Toi Tū Toi Ora: Contemporary Māori Art showcases the dynamic, ever-changing expression that is Māori art. Distinct from the other art movements of Aotearoa New Zealand, contemporary Māori art occupies an unrivalled position in engaging with cultural histories and the role of Māori knowledge, and continues to invigorate discussions about identity and place.

Spanning 70 years with over 300 works by 111 Māori artists, the exhibition presents contemporary Māori art as standing tall – toi tū – and healthy – toi ora – while reinforcing the wisdom and ideas that empower Māori and Indigenous ways of knowing. The exhibition is framed by the Māori creation narrative, making way for a new mode of experience. The Māori creation story speaks of our celestial origins, understood as the realm of the gods or Ira Atua. This then connects to the terrestrial realm of humankind, Ira Tangata. The artworks are presented as one connected art movement and, much like Māori culture itself, this is nuanced, vibrant and diverse.

The largest ever exhibition staged by Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and free to the public, Toi Tū Toi Ora offers insights into the development of contemporary Māori art informed by a Māori worldview.

Ko Toi Tū Toi Ora: Contemporary Māori Art tiro whānui nei i te puakitanga tīremiremi o te toi Māori o nāianei. Kei te rerekē te toi Māori o nāianei ki ērā atu momo toi o Aotearoa nā te mea nōna te mana motuhake ki te paheko ki ngā hītori ahurea me te tūranga o te mātauranga Māori, nā reira e whakahihiko i ngā kōrero mō te tuakiri, mō te wāhi.

Kei te tāwhanawhana a Toi Tū Toi Ora i ngā tau 70, i ngā ringa toi 100; ko tāna he whakaatu i te kōingo, he whakatakoto i te wero, ki te whakatutuki i te wawata kia tū pakari te toi Māori – toi tū – kia tū ora hoki, kia tū tonu te mōhiotanga me te whakaaro e whāngai ai i te Māori me te mātauranga Taketake. Kei te tāpareparetia tēnei whakaaturanga ki te kōrero mō te hanganga o te ao e ai ki te Māori, nā reira kei te whakawātea te hītori toi maori e whai ai i te rārangi wā kia kitea e tātou tētahi aratau wheako hou. Ko te hanganga o te ao Māori he kōrero mō te tātai arorangi, koia te mana o ngā atua, arā o Ira Atua. Ka honotia tēnei ki te ao o te tangata, arā ko te Ira Tangata. Kei te whakaaturia ngā toi hei kaupapa kotahi, arā, pēnei i te ahurea Māori, he whakatarapī, he whakaihiihi, he kanorau te kaupapa nei.

E whakaatu ana a Toi Tū Toi Ora, te whakaaturanga nui katoa a Toi o Tāmaki e utu kore nei ki te marea, i te whakawhanaketanga o te toi Māori o nāianei i waihangatia i runga i tā te Māori titiro ki te ao.

Watch Toi Tū Toi Ora directed by Chelsea Winstanley