Te Waka Toi grants support new talent
MEDIA RELEASE
To: Chief Reporter/Arts-Maori
Affairs Reporters
Date: 8 November 2001
No of
pages: 1
Te Waka Toi grants support new
talent
Te Waka Toi, the Mäori arts board of Creative
New Zealand, has eagerly supported a rising artistic talent
in its latest funding round.
Te Waka Toi Chair Elizabeth Ellis said Auckland-based artist Dion Hitchens (Ngai Tuhoe/Ngati Porou) was set to become a leading force in the creative arena
“His installations are very exciting, innovative and push the boundaries of contemporary Mäori art. He combines technology and natural materials to make life-sized kinetic forms that engage the viewer in new experiences,” she said.
Hitchens’ new work, a suspended bird-like form made of stainless steel, was the only project funded under Te Waka Toi’s New Works funding programme. It depicts how Mäori whakapapa to the environment.
Some of the Auckland artist’s work features in Purangiaho Seeing Clearly, an exhibition of contemporary Mäori artists currently showing at the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki.
Te Waka Toi received 104 funding requests seeking more than $4 million for a range of projects. It funded 42 projects to a total of $563, 674.
Ends
Inquiries to Reuben Wharawhara, Communications Adviser:
Ph (04) 498 0727
NOTE: A comprehensive list of projects funded by
Creative New Zealand can be found on its website at
www.creativenz.govt.nz/funding/grants