Significant gift on the agenda for Iwi delegation’s UN visit
16 February 2016
Significant gift on the agenda for
Iwi delegation’s UN visit
Sixty-eight iwi have maintained their staunch support for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (the Declaration) at Waitangi on 5 February 2016, with an iwi delegation set to visit the United Nations in New York later this week.
The delegation will leave for New York on
Friday < The proposed United Nations gift – called
Māori Tū – is being created at the New Zealand Māori
Arts and Crafts Institute (NZMACI) at Te Puia in
Rotorua. The initiative involves the creation of two
whatarangi – a wooden carved original to remain in New
Zealand and a four tonne bronze cast version, which is
proposed to be presented to the United Nations. The
bronze taonga has the mandate of the ICF, a forum
representing 68 iwi around New Zealand, through the signing
of a highly symbolic declaration, Te Ōhākī Tautoko a
Māori Tū in November 2014. Members of the
delegation who will travel to New York include NZMACI
director and ICF technical advisor Karl Johnstone, six
representatives from Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki (Gisborne – East
Coast) and two from Ngāruahine (Taranaki – West
Coast).
Paramount chief of Ngāti Tūwharetoa and
Iwi Leaders Group Chairman for Māori Tū, Sir Tumu te
Heuheu says the connection of the two whatarangi is a
deliberate measure to generate dialogue and consideration
between the articles of the Declaration and the rights of
iwi Māori across all political processes and legislative
considerations in Aotearoa New Zealand. “One of
the project’s key objectives is to create a wider
awareness of the Declaration, including its social and
political context, and its importance to Māori and to New
Zealand. We hope that over time, other nations, including
those throughout the Pacific, will connect to this kaupapa
(initiative). “We expect that the taonga will also
help define a set of values to help foster the future
relationship between iwi and the United Nations.” Karl Johnstone, says the tohu (symbol) of the whatarangi
was chosen for Māori Tū as the storehouse represents the
wealth and importance of Māori cultural heritage. “The whatarangi is a symbol of safe-keeping, identity
and cultural wellbeing, and it represents the storage and
maintenance of tangible and intangible heritage. These are
all aspects that the Declaration sets out to protect.” Mr Johnstone says the kōrero (stories) captured in the
carving reference a range of Māori values and social
frameworks, including tapu (regulation), whakapapa
(connectivity), manaakitanga (benevolence), kaitiakitanga
(sustainability), mana (prestige) and concepts of
humanity. United Nations Development Programme
Administrator, Helen Clark, visited the NZMACI Foundry in
August 2014 and declared the project to be an “enormous”
and an “exciting undertaking”. At the time, she said
that the use of bronze was “a concrete statement of a
culture that has stood through time and continues to do
so.” Mr Johnstone says NZMACI is trying to push
the limits of the bronze material, including its ability to
capture the finest elements of carving. “The
foundry and its resulting art is a meeting of time honoured
practices, particularly the reductive carving process and
the reflective casting process.” He says the
foundry is part of an ongoing focus of introducing new
knowledge and expertise to its students and schools, and
NZMACI is proud to facilitate the creation of the taonga
with the ICF for the United Nations. Mr Johnstone
says while many might consider bronze to be contemporary in
terms of Māori culture, the skills and techniques have been
used for more than 7000 years elsewhere in the world. Bronze
also has a long history in New Zealand – even though it
may not be well known – cast bronze patu (short weapons)
were traded with iwi on Captain James Cook’s second voyage
to New Zealand between 1772 and 1775. “Māori have
always adapted to and adopted new technology and while our
materials may change over time, the thought processes that
underpin the culture remain the same,” he says. Key Facts and Figures – Māori Tū Whatarangi · Being created at the New Zealand Māori
Arts and Crafts Institute at Te Puia in Rotorua https://vimeo.com/125208507 ends
·
Base 1600 mm x 2375 mm
· Paepae (Barge
board) 2400 mm
· Support pole 2375 mm
·
Total height 3650 mm
· Estimated weight 4
– 4.5 tonne
Please below a link to a video
which provides footage of the wooden whatarangi, the bronze
casting process, some bronze pieces and the signing of the
Te Ōhākī Tautoko a Māori Tū by 68 iwi.