Kāhu ki Rotorua: Exhibition and book are the culmination of two years’ work.
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
See below for English translation
He toi whakairo – he mana tangata
Ko te rite tātau ki te marama e tere rā i te tāhūhū o te rangi. Ko te Maramataka he kaupapa kua rua tau a Ritchie Francis e āta whakarite ana hai whakakitenga mā tātau katoa. Nō te pō nei i whakapūarengia tēnei whakakitenga ki te hāpori i te Arts Village. Ki tana taha hoki ka whakarewangia he pukapuka pikitia, he pukapuka mātauranga.
“Kua rua tau nei ahau e whakairo ana, e āta whakarite ana ngā āhuatanga katoa kia tika ai te mahi hai whakaaturanga mā tātau katoa. Ko te tūāpapa o taku whakakitenga i makere iho i te wānanga o ngā atua Māori. Ngā mātakitakina, ngā tirohanga āku o te tūhonotanga o te marama ki a tātau te tangata. Tāne mai, wāhine mai. Ngā taumahatanga, ngā painga ā hinengaro, ā tinana wheoi anō ēnei āhuatanga katoa’.
Ko Richie Francis tō tātau tohunga toi. Koia hoki te ūpoko o Toiariki. Whai pānga ā whakapapa hoki a Richie ki te whare nui o Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Makino me Ngāti Rangiwewehi. Kai Rotorua tana kāinga. Nō te rua mano mā rua, ka tupu ake te whakaaro kia whāia e ia te koroingo o tana ngākau, nā reira i tahuri ai a Richie ki te whakaaraara i tana kamupene kirituhi.
Ko tana whakamarama iho i te wairua o tana mahi, ' He Toi-ariki , koia te Toi-uru-tapu, te Toi-uru-rangi whaihoki he Toi-uru-roa. He mahi nā ngā atua, he tapu nui, he tapu roa, he tapu tiketike’.
Koia hoki tētehi o ngā mātanga kai te aroaro o te ao kirituhi e āta whakatika ana, e āta tiaki hoki ana i te puna mātauranga kōrero e taka iho nei i ngā mahi whakaniko kirituhi, kia tika ai, mātua ko ngā tātai kōrero ake a Ngai Te Arawa, kia manaakitia. Nānā hoki ko te mahi a te wheke. He kawekawe huhua, he wairua rau. He mātanga whakairo rākau ia, he tangata kiri tuhi, he pou rāweke rorohiko, he toa kapa haka, he tohunga mahi toi, he tangata pakiki he māia hoki ki te ako me te kawe i ngā puna mātauranga a ngā tūpuna.
Richie Francis has spent years studying the effects the moons and gods have on people.
‘Kai te papa mahi hoki ahau e kiri tuhi ana mai i te kotihi o te rā heke iho ki te ahiahi. E whai wā ahau ki te noho tahi me te tangata ka peka mai ki te whakakitenga. Pai ki ahau te kōrero ki te tangata, kanohi ki te kanohi’. E tumanako nei a Richie mā tēnei whakakitenga e ora ai, e hua hoki ai te hiahia o te ngākau o ētehi ki te tomo atu ki te whare wānanga o tēnei kaupapa.
‘Kia Māori noa tēnei tūāhuatanga, kia Māori noa tēnei mātauranga a tātau, ao mai, pō mai’. I puta mai te whakaaro ki tēnei kaupapa hai whakakitenga i tana mātakitaki haere ki ngā tini rangatira e whakapau kaha nei ki te whakarauora i te mātauranga o nehe noa atu.
Ko te Maramataka tētehi o aua puna mātauranga. He Te Arawa te tāhūhū o tēnei puna mātauranga. Nā Richie hoki te nama e tū ai tēnei whakakitenga me ngā mahi hoki. Koia pea tētehi o ngā painga o te wā e rāhuitia nei te motu o te wā o te māuiui urutā, nā reira i oti pai i a Richie āna mahi toi katoa.
Maramataka, he whakakitenga nā Richie Francis. Kai te Arts Village ināianei. Ka oti te whakakitenga ā te rua tekau mā rima o Pepuere. —Na Raimona Inia i whakamaori
English Translation
Maramataka, a visual feast of our moon and her many facets, is the culmination of two years’ work by Rotorua artist Richie Francis.
The exhibition at the Arts Village opened last night in tandem with the launch of the book containing pictures and korero about each exhibit.
“This body of work pertaining to the Maramataka I have been working on over the past two years.
“It’s main tuapapa (foundational knowledge) comes from Wananga Atua Maori and observations on how our Marama affects our living environment constantly in correlation to these Atua, ultimately having huge effects on us as people, emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually.”
The founding artist of Toiariki, Richie (Ngati Pikiao, Ngati Makino and Ngati Rangiwewehi) currently resides in Rotorua. He has been working full-time as a Contemporary Maori Artist since 2002 specialising in Moko (Maori Indigenous Skin Art).
He describes his work as “Toi-ariki, te Toi-uru-tapu, te Toi-uru-rangi, te Toi-uru-roa. Art of the Gods, all sacredness, heavenly origin, all embracing-creation.”
Richie is also keenly concerned with the re-development of the symbolism and information attached to Moko and its naratives, mostly focusing on these designs as they relate to his affiliated iwi, Te Arawa Whanui. His work as a practicing Tā Moko Artist is only one of many roles that he fulfils as a visual artist, carver, graphic designer, kapahaka performer and researcher of whakapapa and tribal history.
Richie Francis has spent years studying the effects the moons and gods have on people.
“I am also doing moko in the gallery space daily throughout the duration of the exhibition for schools, and art students and general public to come through view and korero to me about the exhibition and Kaupapa”.
Richie is hoping that the exhibition will spark awareness and help to create further Wananga on this Kaupapa, “to inspire our people to follow and live this type of Matauranga in their everyday living”.
This body of work was inspired by a revival in the interest and practice of matauranga Maori, specifically the maramataka.
It is aimed specifically at the Te Arawa rohe.
The exhibition and book were funded solely by Richie.
