Deane Gallery
Deane Gallery
The new Roderick and Gillian Deane gallery space will enhance the Gallery’s ability to provide residents and visitors with an opportunity to experience Māori and Pacific Island art and culture as a fundamental part of the city. This new space will provide a constant profiling of contemporary practice by Māori and Pacific Island artists, with a national focus. Combined with the continuation of Māori and Pacific Island programming across all of the galleries, we will ensure that the arts of mana whenua and nga iwi o nga e wha, and the Pacific diaspora are valued and promoted.
Deane Gallery panui and e-updates
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Current Exhibition:
Urban Kainga
16 January - 28 March 2010
Reweti Arapere, Nick McFarlane, Siliga David Setoga and Terry Koloamatangi Klavenes.
In the Māori language the word kāinga (habitat, village, or abode) is derived from the term ahi kā, which means to keep one’s home fires burning. This metaphor refers to the genealogical connections people maintain with their ancestral homelands. It is said that if a person loses touch with their roots then these fires are extinguished.
Urban Kainga showcases the art of four young male artists from the South Pacific who explore the effects of urbanisation on Māori and Pacific communities. The exhibition tells a tale of transplanted cultures, and highlights the process of identity construction while contending with the pressures of urban life.
Historically the customary social structure of the tribe or village provided Māori and Pacific communities with a dynamic system of governance. This not only provided leadership and support, but also offered a sense of belonging and identity through kin groupings. With the breakdown of customary social structures and often dislocation from ancestral homelands, many of these communities have sought new ways to maintain a sense of family or village, and to express their culture in an urban context.
Reweti Arapere’s work fuses knowledge of te ao Māori and te reo Māori with influences of street art and hip hop culture, a rich blend of the customary and the contemporary. Nick McFarlane’s work considers the evolution of urban gangs as an alternative to traditional tribal groupings. Siliga David Setoga talks about his parents creating a ‘mini-Samoa’ in New Zealand, and he explores the influence of mass marketing aimed at Pacific Island communities. Terry Koloamatangi Klavenes addresses the uncertainties Pacific immigrants experience when they come to Aotearoa New Zealand. His images take us on a photographic journey, introducing us to important people and events which have shaped his identity.
Reuben Friend
Curator Māori & Pacific Art
Reuben Friend, Curator Māori & Pacific Art