Overview
For Pacific people living in New Zealand, observing the customs of their home islands keeps them connected to family, culture, and land. Tapa cloth – both making and using it – is one of these connections.
Trees used for tapa do not grow well in New Zealand, so almost all the raw materials for making tapa here are brought from the islands. Fully-decorated tapa are also imported into the country.
These objects demonstrate how tapa-makers adapt to modern techniques and styles. Tapa, the fabric of everyday life and of ritual, continues to feature at weddings and other ceremonies. However instead of tapa being presented as a wedding gift, it might be reshaped into a wedding dress, or a priest's robe.
This collection narrative is based on the Tapa: Pacific Style exhibition which was on display at Te Papa, (September 2009 - September 2010).