Nga Kaihanga Uku
Maori Clay Artists
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Te Papa Press
Published:12th Oct '23
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
The rise of an impressive ceramics movement is one of the more striking developments in contemporary Maori art. Clayworking and pottery firing was an ancient Pacific practice, but the knowledge had largely been lost by the ancestors of Maori before they arrived in Aotearoa. After the national clayworkers' collective, Nga Kaihanga Uku, was established in 1987, traditional ancestral knowledge and customs and connections with indigenous cultures with unbroken ceramic traditions helped shape a contemporary Maori expression in clay. This book is the first comprehensive overview of Maori claywork, its origins, loss and revival. Richly illustrated, it introduces readers to the practices of the five founders of Nga Kaihanga Uku and also surveys the work of the next generation.
"Ngā Kaihanga Uku: Māori Clay Artists was a revelation to me. The photography shines, and the project of capturing this history and these artists make reading book feel like an honour." -- The Spinoff, Claire Mabey
"This book highlights the role of artists as trailblazers in Māori culture, looking back to look forward, as risk-takers and experimental in their practice. Their hands are dipped deep in red clay, beckoning us to come forth with them on their constant journeys of discovery. As Riddell reminds us: He aha te mea nui, he tangata, he tangata, he tangata." -- Aotearoa New Zealand Review of Books, reviewed by Ngarino Ellis
"Illustrated with archival photography from the group’s various hui and wānanga, as well as a generous selection of work images, the book trances the development of the collective, but also of each discrete artist, seeing their individual sensibilities evolve in manifold directions." -- Art New Zealand, reviewed by Don Abbott
"A luscious, invaluable introduction not just to how this school of creatives came to be but how te ao Māori can underpin a three-dimensional art discipline." -- Home Magazine
"It’s fascinating because this is about rediscovering a lost tradition . . . a reaching back." -- RNZ Nine to Noon, reviewed by Paul Diamond
ISBN: 9780995138452
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
256 pages