Matariki is a time of festivity for Māori, and the Matariki Festival at Te Papa (Friday 6 June - Sunday 29 June) takes the spirit of this time to all people of Aotearoa New Zealand with a three-week celebration featuring live music and dance, workshops and insightful lectures.
The star cluster Matariki (the Pleiades) will first rise on 23 May. The Māori New Year begins with the first new moon after Matariki’s reappearance. This year, the new moon rises on 5 June so the Māori New Year starts on 6 June.
‘Matariki is a time to reflect on the year that has past and to prepare the year ahead,’ said Michelle Hippolite, Te Papa’s Kaihautū.
‘The Matariki Festival at Te Papa, now in its eighth year, continues to entertain, educate and inspire with a dynamic events programme that will appeal to all,’ Ms Hippolite said.
Highlights include the Matariki Whānau Day, weekend sessions in Te Papa’s portable planetarium, a special Art After Dark Toi o te Pō event with Lisa Reihana and a Seven Sisters concert, the Matariki Hāngī Cuisine Cook-off and traditional kapa haka by senior performing artists.
A major new installation Mai i te aroha, ko te aroha (From love, comes love) by renowned contemporary artist Lisa Reihana opens on Friday 6th June, in Te Ara a Hine, the principal internal entrance to Te Papa’s Marae, Rongomaraeroa. Mai i te aroha, ko te aroha incorporates many materials, techniques and approaches drawn from Reihana’s practice and is the second major commission for Te Ara a Hine.
Learn more about South Island iwi (tribe) Ngāi Tahu, Te Papa’s iwi in residence, with guided tours presented by the Friends of Te Papa and lectures about their muttonbirding and eeling traditions. Join artists, curators and writers as they reflect upon the 50th anniversary of the first exhibition of Contemporary Māori Art held in Auckland in 1958 with a special panel discussion on Thursday 12 June. Discover the importance and tradition of kite-making with experts Verbina Kopa and Harko Brown then make and fly your own kite!
On Sunday 15 June, Satisfy Your Cravings Productions presents Horizon 08: RiZing of Kiwi Culture, a day by youth for youth (rangatahi). This is the second year that high school students from the Wellington area have been invited to produce a day of events for rangatahi. This year’s event will feature food, hip-hop, competitions, cultural groups, and music celebrating Pacific cultures including performances by the Laughing Samoans and the Musical Island Boys.
toi iho ™ are proud to present a series of events from Saturday 14 June – Thursday 26 June featuring acclaimed composer and musician Hareruia ‘RUIA’ Aperarama, artist Rangi Kipa and singer, actor director and tutor Toni Huata. The works of toi iho ™ artists Rangi Kipa, Hepi Maxwell, Sonia Snowden, and Nadine Freundlich are also featured in a visual artist showcase on Te Papa’s Marae (Monday 23 June – Sunday 29 June).
Tickets can be purchased for the Matariki Gala 2008 on Friday 27 June - an extravaganza featuring entertainment, superb indigenous cuisine and New Zealand wines. Te Papa Press’ Matariki Calendar is currently in stores and is packed full of proverbs and traditional knowledge. Beautifully illustrated with Te Papa’s precious taonga (treasures), images from contemporary Māori communities and scenes of Aotearoa New Zealand through the seasons, this calendar runs from June 2008 to May 2007.
Te Papa thanks the following companies and organisations for their generous support of the Matariki Festival at Te Papa: Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, Te Puni Kōkiri, New Zealand Post, Pharmac, Te Māngai Paho, toi iho™ and Wellington City Council.
Please join us during this special time for three weeks of entertainment and education at Te Papa’s Matariki Festival. Celebrate the Māori New Year at Our Place! For further information on events, please visit www.tepapa.govt.nz or call 04 381 7000.
> Detailed list of events
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