Ancient wa'a connects cultures across the Pacific

Leslie Matiu, (left) James Eruera and Bryce Motu are in Washington DC this month to document an ancient Hawaiian wa'a. Photo/Supplied

An ancient Hawaiian wa'a (waka/canoe) is connecting experts from across the Pacific with students from the New Zealand Māori Art and Crafts Institute getting a "once in a lifetime opportunity".

The Hawaiian wa'a was shown to carvers from the NZMACI during the Tuku Iho l Living Legacy exhibition at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC last July.

Now an NZMACI waka expert and two students have returned to the Smithsonian to join those from the museum and two wa'a experts from Hawaii in a unique project to investigate and recover the ancient traditions.

The canoe is reputed to be the oldest existing documented Hawaiian wa'a in the world and was given to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History by Queen Kapi'olani of Hawaii in 1887.

It is made from lashed planks, a construction technique now dormant in Oceania.

Head of the NZMACI Te Tapuwae o te Waka (National Canoe School) James Eruera said the ancient canoe incorporated a longstanding knowledge of engineering, combined with "new" materials and techniques from the mid-1880s when this wa'a was likely built.

"The wa'a takes its form directly from a tree, but today, a tree's shape doesn't necessarily dictate the shape of the finished canoe. The canoe itself is a lens into the past."

Eruera will take part in the Smithsonian project in Washington with two of his waka building students, Bryce Motu and Leslie Matiu.

Eruera said as a group, the carvers would examine the wa'a in detail, with a particular eye to assessing its construction and lashing, as well as investigating the canoe building tools and models.

"A digital copy of the wa'a will also be made, to make it accessible to communities of origin and the wider Pacific. We hope the scanning will also result in a better understanding of the canoe.

"To come together from different points of the Pacific, to have this conversation, and share our views on canoe building is an honour and a once in a lifetime opportunity for myself and my students."

Te Puia general manager sales and marketing Kiri Atkinson-Crean said the objective of Tuku Iho was to create a unique environment for cultural conversations, enabling the sharing of knowledge and experiences between Māori and host nations across the globe.

"In addition to traditional and contemporary works of art, live tā moko, kapa haka and contemporary music, the exhibition in Washington DC also included in-situ canoe building.

"The canoe completed on site as part of the exhibition was gifted to the Smithsonian to strengthen ties between our two countries. The relationship forged from this is one of the key reasons why we were invited to view the wa'a."

As part of the project, the conversation between the carvers will also be recorded, with the aim of later producing a film to convey the knowledge generated to a wider audience.