Speakers

Charlotte Graham – Pare Hauraki, Pare Waikato, Ngāti Kotimana

Charlotte Graham is a well-known interdisciplinary artist. Graham is a proud mana whenua mandated artist for her iwi Ngāti Whanaunga. Known as a conceptual Māori artist, she confidently tests different materials to engage in indigenous dialogue. Graham’s work has addressed social, cultural and political issues for more than twenty years. This consistent concern for the social, political and anthroprocene are often the springboard for new work. Her most recent project, Te Waiora, commissioned by The Britomart Group, was a temporary super-scale ground installation in the downtown precinct. The work focused on local history and water as a vehicle to connect and bless people and land over the summer of 2018 – 2019.  Other recent exhibitions, Waikawa and Kaitiaki thrust a microscopic lens onto environmental issues including the impacts that ocean acidification have on her tribal waters, lands and seas.

Kelly King – Ngaitai, Ngāti Kahu ki Whangaroa
Kelly studied for 4 years at Waiariki Institute of Design – graduating in Maori Design – fibre and clay. Kelly is passionate about Maori weaving and has immersed herself in the beauty and knowledge of ancestral wisdoms. Using these teachings as a springboard, Kelly incorporates non-traditional materials into her work which she has exhibited nationally and internationally over the past 19 years. Kelly has been invited by Creative New Zealand 3 times to represent Aotearoa at the Pacific Rim Indigenous Art Forums in Hawaii, Noumea and San Francisco. Kelly was invited as Artist in Residence by the Heard Museum, Arizona. She was also invited by the Tohono O’dam People in Sells Arizona, to travel with their artists through Arizona, sharing her love of weaving and her homeland with indigenous school children and adults. Kelly’s love for her country and people has made her a great ambassador for promoting Aotearoa. And with her partner Riki has also being involved with the cruise ship industry.

Kuruho Wereta – Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Te Ati Awa, Ngāti Kahungungu
Kuruho is a carver, weaver and works as the Senior Partnerships Ranger in the southern regional parks for Auckland Council. He is passionate about creating a bi-lingual Aotearoa and works to create game resources in his spare time to enhance the learning of te reo Māori. Kuruho likes to connect people to nature through his work. “Tuia ki te rangi, tuia ki te whenua, tuia ki te ngākau o te tangata.”

Louise Potiki Bryant
Louise is a Ngāi Tahu choreographer, dancer, and video artist. With her artistic practice Louise aims to honour her whakapapa, kaupapa Māori and mana wahine. She designs installations for her works and is responsible for the design, production, and editing of the projected video elements – an integral part of each performance. Her video art practice includes the creation of dance films, video installations and music videos as well as designing video for music events, operas and dance productions. Her recent work has included designing video for three of Kaha:wi Dance Theatre’s productions; Re-Quickening, Blood Tides and Blood Water Earth. Louise has undertaken several residencies including the Harriet Friedlander Residency awarded by the Arts Foundation of New Zealand, which provided a period of choreographic and artistic inspiration in New York City. Photo credit: Jinki Cambronero 

Pāora Puru – Ngāti Te Ata Waiohua, Te Waiohua, Waikato-Tainui
Pāora juggles multiple projects in a range of sites and scenarios. He recently worked for the Tūpuna Maunga Authority (helping to protect Auckland’s volcanic cones) and has been a teacher but is now freelancing. He has a contract with The Ministry of Education, he also has a passion for raising Māori achievement in South Auckland and has just launched a tourism business, ‘The Taupua Experience’ in Auckland.

Riki Bennett –  Te Arawa, Ngāti Porou
Riki has led cultural environmental programs for many years as a park ranger for Auckland Council and also in his private life sharing his knowledge of the natural environment and how Maori in the past utilised the forest resources. His passion in this area has taken his journey in many directions from working with school students, demonstrating traditional traps and snares to hika ahi (fire making) He has worked with community groups, corporate groups and visitors to NZ aboard super yachts. He has also worked on board cruise ships, presenting on ethno botany and demonstrating taonga puoro (Māori traditional flutes). He was part of the New Zealand delegation at the Pacific Arts festival in Palau, Micronesia and represented New Zealand at the International Tourism event in Dubai with Tourism New Zealand and in New York with Air Tahitinui promoting New Zealand as a destination.

Robin Taua-Gordon – Te Kawerau a Maki
Robin is an educator and is deeply involved, on behalf of her iwi, in advising on environmental issues associated with the Waitakere Ranges, her tūrangawaewae. Among many other projects she has been advising on and monitoring track standards for kauri dieback, teaching tamariki a new haka for Matariki and contributing to a new interpretive trail at Kitekite Falls track.

Tipa Compain – Ngāti Whanaunga
Tipa is a passionate leader and advocate for Ngāti Whanaunga initiatives. He has worked inside and outside local authorities and is aware of the opportunities and constraints of both sides. He is aware of bringing tamariki with him as he seeks fresh approaches to issues. He is currently developing a portal for the safekeeping of stories of his people and is part of a team creating interpretation for Tāpapakanga Regional Park.

Adam Taylor- Eruera – Nga Puhi
Since completing a certificate of Tourism and Travel from Waiariki Polytech in Rotorua in 1995, I have dedicated my career to tourism. Most recently I have been with the Auckland Zoo just over a year as the Tourism Advisor, Auckland Museum for 9 years as the Tourism and Event Sales Manager, and AJ Hackett Bungy as the Account Manager for the Auckland Bridge Climb and Bungy. Manaakitanga, Kaitiakitanga and Whanaungatanga are the values that I have adhered to throughout my career, of which I try to share with others so we may represent our nation, our culture and our way of life with mana.

Craig Turvey
Craig is a Creative Director with extensive experience developing interpretive projects focusing on cultural environments including museum exhibitions, visitor centres and outdoor experiences. In 1995 Craig was appointed the Senior Exhibition Designer for the new-build Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, leading the development of the exhibitions, discovery centres and interiors. Craig then established the specialist exhibition design company 3D Creative which specialises in the design and implementation of experience-based visitor attractions and interpretive exhibitions. 

Anahera Higgins – Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Konohi, Rongomaiwaihine
Anahera is Auckland Council’s Kaiwhakahaere Hotaka, Programme Manager, for Te Kete Rukuruku. Anahera has been working with Auckland Council for several years as Senior Programme Advisor for the Arts team.  She has led significant Māori, Pacific and Youth programmes, been a Television Producer, is a talented musician and story teller. 

Claire Hall – tauiwi 
Claire is a historian who has published widely on military and social history, and curated exhibitions. For the past decade she has practiced and researched iwi, hapū and whānau-led archiving, with a particular focus on oral history. Of Scottish and Irish descent, Claire grew up in Waitākere, Tāmaki Makaurau, and lives in Taranaki. She looks after the storytelling workstream of Te Kete Rukuruku for Auckland Council. Fourteen Local Boards are participating in a Māori naming programme; representatives of the region’s 19 mana whenua partners sit together on a working group to lead this process. Programme manager Anahera Higgins (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Konohi, Rongomaiwaihine) and storytelling workstream lead Claire Hall (tauiwi) introduce Te Kete Rukuruku and share perspectives on some of the opportunities and challenges of the mahi tahi that underpins this evolving programme of work.