Inaugural Lecture of Professor Ngarino Ellis

The Faculty of Arts and Education invites you to join us in celebrating Professor Ngarino Ellis achievements by attending her inaugural lecture.

Venue: University of Auckland B201

Lecture hall: Lecture Theatre 201-440

Time: Lecture 6 - 7pm

About the lecture

Ki wiwi, ki wawa - Taonga and the power of Māori art history.

From the koro enjoying the surprise on people’s faces as the bird he’s placed in his ear piercing slowly dies, to the awe one feels upon seeing Lisa Reihana’s huge new digital work Māramatanga (2024) – the world of Māori art reveals deep stories of connection across time and place. The role of the art historian is complex and ever-changing, from picky detective to keen advocate. This might look like spending days taking out, greeting and documenting every single carving in a storeroom belonging to a single house, to reviewing site plans in archives, to talking to artists and curators, or to sitting on funding panels. Being a Māori art historian remains a unicorn-type existence, not only to locate, celebrate, and reunite all taonga with their people, but also to think about the bigger picture of what it all means. This talk will adventure into some of joys of art history life, from research to teaching to committee work, to remind and reinforce the ongoing power of art to guide us into exciting futures, ki wiwi, ki wawa.

About the speaker:

Growing up between Te Tai Tokerau, Auckland and Northampton shaped Ngarino's (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Pōrou) curiosity about the role of art across cultures. Being a daughter of artists/art teachers suggested early on that galleries and museums would feature prominently. Dreaming of a diplomat life, Ngarino enrolled in a BA/LLB at the University of Auckland, graduating and working for a moment or two as a lawyer in town, before returning part-time to the darkened art history lecture rooms to complete her MA. Convinced by a mentor that art history could make a difference, she shifted into tutor mode, before accepting a part-time lectureship in Maori art history in 1997, and beginning her PhD at Victoria University (later UOA). Fast forward 28 years, Ngarino is currently the only permanent Māori art history lecturer globally, and a multi-award winning author of A Whakapapa of Tradition: 100 Years of Ngāti Porou Carving, 1830–1930 (Auckland University Press, 2016) and co-author with Deidre Brown of Toi Te Mana: An Indigenous History of Maori Art (2024). This builds on other projects, including as co-editor with Witi Ihimaera: Te Ata: Māori Art from the East Coast, New Zealand (Reed, 2002), and Deidre Brown: Te Puna: Māori Art from Te Tai Tokerau / Northland (Reed, 2007). She has also collaborated as a curator, including Whakawhanaungatanga: Connecting People and Taonga (Linden Museum, Stuttgart, 2022–24) with Dougal Austin, Awhina Tamarapa and Justine Treadwell, and Pūrangiaho: Seeing Clearly (Auckland Art Gallery, 2001) with Ngahiraka Mason and Kahutoi Te Kanawa. Teaching remains a passion - taonga, gender, art crime and museums - and a continued drive to discover and share the lives of taonga, ki mua, ki muri.

Think GREEN! - registration is for catering purposes only, no need to print out your ticket

Getting to the venue: The Faculty of Arts and Educations' buildings are conveniently located at the heart of the University's City Campus and are easily accessible via many forms of public transport. For further information on public transport schedules, visit the Auckland Transport website. For those driving in, further information on parking options can be found here.