Angie Pathmanathan, Miela Slight, Guinevere Eatwell and Tina Rae Carter in front of their work which is now on display in Aratoi. PHOTO/CHELSEA BOYLE
By Chelsea Boyle
A new way to explore Aratoi’s Te Marae o Rongotaketake exhibition has been shown through the eyes of children.
The youngsters had been working away on a response to the exhibition as a part of a three-day school holiday programme.
Yesterday, they opened their work to the public, welcoming them with a rendition of Tutira Mai Nga Iwi.
Their finished miniature replicas of different kinds of homes were showcased underneath a suspended cloak.
The cloak had been created by the group and looming above them all it symbolised protection.
Tutor Tina Rae Carter was moved to tears, and said working with the children on the project had been special.
“It’s very emotional for me.
“Everyone getting together has been like being on the marae.”
She said the plight of Ngati Kahungunu fighting for the land that had been taken from them was incredibly sad.
Learning more alongside her own children, she said what had happened was “wrong”.
But the incredible collection of taonga in the new exhibition was “putting all that to rest”.
