Tamariki will be thrilled and perhaps overwhelmed by a huge Māori book, on display as part of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori.
Streets, squares and the pages of a giant book are all becoming a large-scale canvas for te reo Māori kupu (words), celebrating Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori and Mahuru Māori in Auckland’s city centre.
With Māori language and culture being our point of difference in the world, co-curator Ataahua Papa (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Ngāti Mahuta) explains that Aucklanders are fortunate to have the opportunity to engage with, see and hear te reo Māori across the heart of the city centre.
“With activations of light, words and a giant book celebrating and highlighting te reo Māori, we are honouring the call made in September 1972 for the recognition and revitalisation of te reo Māori.
“The call came from representatives of Ngā Tamatoa, Victoria University’s Te Reo Māori Society, and the New Zealand Māori Students Association in the form of a petition with over 30,000 signatures.
“Many initiatives now combine to encourage people around Aotearoa to speak more reo Māori in a way that is comfortable for them, be it an hour a day, two hours a day, one day a week or immersion for the entire month of Mahuru - early September to early October in accordance with the Maramataka Māori,” Ataahua Papa says.
A programme of interactive ways Aucklanders can embrace te reo Māori in public places at the centre of town has been compiled by Auckland Council city centre place activation principal Barbara Holloway.
“Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori and Mahuru Māori are special times to celebrate Māori language. This extensive and joyous programme created with the Central City Library team offers numerous ways to learn and enjoy through movies, making, listening, learning, singing and playing,” she says.
Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori / Māori Language Week runs from September 14 to 21, aligning with the date the petition was delivered to Parliament.
The street-level programme and the elements of the Central City Library programme highlighted below are enabled by the city centre targeted rate.
Monday September 16:
New neon art lights up three symbolic kupu (words)
Aucklanders and visitors will see three 2-metre pieces of neon art on lamp posts in Lorne St opposite the Central City Library until October 30. They will light up three cornerstone kupu: Rere, Tika and Māori, referencing this whakatauākī (saying):
Ko te reo kia rere. Ko te reo kia tika. Ko te reo kia Māori.
Let the language flow. Let the language be correct. Let the language come from a te ao Māori worldview.
The creators of this striking new neon artwork are Ataahua Papa (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Ngāti Mahuta) and Angus Muir Design for Auckland Council.
Vector Lights to light up for Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori
Vector Lights on the Auckland Harbour Bridge will be shining bright for five nights until September 19 from 6.30pm until midnight. The light show draws on the iconic heitiki (logo) and is in the colours of the arero (tongue).
The colours represent the rākau (Cuisenaire rods) used in teaching, familiar to decades of school children and adults in the revitalisation of te reo Māori.
Tuesday September 17:
Giant book: ‘How Māui Slowed the Sun’ by Peter Gossage
It will take two or even three children to turn the pages. At Central City Library people can now see a giant version of the Peter Gossage classic in te reo Māori and English: How Māui Slowed the Sun. The giant book is on display until September 30.
It is one of the most popular children’s books in Aotearoa. The Gossage family and the publishers, Penguin Random House NZ, have given permission to recreate this beautifully illustrated picture book in a 1.5-metre by 1-metre scale.
To bring the pages to life, whānau are invited to join story times on Thursdays and Saturdays in the last two weeks of September from 11am until 11.30am.
Credit: Te Hopu a Māui i a te Rā / How Māui Slowed the Sun © Peter Gossage, translated by Merimeri Penfold, Penguin Random House NZ, 2020.
Learning te reo Māori through waiata in Myers Park
Learning and singing waiata in Myers Park is proving to be a fun way to learn new words and phrases in te reo Māori, made possible by the new interactive artwork, Waimahara.
Visitors can actively engage with the artwork by singing two specially written waiata into the sensor at the Mayoral Drive end of the park. A soundtrack with light and sound effects will burst into song with those who sing along.
A short film explains how to activate the response. People can watch the film on the big screen at the Central City Library or on the Auckland Live screen in Aotea Square. They can learn the lyrics and tune of a waiata via a QR code in the park.
Waimahara is an interactive artwork by Graham Tipene (Ngāti Whātua, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Manu) and a creative team designed to deepen our connection to place. It describes the memory of water, specifically Te Waihorotiu, the stream flowing beneath the Myers Park underpass to Waitematā Harbour. Like the stream, this artwork is alive. It responds to the environment, weather and our presence by changing light patterns and sound.
Wednesday September 18:
‘Whai’ lights up in the red ink of a teacher’s pen
Whai is a new artwork, originally for Matariki ki te Manawa, by Janine Williams (Ngāti Paoa, Ngāti Whātua ki Kaipara) connecting the stories handed down through generations to the creativity and innovation of current times.
For Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, the lights of Whai have changed from kikorangi (blue) to whero (red). The artist explains that the reclamation of language requires us all to reflect on our nation’s history.
“The red ink of a teacher’s pen signifies both encouragement and correction. This work responds to the challenges of the beautiful and often difficult journey of learning te reo Māori,” Janine Williams says.
View Whai until September 30 glowing red on the Victoria St carpark building from Victoria St East.
Thursday September 19:
28 posters create a te reo Māori wall of inspiration
Look up on the wall across from the Central City Library in Lorne St and see a series of whakataukī and whakatauākī (sayings and proverbs), poems in te reo Māori and English and song lyrics with photography featuring landmarks visible throughout Tāmaki Makaurau displayed along the wall.
Hone Tuwhare’s poem He motu te awa He awa koe (The river is an island) will feature alongside an image from Te Maharatanga o Ngā Wai (Remembering Our Waters), a pocket park on the corner of Victoria St West and Sale St where te reo can be seen, read, heard, and spoken through a QR code.
The curator of this wall of posters is Ataahua Papa for Auckland Council. Photography by Te Rawhitiroa Bosch (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu, Pākehā). With thanks to The Hone Tuwhare Charitable Trust.
Elevate your skills with a giant game of scrabble
A new take on regular scrabble, Kupurori is played in te reo Māori using a giant board and giant reta (letters). The ture (rules) of the game are for the players to take turns putting down tiles to form Māori words, connecting them vertically or horizontally to the letters already on the board.
Kupurori is a project designed by Lifewise whānau, for whānau, and prototyped by the Merge Community team.
Families are invited to play the game at the Central City Library on Thursday September 19 and Thursday September 26 from 10am to 12pm.
Friday September 20:
Auckland Central City Library exhibition Waiwaia Ngā Ngutu / Speak Eloquently
Auckland Central City Library is hosting an uplifting new exhibition, Waiwaia Ngā Ngutu, ahead of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, celebrating the eloquence and expression of te reo Māori from the early 19th century to the present day.
This free exhibition, which runs until February 1, 2025, provides visitors with a showcase of never-before publicly seen taonga Māori (Māori treasures) from Auckland Council Libraries Heritage Collections, accompanied by a rich soundscape that brings the written word to life and affirms the essence of te reo Māori: a language heard and spoken with eloquence.
Councillor Kerrin Leoni is excited by this opportunity to celebrate te reo Māori as a cultural treasure.
“This exhibition of taonga tuku iho reflects how te reo Māori has always been fundamental to a thriving Māori identity for Tāmaki Makaurau,” Leoni says.
“In our commitment to Māori outcomes, we are passionate about creating opportunities like this for Aucklanders to see, hear, speak and learn te reo Māori, to ensure it flourishes for generations to come.”
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