Tena Koutou Katoa Hei Korowai mo Ruatapuwahine... The carvings from polystyrene in our wharekai Ruatapuwahine expresses the metaphor of this fabulous cloak for our ancestress, in our doing this, she cloaks, protects and nutures us all her tamariki and all our manuhiri. The spirals in the triangular windows facing the road are called Te Haa o Ruatapuwahine-This is the breath of life from the essence of our Tupuna Wahine. The Tuanui, the ceiling itself forms the body of her cloak- The panels running down her cloak are the carved representations of the living creatures that inhabit the rivers streams lakes swamps waterways springs and pools all around us here- they are all important kai-sources of sustenance these carved panels express, they vibrate the mana, the mauri of these important relatives of ours-from the roadside end of the wharekai they are nga-upokororo-nga koura- nga tuna-nga kokopu-nga kanae- nga Kumara- nga Hue-nga patiki- nga riwai. yes the panels towards the end are to nga huawhenua-kumara, potatoes, gourds- the ground is fertile here, the soils are enriched from the rivers alluvial floods. The horizontal panels depict Te awaawa the river and attendant streams plus nga rotoroto-the lakes and bodies of water here, the caved triangular elements are nga tini marae- all the marae and habitations that existed and continue to exist here, coming through all this artistry is a strong clear message from those kaitiaki, those creatures, those sentient beings depicted- they are in grave danger of extinction-the water , the fora the fauna are communicating this to us now-the art says this and we must do something now, right now or we are all lost. The pattern is sometimes called kaokao-upper torso/armpit shape formed by body stance or posture- this a metaphor but also a reality for the people to be strong as in the haka, to act and work collectively and in unison to attain movement and momentum-i say we will be unrivalled in this. Nga Tapatoru- these triangles were all cut out from the kaokao panels and there were 1004 of them in total-they depict us, nga tini o te hapu -they symbolise us, the descendants,the people right now and to follow and like these triangles all over our walls we are everywhere, -we are in town, we are all throughout the motu, in Australia,in europe,the pacific, the states-everywhere. Also they form the remuremu, the hem, the border of her cloak. The tapa toru that decorate the pou, the columns that support the roof symbolise Nga Kaumatua o te Marae, they are the pillars of the hapu and like the designs they act in coordination- we learn from this. The tapatoru under the manu aute, the kites depict the moment when the waharoa, the gateway to the marae was dedicated at dawn. The hapu moved forwards in an arrowhead formation and at the same moment a flock of birds appeared in the formation and escorted them above, the manu aute remember the birds, they help us to believe in these miracles because they are real.-the smallest Manu aute is in the centre-The taonga of our future potential Te Ao Marama- the rear upper windows are transformed into an artwork called Te Ao Marama-every morning the sun steams rays of light through these patterns and a new day dawns for us all everytime. From the exterior looking up at the windows, i call this Ruruaarau-they are like owls eyes watching over the kaing at night. The triangular windows on the rear side towards the river is called Te Waikarekare aa KaruKaru- these belong to her , to KaruKaru and they are her, they are the flows, the eddies, the currents, the whirlpools, she is our kaitiaki she is the guardian of the awa-Ko KaruKaru The cubes-the cubes are the pohoi, the thrums, pompoms the playfull accessories to her divine costume-the geometric designs speak directly to the tukutuku panels and the spiral patterns to the pare, the lintel carving above the entrance to our wharekai Ruatapuwahine. The lights inside the cubes also form a maori constellation and suggest a maori cosmos-to us here, right now they speak of the promise of a bright future-they float, they revolve, they intrigue and they in their magic way defy both gravity and convention-we can create possibility from seemingly impossible situations and circumstance-they dare us to. Tena kotou Arohatonu-George Nuku
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 01:03:44 +0000
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