Tauranga City Libraries Māori Events Team - 19 June 2015

Tauranga City Libraries Māori Events Team - 19 June 2015

Te Ao Hou Matariki Fashion Show (18 June 2015)

A dazzling showcase of fashion, contemporary Māori art and performance recently saw flashbulbs popping and Tauranga’s glitterati shining almost as bright as the Matariki stars themselves. The high fashion extravaganza marked the opening of Tauranga City Libraries extensive Matariki program.

The spectacular event, Te Ao Hou (‘The New World’), was held at the Tauranga Art Gallery on Thursday 18th June. The show, a first for Tauranga, was part of the Tauranga City Libraries Matariki program which will run through until the 18th of July. “We were so happy to partner with the Tauranga Art Gallery on this amazing event” says organiser Bernie Johnson. Bernie is part of the library’s Māori Events Team who have been working on the program for the past few months. Other members of the team are Rangituaia Walker, Keren Paekau and Debbie McCauley, supported by promotions assistant Daniel Petersen.

On arrival guests were treated to a selection of canapés. “The kai included lots of traditional elements re-imagined in a modern way for Matariki,’ said Rangituaia. The crowd could enjoy paua and rewena whetu, harore and horopito filo bites, kumara puree shots, smoked kahawai and kawakawa dip, coconut and sweet chilli Kuku (mussels) and pork and watercress balls.”

The show was opened by Māori instrumentalist expert Jo'el Komene playing a pūtātara (Māori shell trumpet) and MC'dby the fabulous Mabel Wharekawa-Burt who brought her own form of sassy to the catwalk. Kaumatua Tamati Tata invoked a karakia to bless the event.

First onto the catwalk were designs by Tauranga-based fashion designer Christopher Huia Woods (Ngati Awa). His collection played with the colours that permeate the flora and fauna of Aotearoa in a modern, unexpected way. Wearing one of his eye-catching designs, a sheer dress, was Tauranga model Ora Pihema.

A live acoustic performance followed by New Zealand singer/songwriter Emma Paki who treated the audience to three songs. Photographing the event was Tania Lewis-Rickard and Debbie McCauley. “This is a beautiful way to celebrate Matariki and bring the community together,” says Debbie.

Jeanine Clarkin (Ngati Ranginui) showed her Māori street wear label, blending Māori art and design for a new generation and projecting Māori fashion into the new millennium. Clarkin was responsible for dressing Keisha Castle-Hughes for all her Whale Rider premieres in 2002.

National Poetry Slam champion Te Kahu Rolleston then took to the stage, reciting three poems in a powerful and energetic spoken word performance that left the audience wanting more.

Tasmyn Moana Roach (Ngati Maniapoto), an emerging fashion designer who graduated in 2014 with a Bachelor of Fashion Design from the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, showed her sportswear collection. The garments explored herMāori and Pakeha heritage and incorporated historical and contemporary influences, performance fabrication and digital textile print.

Mac Vicious Society founder Glen Maclachlan was next. He produced his collection from his spare bedroom, which now doubles as a fashion studio. A strong colour palette supported Glen’s garments and his sophisticated “Smart punk” aesthetic.

Angela Marie Hodge (Ngapuhi & Te Arawa) is another recent fashion design graduate from the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic. She showed her graduating collection which has a strong sustainable direction, with the use of pre-loved textiles throughout.

Jo'el Komene then played a variety of traditional Maori instruments. The crowd fell silent as his haunting melodies flowed throughout the gallery.

This was followed with a dramatic array of creations by celebrated fashion designer and flax weaver Shona Tawhiao (Ngai Te Rangi). Shona’s mahi raranga mahi toi, haute couture, and contemporary art has been recognised nationally as well as in Europe, Australia and the Pacific.

For the last few weeks a special selection of Shona’s theatrical garments have featured in the vault at Tauranga Art Gallery. “Shona’s designs looked sensational on the catwalk,” said Keren. “This truly remarkable event was on a par with fashion shows usually seen in Auckland and Wellington”

Deputy Mayor Kelvin Clout, who attended with his wife Kathryn, spoke earlier in the evening about the increasing importance of the Matariki festival to the people of Tauranga Moana. He applauded the large effort that went into the successful event; “Kathryn and I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and it was heartening to see our amazing local Māoritalent on display”.

The last traditional Matariki festival in New Zealand was recorded in the 1940s. Matariki was revived in Tauranga in around 1992 at a small school in Welcome Bay called Otepou who held an early morning trek up the Kōpukairoa Ranges. Tauranga Libraries joined the Matariki renaissance in 2005, offering workshops to the community. Since then the yearly winter festival has grown in size as the library's Māori Events Team have worked hard to establish Matariki as a major cultural and social event for the Tauranga community.

For Matariki this year the Tauranga City Libraries have partnered with the Tauranga Art Gallery, Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, Creative Tauranga, Employ NZ, The Department of Conservation, Moana Am, New Zealand Kitefliers Association, Tauranga Astronomical Society, Te Puna i Rangiriri Trust, Ongare Trust and Employ NZ to offer a comprehensive range of Matariki activities and events to the community. “We’ve established fantastic community partnerships,” said Bernie who already has some ideas for Matariki 2016.

The full 2015 Matariki program can be found online at the following link: http://library.tauranga.govt.nz/library-a-z/matariki.aspx and also on the official facebook page which is called Matariki Tauranga Moana.

Ends.

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