MAORI ROCK DRAWING The Thea Schoon Interpretations Robert McDougall Art Gallel)l 704. Chrislchurch City Council New Zealand 03994 MAO MAORI ROCK DRAWING The Theo Schoon Interpretations FOREWORD INTRODUCTION SOUTH ISLAND ROCK DRAWINGS The earliest images crealed in New In many parts or the South Island, or even the type of animal being Zealand. thai have survived \0 our time. particularly where smooth surfaced portrayed, and some of these may well are Ihe drawings made In caves and outcrops 01 Ilmesione occur. prehiS­ represent mylhlcal monsters or Maori shellers by Maori artists as long ago toric Maori drawmgs can be round on legend such as the tamwha - or, as as the hUeenth century or earlier. the rock surface. where they have one leadlllg ethnologist put II. race survlyed ror several centuries. memones of crealures Irom another They have intrigued archaeologists, land. Occaslonafly the drawlOgs are m historians, and anlsts, who. admiring The reason for the aSSOCiation 01 lhe OUlhne, but most are blocked Ill. Ihe strength and elegance 01 the drawmgs With Ilmesione outcrops IS somehmes With a blank Slflp running deSigns. have conjectured abOut lhe,r lwofold: ftrstly. the ltmestone IS ollen down the centre. Frgures drawn m orIgins and slgmflcance. naturally shaped mlO overhangs which profile have lhe head. more olten than prOVided protection from wmd and ram not. laCing the YleWers fight. Only rarely In the late 1940'$lhearllsl Thee Schoon for both the arllsts and Ihelr artwork; are drawmgs lruly reallsllc: moslly the began 10 observe and record Ihe rock and secondly, the I1ghl-coloured shapes are stylized. somellmes to such draWings 01 the South Island, enthu­ smooth surlaces were no less allractlye an eXlent that accurate ldenlrflcatlon siastically responding 10 thelf aesthetic to people Iivmg cenfUnes ago than are can become dIfficult or quesllonable appeal with lhe graceful interpretations walls and fences to the Ngrarh\l" artists Geometncal desIgns also occur, some­ which constitute thiS exhibitIon 01 today. tImes standmg alone. but more often Melded together in lhese works are the as part of a human or creature lorm Ob,eclivllY 01 lhe scholar and Ihe Most Maora rock drawmgs were pro­ Most of the drawlOgs are of mdlYldual empathy of the artist obserVing across duced usmg black or red dry pigments objecls or designs drawn in Isolation, the centuries the work of earlier New - charcoal or red ochre A lew appear compOSitions do occur, and some are Zealanders responding to their time, to have incorporated white limestone qUite spectacular, but these are rare. place and beliefs, II is Schoon's painl­ rubbing, and some are aClually inCised ings together with the research carried into the surface 01 the rock, but the Although there is a general srrnilarrly out by staff 01 the Canterbury Museum majority have been literally drawn with amongst Ihe rock draWings throughout ihat has increased our understanding a piece of charcoal or ochre. lhe South Island. there are also regional of these early New Zealand images, differences. Certain objects are more The drawmgs are a valuable record 01 common In some areas than in others, We are grateful 10 Canterbury Museum, a form of artwork 01 the early New or they mlghl not occur at all outside lhe Alellander Turnbull library and the Zealanders whose artlslry IS beller a parllcular locallly Some styles of ROlorua Art Gallery lor granting per­ known from the objects they produced depIction. 100, have a IImlled dlstnbu­ miSSion to use and reproduce paint­ In the more constrained medIums of tlon and do not occur elsewhere. mgs. prillts and photographs from lhelr wood. stone. bone and shell. Some are It must be remembered that these collections for thiS ellhibition undoubted works 01 art and have as much appeal today as they did hye drawmgs that have SUrviVed lhe ele­ We also Wish to thank Mr MIchael ments throughout the South Island are hundred years ago Olhers are mere Trotter, Beyerley McCulloch, Lyn Wil­ lust a small fractIon of those lhat must doodles. ollen appearing as random liams and Joan Woodward of Ganter· have been drawn Many thousands hnes or blotches 01 pIgment haymg httle bury Museum. Mr John Perry Rotorua must have been destroyed by weather, or no dellberale form that can be Art Gallery, and Mr Frank Rogers .11M m more recent limes by vandalism dIscerned by the modern viewer. Yet Auckland for their yaluable adYlce and and land deyelopment. Many more Will overall. the rock artol the South Island, assistance In preparing thiS eXhibition. be gone by the turn or lhe century We whetherat Ka'koura or elilden, in North With great regret we note the passmg are IOdebted 10 the archaeologIsts and Olago or North Canterbury. does 01 the arllSl Theo Schoon who died at 10 lhe affrsts for recordmg Ihem. conform to certam conyentlons. lnan· Sydney on July 14th 1985. studymg them. even interpreting them. imate objects are rarely depicted; the and in some cases lor making copIes lew that are. are almost invariably man­ ayallable