Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 11, 1 November 1993 — Te Waka Toi comes to Hawaiʻi [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Te Waka Toi comes to Hawaiʻi

by Patrick Johnston In a ceremony that included prayer, speeches, hula, impromptu singing, and chants, the New Zealand art group Te Waka Toi began its month-long exhibition

Oct. 3 at the UH art gallery. The ceremony, sponsored by OHA, Te Waka Toi, and the University of Hawai'i, began with a private, informal Ho'okupu session where

Hawaiian and Maori guests exchanged gifts. OHA culture specialist Manu Boyd said at the ceremony that another meaning for ho'okupu is "to cause to sprout" and that he hopes the exhibition will help Te Waka Toi grow in Hawai'i. The Hawaiian gift was two scholastic books, one by Te Rangi Hiroa, a Maori who lived most of his life in Hawai'i, and

the other by Mary Kawena Pukui. In return the Maori artists offered a kete basket. Te Waka Toi group leader Sandy Adsett explained it represented a "basket of knowledge" and that it is "the greatest

offering, given only to people for whom there is great respect." The

basket was filled with several books featuring Maori art. In the public ceremony following the ho'okupu, a variety of remarks were given by leaders involved in the exhibition including OHA chairman Clayton Hee, Consul General of New Zealand, Los Angeles, Terry Baker, and Te Waka Toi leader Sandy Adsett. Adsett said in his remarks that a

number of themes eome up in the paintings that reflect problems in the Maori eommunity. One of these was the question of land. Another was the problem of men not playing an active enough part in the community.

"It is said in the Maon eommunity that it is for women and for

land that men give their lives. In New Zealand today we ask, where are the men?" Kamehameha Schools Chaplain the Rev. David Ka'upu blessed the exhibit and said, "The presenee of Te Waka Toi affirms the greatness of our two cultures." One of the highlights of the ceremony was a hula kahiko performanee by Hālau Hula o Kawaili'ula. The group performed two powerful dances, one honoring King Kamehameha I, and the other paying tribute to King Kalākaua.

"The presence of Te Waka Toi affirms the greatness of our two cultures." Rev. David Ka'upu Kamehameha Schools Chaplain

Contemporary Maori painting: land is a central theme.

Halau Hula o Kawaili'ula