Maori Weaving Exhibit Comes to Seattle
Burke Museum Media Release January 5, 2006
February 4 , May 29, 2006
The Burke Museum in Seattle, Washington, is one of only four venues in the United States presenting 'Toi Maori: The Eternal Thread,' a New Zealand exhibition celebrating Maori weaving. The exhibit highlights how the art form has developed, reasserted, and reinvented itself in recent years , from the finest traditional Maori kakahu (cloaks), kete (finely woven baskets), and whariki (floor mats), to outstanding contemporary pieces.
'The Eternal Thread' includes work from more than 40 Maori women artists from New Zealand who use their masterful weaving techniques to create beautiful and intricate objects. Loaned by the weavers themselves, the exhibit features nearly 100 pieces, ranging from magnificent feather and flax cloaks, to finely woven baskets and outstanding pieces of contemporary fiber arts , woven from unusual materials such as emu bird feathers, copper, paper, and abalone shells.
The Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand. The cloaks and other woven arts created by Maori women are a reflection of their deep sense of spiritual connection to their history, to the land, to their ancestors, and their acknowledgment of the importance of all living things. While Maori oral history holds that they have been on the land from the beginning of time, contemporary research suggests they arrived by boat more than 1300 years ago, after thousands of years journeying throughout Asia and the South Pacific.
The weaving of cloaks includes both prayer and ceremony as well as high artistic skill. A single cloak may take two years to weave and a lifetime to learn the techniques and rituals. Contemporary artists have begun to use non-traditional materials such as film strips and copper wire, in addition to natural fibers. The exhibit includes some innovative contemporary works mingled with the traditional.
'Toi Maori: The Eternal Thread' was organized by Pataka Museum in partnership with Toi Maori Aotearoa and Te Roopu Rananga Whatu o Aotearoa (the Maori weavers collective of New Zealand). The opening of the exhibit will be accompanied by five days of artist demonstrations in weaving, carving and ta moko , the art of Maori skin carving (tattoo).
February 4 , May 29, 2006
As a complement to 'The Eternal Thread,' the Burke will exhibit a small selection of exquisite robes from its internationally renowned Northwest Coast art collection. The intricately woven robes highlight the longstanding sense of kinship between the Native peoples of New Zealand and the Pacific Northwest and illustrate the parallels in their weaving traditions. Examples include a Chilkat Apron by William White (Tsimshian) and a Ravens Tail Robe by Marie Oldfields (Haida) highlighting the fusion of ancient tradition with contemporary weaving practices and patterns.
Sponsors
Air New Zealand; New Zealand Consulate-General, Los Angeles; The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation; Port Blakely Tree Farms, L.P, and Blakely Pacific Ltd. (New Zealand); John and Joyce Price; and the Quest for Truth Foundation.
Supporters
D.V. & Ida McEachern Charitable Trust; Muckleshoot Indian Tribe; Northwest Association of Pacific Americans; Rosemary Horwood Trust; Seattle Christchurch Sister City Association; Suquamish Tribe; and Tulalip Tribes.
Toi Maori: The Eternal Thread
Special thanks to the University of Washington's Department of Anthropology, Office of Minority Affairs, Polynesian Student Association, and the Burke Museum's Bill Holm Center for the Study of Northwest Coast Art for assistance with hosting and publicity. Photo images courtesy of Norman Heke (New Zealand) and Robin Wright (Burke Museum).
Opening Weekend Celebration
Saturday & Sunday, February 4 , 5, 2006
10 am , 5 pm
Sponsored by Air New Zealand
Saturday February 4, 2006
Demonstrations
10 am , 5 pm
Maori weavers, carvers, and ta moko (tattoo) artists, and Northwest Coast weavers.
Lecture
1 , 2 pm
"Contemporary Maori Art and Culture."
Speaker: Darcy Nicholas, General Manager, Pataka Museum of Arts and Culture, New Zealand
Panel
3 , 4:30 pm
Maori and Northwest Coast weavers discuss their art.
Moderator: Carol Ivory, Professor of Art History, Washington State University
Sunday, February 5, 2006
Demonstrations
10 am , 5 pm
Maori weavers, carvers, and ta moko (tattoo) artists.
Presentation
12:30 , 1:15 pm
Maori ta moko (tattoo). Presenters: Derek Lardelli, Wayne Ngata, and Patrick Takoko
Presentation
2 , 2:45 pm
Maori carving. Presenters: Simon Lardelli and Ian Wayne Grant
Performance
3:30 , 4:15 pm
Maori Haka (chant). Performers: Derek Lardelli (composer) and others
Monday , Wednesday, February 6 , 8, 2006
10 am , 2 pm
Weaving, carving, and ta moko demonstrations continue.
The Burke Museum is located on the University of Washington campus, at the corner of NE 45th St and 17th Ave NE. Hours are 10 am to 5 pm daily, and until 8 pm on first Thursdays. Admission: $8.00 general, $6.50 senior, $5 student/ youth. Admission is free to children 4 and under, Burke members, UW students, faculty, and staff. Admission is free to the public on the first Thursday of each month. Call 206-543-5590 or visit http://www.burkemuseum.org.
MaryAnn Barron
Director of External Communications
Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture
maryannb@u.washington.edu