Wednesday, February 08, 2012
   
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Opening of Tangata o le Moana Exhibition at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Early on Saturday morning 20 October, Charles attended the opening of Tangata o le Moana (People of the Ocean), an exhibition at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa intended to represent the story of Pacific people in New Zealand past and present, in all areas of life – on the street, on the sports field, in the recording studio, on the political stage, and beyond. There are highs, and there are lows – from the dawn raids of the 1970s to Tana Umaga becoming first Pacific captain of the All Blacks. Exhibits range from ancient vaka (canoes) to contemporary jewellery to ‘Pacific Beats’, an interactive exhibit that lets you remix the sounds of Pacific musicians like Bill Sevesi, Fat Freddy’s Drop, and OMC.

The exhibition is entered by passing beneath a major new sculptural work by acclaimed Tongan-born artist Filipe Tohi – just one example of how Pacific people are making waves in the art world. It also contains the Cook Islands vaka Tauhunu, one of only three such vaka that survive worldwide. It encourages people to explore one of the greatest feats of Pacific people in New Zealand, when they became the first people to step foot on our shores some 800 years ago. It portrays some of the little-known stories of Pacific people who came here in the 1800s, at a time when New Zealand’s leaders dreamed of creating their own empire in the Pacific. It also recounts the stories of some of the Pacific soldiers who fought and died for New Zealand in the two world wars, and includes the oral histories of Pacific migrants from the 1960s and 1970s talking about their experiences – good and bad – of moving to New Zealand. A highlight of the exhibition is the Samoan fine mat gifted to Helen Clark in 2002. The gift acknowledged Clark’s apology for injustices during New Zealand’s almost 50-year administration of Samoa (1914–62).
For more information, see link

Charles is pictured at the karakia for guests outside Te Papa at 7am. He accompanies the Associate Minister for Pacific Island Affairs, Labour MP for Mana the Hon Luamanuavao Winnie Laban.
Labour Spokesperson for Justice
Labour Spokesperson for the Environment

Labour List MP Based in Ohariu
Authorised by Charles Chauvel, 103 Johnsonville Road, Johnsonville