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A Case Study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

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A Case Study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Maori Stereotypes, Governmental Poiicies and Maori Art in Museums Today: A Case Study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Rohana Crelinsten A Thesis in The Department of Art Education Presented in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at Concordia University Montreal, Quebec, Canada May 1999 O Rohana Crelinsten, 1999 National Library Bibliothèque nationale 1+1 dcanaâa du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395. rue Weiiing(ori OttawaON KlAON4 OnawaON K1AW Canada Canade The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence dlowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distriiute or sel1 reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microfoq vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantid extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or othenvise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. Maori Stereotypes, Governmental Policies and Maori Art in Museums Today: A Case Study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tcngarewa Rohana Crelinsten Maori art in New Zealand museums has a Long history extending back to the first contacts made between Maori (New Zealand's Native peoples) aud Europeans. The Europans settled in New Zealand with a colonialist aninide, leading to the notion that the Maori people would soon be extinct. This promoted the vigorous collection of various samples of Maon materiai culture. Museums were then established to store these artefacts. Governmentd policies dating back to the turn of the century, graduaiiy influenced the ways in which museums dealt with these Maori holdings. The cment situation in New Zealand, particularly at the Miseum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewu is largely a reaction to the pst. Maori people are demancihg that they have more Say in the treatrnent of their taonga (treasures). Slowly, through decades of debate and reworking of policies, new standards are developing for the ways in which New Zeaiand museurns collect and exhibit Maori art. This on-going process is a result of the enhanced sense of empowerment of Maori people in New Zealand today. Art educators in museums and schools can look to museums such as Te Papa Tongarewa for inspiration and guidance. 1 wouid Iike to thank the individual encouragement and generous support of both my parents as well as the guiciange and assistance of Dr. Ebheth Saccii, my thesis supervisor. 1 am enourmously indebted to Sue Superville of Te Papa for her extraocdinary entfiusiasm, for al1 the 'goodies' transmitted, and for every question answered. ...................... Introduction..................... ...................... ................. 1 Personal History...................................................................................................... 1 Background Research................. ..................................................................... 5 . ... Research and Organisation....... ,.. ........ ............................................................7 History of Aotearoa New Zealand.............................................................................. 11 Treaty of Waitmgï..................................................................... 14 Aistory of Museums in New Zeahnd .................................... ............ ..................... 18 The Origins of the Ethnographie Museum ....................................................... 18 History of the Museum ofNew Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa............ .... ........21 Stereotypes....................................................................................................................... 26 Maori People and Culture at the Time of Early Empean Contact...................... 26 European Ethnographie Accounts .......................................................................... 30 Art Forms ............................................................................................................... 34 CL Maori Art as Art" .............. ,. .............,, .............................................................. 41 Governmental Policies.................................................................................................... 42 Current Situation.......... .. ............................................................................................. 5 1 Te Maori ...............................................................................................................33 Maori Art in Museums.......................................................................................... 54 Te Papa Tongarewa................................................................................................ 56 Bicdturalism at Te Papa .......................................................................................66 Conclusion..................................................................................................... .. ................. 72 Implications for Art Education............................................................................. -72 Conclusion............................................................................................................ ..73 Map of New Zealand ........................................................................................................ 77 North Island......................................................................................................... 78 South Island............................................................................................................ 79 Refe rences................. .... ................................................................................................... 80 Glossary of Maori Terms ................................................................................................ 84 PERSONALHISTORY Zn 1982, my parents and 1lefk our sixteen acre farm in the Eastern Townships, just outside of Montreal, Quebec. 1was five years old. We were destined for Russell, a tiny town of less than a thousand people near the northem tip of New Zealand, in an area called the Bay of Islands. 1attended the local primary schwl, which consisted of about one hundred children from ages five to eleven. After Standard Four (Grade Six), the local children must leave Russell for Intermediate SchooI and then Secondary School- About a third of the children in the class were either of ~aori'or of partial Maori descent- The Headmaster of the school, Mi. Waiker was also Maori. The first four years of my schooling were immersed in the Maori world as well as the pakeha2 world. We had Maori language classes and the school rugby team learned the haka ( a traditional war chant Sung before rugby games in New Zealand). Most of the history taught was focused on events involving Maori people in Russell, or the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi,- considered by some to be New Zedand's founding document. Waitangi, is across the bay from Russell, about 20 minutes by ferry. Although not a cause for celebration throughout New Zeaiand, Waitangi Day certainly was at our school- Weeks of preparation culminated in 'Maori Day'. The children displayed their paintings and murals of Maon designs and mythical creatures which had been taught in class. We also put on a performance of traditional Maori action songs. This was followed by a traditional Maori 1 Maori are the Native people of New Zealand 2 Pakeha mems non-Maon feast, a hangi, which consisted mainiy of mutton and kumara (sweet potato) cooked in a covered in-ground pit. Four years later we moved to Auckland, New Zealand's largest city. The inclusion of Maori material in the curriculum remained the same as in Russell. This was the result of the teachers' enthusiasm that we be weli versed in at least the basic elements of Maori culture. The New Zealand anthem which we sang every &y, was also to be leamed in Maori. My parents took me to see the Te Maori exhibition at the Auckland Museum when 1was about nine years old 1remember marvehg at the exquisite pieces of nephrite jade. and to this day 1Wear a jade hei-tiki (pendant in the form of a human figure) around my neck. 1 also remember my parents taking me to the Auckland Museum to see, among other things, the Maori performers. My secoridary education was in Hong Kong. The lifestyle was extrernely different. As a teenager, 1 immersed myself in my new life, yet 1always considered New Zealand to be - 'home'. In 1992,I lefi Hong Kong, bound for Montreal. 1 had corne full-circle. It was not until December 1996 that 1had the opportunity to return to New Zealand for almost an entire month. Apart fiom seeing my old friends, and visiting my old schools and houses, 1had an intense desire to go and see those Maori performers at the Auckland Museum. While visiting a fnend in Taupo, I was taken by boat to see some rock carvùigs. 1 was astonished to see an entire Stone cliff on the edge of Lake Taupo that had ken transformed by students hmAuckland University's Fine Arts Department. They had carved a tattooed Maori chief s face in the rock, and ali around the base
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