06 Nov 2024
Last Friday night in Porirua a new exhibition, Taku Hoe, opened at Pātaka Art + Museum.
Taku Hoe brings together a selection of artworks from New Zealand’s presentation at this year’s 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture (FestPAC) in Hawaii in June.
Creative New Zealand coordinated New Zealand’s presentation at FestPAC, with Artistic Director, Tāwera Tahuri, curating the works of the 15 exhibiting artists. She realised early on it would be important to have a presentation of the works in New Zealand, for local audiences.
“Given so many people couldn’t see the works in Hawaii, I wanted to find a way to bring the experiences back to our local communities, so there could be engagement with FestPAC here,” says Tāwera.
Meeting with Ana Sciascia, the director of Pātaka, they discussed bringing elements of FestPAC back to Porirua. Ana with curator Iona Gordon-Smith selected the artworks for the new presentation at Pātaka.
“So many of the artists presenting at FestPAC were from the Wellington region, it felt right to be able to share their works locally and with their families at Pātaka. For practising artists it’s so important to have opportunities to show work and build relationships,” Tāwera says.
While the full exhibition couldn’t be exhibited due to size or space, the artworks capture the breadth and vitality of New Zealand’s showcase in Hawaii. Taku Hoe is a celebration of FestPAC and brings a fresh take on the Hawaii festival back home.
Share this
