaps best known as a carver and Ta Moko artist. You'll find Riki's paintings, carvings, tiles and Moko studio at his gallery, Te Toi Mana Maori Art Gallery, in the Christchurch Arts Centre complex.

Sculpture in the Park

Following on from my comment about plaques or information boards beside Maori works in public places, I was heartened to find just that near this rock carving in Christchurch Botanic Gardens. Te Puna Ora, The Stream of Life, is an historic site blessed by Tip Manihera ...the rest you can read on the plaque.

The rock has been carved by local carver, Riki Manuel and Douglas Woods and if you're looking carefully, you might walk right by it without even seeing it, as it's tucked under a tree beside the spring and camouflaged among grasses and ferns.

Recognising a Maori Presence

Victoria Square, Central Christchurch. March 2009. Ajr

This is the painted totara pou (carved pole) carved by Christchurch’s Riki Manuel in 1994. It was commissioned by the Christchurch City Council in partnership with Nga Runanga ki Waitaha to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi at Akaroa. He poupou tohu ahi-ka o Ngai Tahu – A mark of the long burning fires of Ngai Tahu. It stands in Victoria Square in the centre of Christchurch, close to statues of Captain Cook and Queen Victoria and celebrates the presence of Maori in Canterbury.

New Marae, New Era

The New Marae Under Construction at Rapaki. March 2009. Ajr

Building is forging ahead on the new Rapaki Marae Development Project. I drove by the construction site a few days ago. The roof is on, the windows are about to go in and the actual building is due for completion by the end of May. Then it’s down to the business of interior decoration. Christchurch carvers, Fayne Robinson (Ngai Tahu) and Riki Manuel (Ngati Porou) are completing all the interior and exterior carvings; and Rapaki weaver, Doe Parata will oversee the weaving of tukutuku panels. The new marae replaces the old Te Wheke Hall and sits on a grassy knoll overlooking the sandy crescent and rocky foreshore of Rapaki Bay, over the Port Hills from Christchurch. The new development is due for completion in November 2009.