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Tutana Tetuanui-Peters; maker/artist; September 2023; Marquesas Islands
Overview
This piece of 'ahu (Marquesan tapa) was made by master tapa maker and artist Sarah Vaki (Te Ao Mā'ohi – Fatu Hiva) as a part of the 'Ahu: Ngā wairua o Hina project.
Gifting for the future
This 'ahu is made from the bark of the paper mulberry known as ‘ute’ on the island of Fatu Hiva. The cloth has been strengthened with tapioca before being adorned with Marquesan patterns. These intricate designs are painted with black soot-based ink using a special brush called a hu'upeni. This unique tool is made with the hair of a child relative attached to a coconut leaf midrib.
This piece was presented to Te Papa by Sarah Vaki and her sister Tutana Tetuanui-Peters as a gift to future generations. It represents vaiei tupuna, the collective art and knowledge held by the tapa makers of Fatu Hiva, which has been handed down through the generations by their tupuna or ancestors.
"This piece is for New Zealand so you can see what our ancestors left us, what we do now in Marquesas. What we have now in Fatu Hiva, is tapa, because [our ancestors] didn’t forget that knowledge – it passed on generation by generation. Now we give this to you so the new generation, now and forever will see what was given to them and the possibilities they have for the future."
Sarah Vaki, 2023 (Translated by Sarahs niece in conversation with Isaac Te Awa.)
Background
In 2021, with the Te Papa Foundation’s support, Te Papa acquired a rare book of tapa cloth samples, one of many assembled by Alexander Shaw in 1787. The samples were cut from larger pieces of tapa collected on Captain Cook’s voyages to the Pacific (1768, 1772, 1776) and represent tapa-making practices from various islands including Hawai‘i, Tahiti and Tonga. While the books contain only fragments of much larger creations, they highlight the variety of textures and artistry attained through the practices, knowledge, and skills of Pacific peoples.
Held in Tahiti in 2023, 'Ahu: Ngā Wairua o Hina brought tapa makers of Tongan, Sāmoan, Niuean, Fijian, Hawaiian, Tahitian, Pitcairn-Norfolk Island, and Māori descent. Over five days this group worked together to re-establish their living relationships to the cloth held within the Alexander Shaw book. Through a process of wānanga this group of makers created two tapa bundles, incorporating the ideas of past, present, and future. Today, one of the bundles resides with Te Papa and the other with Te Fare Iamanaha-Musée de Tahiti et des Îles.