Parihaka: The Story - The Place - The People.

2 September 2003

NEWS RELEASE

The Story. The Place. The People.

One of the most powerful stories in New Zealand’s history has come of age at Puke Ariki, Taranaki’s own special place, through a definitive exhibition ‘Parihaka – the struggle for peace’.

Born of a partnership between Puke Ariki and the Parihaka Pa Trustees, the exhibition opens at 7am on 13 September 2003 and continues until January 2004.

In addition, the development of the Parihaka Events Programme builds on the importance of the exhibition by featuring national and international artists, poets, lecturers, historians, writers and entertainers.

Manager Puke Ariki, Suzanne Porter, is proud to host the exhibition. “This is a very important exhibition for all people as the message of Parihaka is global.

“While it speaks of the history of the tangata whenua and the beginning of the kainga (village), it also examines the subsequent impact, both positive and negative, of European culture and technology upon Maori society.

“It maps the passive resistance movement resulting from land confiscations and settler and troop invasion and acknowledges the struggle for peace and the future aspirations of Parihaka and its place in the world today. It is a message that translates through all cultures and times,” she says.

Of particular significance with the timing of ‘Parihaka – the struggle for peace’ is the recent vote taken by New Plymouth District Council towards a preliminary decision with further consultation to return council-owned land – including some in the Pekapeka Block – to the Te Atiawa people.

Pekapeka is where the first shots of the New Zealand Wars of the 1860’s rang out between British troops and Wiremu Kingi Te Rangitake’s people leading to its confiscation in 1865.

“The time is now for New Zealand to seek ways to understand and heal rifts that have deepened over a long time.

“The Parihaka exhibition offers an opportunity for everyone to better examine and understand this important part of our history, and in the long run that is the greatest gift of all,” says Ms Porter.

ENDS
ttached is an information sheet about Parihaka – the struggle for peace.
THE EXHIBITION

‘Parihaka – the struggle for peace’

The exhibition will present the history of Parihaka, a self-sufficient community lead by Te Whiti and Tohu, that became a refuge for thousands of Maori, dispossessed and made homeless by land confiscations throughout New Zealand. It will combine contemporary artwork, historical images and photographs together with powerful taonga to enlighten and inform the visitor about the significance of Parihaka, its people and its place in Taranaki and contemporary New Zealand.

- Seven waiata
- 100 objects
- 160 images and photos
- 12 paintings
- 11 hours of video
- 10 hours of oral history
- 3 audio-visual accounts

VIVID
‘Lively Retail Therapy’

Puke Ariki successfully integrates a museum, library and information centre into one seamless service. Included in the facility is The Daily News Café, Arborio Restaurant and VIVID, a dazzling and imaginative retail space.

VIVID features a superb variety of quality items for sale and has especially commissioned a unique and collectible line of merchandise linked to the Parihaka exhibition. A focal point of the range is individual, hand made blue glass items, developed with the blessing of the kainga’s trustees, in recognition and honour of the Puke Ariki collection of exquisite 19th Century blue glass bowls from Parihaka.

VIVID is local yet global, modern yet nostalgic. There is something to tempt everyone, of any age at VIVID.

© Scoop Media