'Voodoo doll'

This doll was decorated by Carmen Rupe (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Heke-a-Wai, 1936‒2011). Carmen was a flamboyant transgender women, performer, business owner and anti-discrimination activist who became a cultural icon in New Zealand and Australia.

Throughout her life, Carmen was especially fascinated by Voodoo. She also loved creating intensely rich interiors for her late-night businesses in Wellington in the late 1960s-1970s. For example Carmen's International Coffee Lounge in Vivian Street was decorated in a mix of Asian, Egyptian, Arabian and African decor.