Opening celebration for Pohewa Pāhewa: a Māori design kaupapa

Objectspace

Nau mai, Haere mai – join us we celebrate opening a new exhibition on Māori design kaupapa

Pohewa Pāhewa celebrates Māori design practice and interrogates Western design practice through a Māori lens. Grounded in whakapapa, this exhibition shows the fundamental differences in how design practice is approached within te ao Māori and whom it is in service to. Pohewa Pāhewa has been developed from whakaaro offered by Māori designers in wānanga across the motu. During these wānanga, Māori designers explained that healing is a fundamental motivation behind their practices. Healing might encompass relationships to whenua and with whānau, connections to whakapapa and understanding of identity, or acknowledging past trauma. This guiding principle is now a constant in Māori design practice – ingenuity, originality and invention all stem from a foundation of recovery and restoration.Our understandings of design in Aotearoa have predominately focused on Eurocentric notions of practice – how consumer products, digital content or built environments are shaped by designers to solve a problem in an original way. This understanding often ignores the powerful influence of economic motivators and the environmental consequences of continuous change and production.In contrast, Māori designers see the interconnected nature of their practice and the impact of what they create in the past, present and future simultaneously. Mahi is process driven, in direct kōrero with the whakapapa of place, people and materials to ensure that the mana of all involved is upheld. Embarking on a design kaupapa means an accountability to both tūpuna past and mokopuna yet to come.Pohewa Pāhewa shares a collection of kaupapa that express Māori design as a balance of radical innovation and consideration of critical knowledge gifted by our tūpuna. From T-shirts to harakeke to paving stones, the exhibition revels in how simple materials can be welded by designers to become something revolutionary and place tangata Māori in a better position than before.The exhibition title was proposed by Bernard Makoare as a provocation for debate and discussion. It pairs two kupu that speak to the tension of the design process: ‘pohewa’ in relation to imagination; ‘pāhewa’ in relation to being mistaken or deluded. The combination of these kupu is an opportunity for us to consider how ideas become something remarkable, and how good design can transform ideas from imagination into reality.—Curated by Desna Whaanga-Schollum, Tyrone Ohia, Graham Tipene, Johnson Witehira and Zoe Black.With contributions from ĀKAU, Morehu Flutey-Henare, Nichola Te Kiri, Bernard Makoare, Whetu Paita, Reihana Parata, Paula Rigby, Hika Taewa, Tanya White and Wayne Youle. Exhibition design by Turumeke Harrington.—This exhibition opening is free and all are welcome to join. We are requesting registrations so we can anticipate numbers on the night and ensure that you are well hosted!There will be drinks thanks to Almighty Drinks, Goodsh*t Soda, Liberty Brewing, Black Estate and Greystone Wines, and kai. We&#x27;d love to have you with us.

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Opening celebration for Pohewa Pāhewa: a Māori design kaupapa

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Opening celebration for Pohewa Pāhewa: a Māori design kaupapa

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