for all to see. to admire, and made objecls. Mountams. hills and perhaps to wonder .Ill. trees are not shown Birds, mammals John Coley, and fish are common, With humans Michael M TrOller bemg the most preyalent of all recog­ Director. nisable objects. Some creature forms Direclor Robert McDougall Art Gallery are not readily identifiable as to species Canterbury Museum Robert McDougall Art Gallery - Canterbury Museum Cove. Oesogn - AHURIRI GROUP HUNTING MEN AND DOGS 19<11 TheO Schoon MAORI ROCK • DRAWINGS: A matter of Interpretation BeVl!,llly Mc.:Culluch canterbury Museum The recording 01 the prehlstOrlc Maori drawmgs whIch occur," rock shelters. prmclpally ,n the Soulh Island of New Zealand. began over one hurldred and thirty years ago This !lrsl record In the 1852 sketch·book 01 the surveyor. Walter Mantell IS not extensive - In fact lusl a page ShowIng a se~lIon of drawIngs hom a Single North Otago shetter Yet In many ways II eplloml5eS most 01 the rock drawing recGfdlng and mterpretatlOn whICh look place dUring the next century and IOf Itl'S reason II ,s useful to look at Il,n • httle detail Manlelfs sketcheS show that he was HAYllTO,", PHOTOGRAPH Of THE UKIROA DRAWINGS CIRCA 1890 selecllve In the draWIngs he depicted. the relationship 01 the lfl(hVldual draw­ mgs one 10 the other as they occurred -The best known 01 subsequent lOves­ admirable vehicle IOf such wor1t and on the fock lace ,s nOI IndIcated. and IIgators was Julius Haast (01 Cante'· Hamilton has lell us some splendid no size scale IS given The sketches are bury Museum). Augustus Hamilton of records 01 draWIngs. especially Ihose exculed In solid coloors wUh hard. Otago. aod J l Elmore. an American from the Wallakl RIver shelters Never­ clean outlines. the whole bemg des­ who had a parllcular Interest lO rock theless he 100 was seleclive. wllh 11111e Cribed as Ngahmamoe pamtmgsM arl a.~d worked to vaHOUS places concern lor scate or spatial relahon· throughout the wol1d ships as IS indicated by hiS publication Copies 01 these sketches were pub­ Haasl was essentially a SCientist In In t898 01 a selecllon of draWings from lished a lew years later 10 "h"strate comm'SSlonlOQ the artist T S COUSIOS the same sIte as Mantell Companson aspects 01 a paper by Manlell, uncer­ to make copies 01 the drawlOgs 10 the 01 the two versions (see Illustrations) gOing a further departure Irom the Important Weka Pass sheller 10 North Shows clearly the dillerences No prehistOriC onglnals II) the process; the Canterbury. Haast Improved on Man­ grealer adherence 10 accuracy is published versions were primed In a lell's work by ensurlOg thaI sl.;:e scales revealed by the records of J. l. Elmore, Single cotour only, and two Items Irom were Included - as well as an over· now held In the Hocken library. the onginal sketch-bOok were omilled all diagram shOWing the poSilionlOg ot Dunedm It IS obVIOUS that Mantelrs record Ihe draWings wllhln the shelter Although the people menlloned here (Including both the lleld-sketch and However. he too was selecllVe In whllt arc Ihe best-known recorders of Maon published version), was 01 lillie vtllue he recorded, haVing preconceived rock art pnor to Theo Schoon In the ellher t1rchaaologicaUy or artistically. Ideas about Soulh Islnnd rock-shelter laIc 19405 there were many others whO The selection of only cerlmn deSigns COI)led and photographed draWings for immediately introduced an clement 01 ,,'Augushls Hamilton (Iator to become lheir own personal interest. and many personal blils. wllile in ignoring bOlh Director 0' the Colonml Museum in ot them unfortunately chose toemphas­ the scale and Iho Spntilll relationships Wellington) had a parllculnr mlereSl m lZC the originalS by various methods. 0' the draWIngs one 10 the olher on the all aspects of Maon art He was Ihe lirst These IIlcluded outlining in chalk, rock 'ace. he may well have been person to record rock drawmgs oXlen­ 'Iouchmg-up' wllh vanous substances dlstortmg some dellbcrtlte intent or sIVely by photography The slow tllm Includmg Indian Ink and black greasy deSign on the part 01 the ongmal artist and more labonous and painstaking crayon. and III one notable mstance, photographic processes ot last century, ovcrpamtlng completely wllh red and The same applies to any change of which Included large negatives and black house palOt colour Further. Maon rock draWings. better control 01 contrast, proved an either red (haemllllle) or black (char~ coal) are mlact never 01 solid pigment. almost mvarl8bly being executed In a dry medium on a rock surface whiCh. however smooth. always has a degree of roughness As a result the draWings are always textured' to a greater or lesser degree With the background rock showlllg through III patChes - and never With a dean outline Mantell was therelore qUite Incorrect III re1emng 10 them as 'P811llmgs· while hiS ascrlpllOn 01 them to the Ngatlma­ moe tnbe was purely speculallve The Maon people Claimed neither !lrsl hand or tr..chllonal knowledge 01 the arllsts All thts may seem somewhat harsh CrlhClsm.