Tūhononga (Cluster and Connection)

Māori moving image practitioner and photographer Tia Barrett (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mamoe, Waitaha, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tamainupō) presents a two-part project, Tūhononga (Cluster and Connection) starting with a collective hīkoi (walk) from Waitaki to Aoraki, later followed by a series of noho wānanga (meetings/discussions) on ancestral land documenting the climate crisis in Wairewa Roto (Lake Forsyth) in Te Wai Pounamu (South Island of New Zealand).

Through walks, videos, and community dialogues, Barrett explores the question: "what pūrākau (stories) from our past can we draw upon to benefit the future of our whenua (land)? And how can toi Māori (Māori arts) serve as a means to translate this message into action?”

Released on 27 November 2023 at the time of Turu (full moon), part 1 of this project explores the essence of the environment, recording the appearances, sensations, and sounds of specific moments and weathers significant to Barrett during the hikoi.

As part of a journey of learning and intimate observation in Te Wai Pounamu (South Island of New Zealand), Tūhononga (Cluster and Connection) records weather appearances, sensations, and sounds during the hikoi, almost as if from an insect or fish eye view.

For Part 2 of the project released on 09 April 2024 at the time of Whiro (new moon), Tia Barrett’s noho wānanga (meetings/discussions) on ancestral land documents the climate crisis in Wairewa Roto (Lake Forsyth) in Te Wai Pounamu. Currently, Wairewa Roto is grappling with severe flooding and polluted waterways. Historically, before European colonisation and deforestation, this land and waterways were renowned for their abundance of kai (food), ngāhere (forest), clean water, and wildlife.

Visit the project on Te Tuhi's website here.

Tia Barrett

Tia Barrett (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mamoe, Waitaha, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tamainupō) is an emerging Māori moving image practitioner and photographer based in Kirikiriroa, Hamilton, New Zealand. Her current art practice is firmly grounded in celebrating mana wahine Māori identity (Māori women's identity) and deepening her connection to whenua me o ngā tūpuna (land and ancestors) through a lens-based practice.

Barrett is also on a journey of reclaiming her indigenous Māori language through the art of sung Māori poetry, mōteatea, and incorporating this medium into her contemporary lens-based practice. Barrett’s most recent original mōteatea composition is embedded in her work He Pounamu Ko Āu, which was an outcome from her MVA thesis. Barrett holds a Master of Visual Arts from Auckland University of Technology. She is a 2023 Te Tumu Toi Arts Foundation Springboard recipient and recently received the 2023 AUT Blue Award for this year's Creative Individual Performance of the year.

Commissioned by Te Tuhi and curated by Janine Randerson. Supported by Paemanu Ngāi Tahu Contemporary Visual Arts.

Part of the weather station: Te Moana Nui A Kiwa, Aotearoa (Great Ocean of Kiwa, New Zealand) - find out more here.