Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander
The last generation of Māori women to receive the unbroken tradition of female tattooing. Host this touring exhibition at your venue.
Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander presents 29 black-and-white photographs of Māori kuia who were the last generation to receive the unbroken tradition of moko kauae in the 1920s.
The photographs were taken in the late 1960s and early 1970s for use in historian Michael King’s book Moko: Māori tattooing in the 20th century – a time when it was believed the sun had set on this ancient tradition.
The photographs tell a story of resilience, loss, and sorrow for a way of life that was fast slipping away. Within two decades though, moko kauae would begin a quiet revival. Today hundreds of Māori women proudly bear the moko of their ancestors – connecting the past with the present.
The photos were gifted to Te Papa in 2009 from the Gerrard and Marti Friedlander Charitable Trust.
‘Herepo Rongo’ from the series ‘The Moko Suite’, 1970, New Zealand, by Marti Friedlander. Gift of The Gerrard and Marti Friedlander Charitable Trust, 2009. Te Papa (O.033713)
Touring exhibition venues
Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander exhibited at:
Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato, Hamilton, 23 Apr – 29 May 2016
Waitara Library, Waitara, 27 Feb – 10 Apr 2016
Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa, Rotorua, 21 Nov 2015 – 17 Jan 2016
Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art and History, Masterton, 18 Sep – 15 Nov 2015
Tairawhiti Museum, Gisborne, 10 Jul – 23 Aug 2015
Hosting enquiries
Jake Yocum, Touring Exhibition Manager
touringexhibitions@tepapa.govt.nz
