Board of Trustees: Fatu Feu’u (Patron), Gina Cole (Co-Chair), Jim Vivieaere (Co-Chair), Loloma Andrews, Ron Brownson, Chris Van Doren, Joanna Gommans, Tui Hobson, Colin Jeffery, Melipa Peato Tautai Office: Lonnie Hutchinson (Tautai Trust Manager/Artistic Director), Itania (Itty) Nikolao (Executive Director), Christina Jeffery (Communications Manager), Edith Amituanai (Tautai Administrator), PO Box 68 339, Newton, Auckland

w w w . t a u t a i . o r g • t a u t a i @ t a u t a i . o r g D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 5

THIS ISSUE: Wilma van Heeswijk, Chair Report, Interlude with AR, Creative NZ Arts Pasifika Awards, Chloe Marsters, Postcard from Sheyne Tuffery, Report from Wellington

Wilma is anxious to point out to me that she hasn’t been making any art recently andwonders if she should be the focus of an interview for the newsletter. Having

gently persuaded her to agree and having arrived at her home – I almost laugh at whatis obvious to me and to which she is seemingly oblivious. There is not a wall in the homeshe shares with her two children, Gabrielle and John, that does not have art on it, leaning against it, or propped on the mantelpiece. This is the home of a passionate artist.

For the past two years Wilma has been teaching Art and Art History subjects at LynfieldCollege, a career choice which allows her the time to participate in her children’s lives. Ofcourse anyone with any knowledge of schools today will know of the huge workload andthe pressure on teachers that accompany that occupation. Next year Wilma has accepteda new position at Lynfield which will see her as one of two form teachers to a verticalstream class of Pacific Island students – an innovation at the school. Also planned withinthe school next year is a Pacific Arts Project which will see students being introduced andexposed to a wide range of art, artists and craft from the wider Pacific area which Wilmahas hopes will bring a greater awareness of Pacific cultures to the students.

Wilma returned to further study as an adult, completing a Bachelors of VisualCommunications Degree at Unitec in 2000, where she majored in painting. This timespent studying also provided her with the opportunity to explore art history subjects,which she enjoyed and which enabled her to learn about and put into context the workof admired artists. She sees those years spent at Unitec as a starting point for anumber of things and values those experiences

It was while she was at Unitec that Wilma, who has Dutch and Samoan heritage,made a conscious decision to look for other Pacific artists with whom she could talkto, share experiences, and discuss ideas and problems. This was when she becameinvolved with Tautai and through that contact Wilma took part in the first FreshHorizons workshop run by Tautai.

The time and the studio space at Unitec also provided her with the wonderfulopportunity to indulge in the extravagance of painting huge canvas’s. People who saw‘dolly mix wrapper’ at the Waikato Art Gallery and Museum in 2000 will wellremember one of those works there. The big works came about after Wilma had beensnorkelling in Fiji when she reflected on the effects tourism had on indigenouscultures and the commodification of that effect. They are largely subtle works, onbeautifully prepared canvas with areas of concentrated colour, fading out to almost nocolour. But when there is colour – it is pink – or a derivative or close relation of thatmost evocative of colours. She is ‘enthralled’ with the colour pink, a fact that is veryobvious when looking at her work.

She talks about her past and current work in terms of how the act of painting is a luxuryin her life. How this need to paint is a seemingly illogical desire when lined up besidesthe need to provide necessities for her children and herself. Like many other artists shejuggles the responsibilities of a full time job and being a single parent, with making art.For that reason, she has become focused on the theme of ‘fantasy’ in her current work.

She started looking at her mothers jewellery, and diamond shapes labeled fantasycuts in the jewellery industry. Her current series which she refers to as “fantasy cuts”,is a range of smaller paintings which are an investigation of the effects of light onprecious stone. They hint at the precious time involved in creating an artwork in termsof her other responsibilities. However, she prefers her work to have layers of subtlemeanings, rather than a definitive message.

Wilma describes herself as a painter rather than an artist. It is the craft of painting thatconsumes her, not any necessity to convey a message to the viewer. While there might besubtle layers to the work, how the viewer interprets them is left to each individual – thereis no correct singular reading. She loves the physicality of painting; stirring it, smelling it,the feel of it, the energy involved in mixing and applying it. Wilma says that she needs topaint as much as she needs food. It is necessary for her wellbeing and although sheunderstands that there is no logical reason why this is so – it is so. Christina Jeffery

Fresh Horizons 2005, Welcome Back Itty, The Christchurch First Draft Writers Group, Auction News, Tautai AGM

Tautai’s 10th AnniversaryAt the Annual General Meeting held at OkraCafé, 126 Sandringham Road on Saturday 1October, the 10th anniversary of theincorporation of Tautai as a charitable trustwas marked. A founding Trustee DeborahWhite and Patron Fatu Feu’u spoke about theearly days of Tautai and its developmentwhich lead to incorporation on 23 June 1995.The Chair of the Pacific Arts Committee ofCreative New Zealand, Marilyn Kohlhase alsospoke and acknowledged the big contributionthe Trust had made to Pacific arts and artists.

The ideals that lead to the establishment ofthe Trust still hold true today with manyestablished artists giving of their time tosupport each other and mentor young andemerging artists. Many of the artists, supporters and events associated withTautai over the years have been captured on film and have become part of anarchive of the Trust. If anyone has other images we can scan to add to thearchive we would be delighted to receive those.

Artist ProfileWilma van Heeswijk

Fatu and Marilyn cutting the cake

22

Chair’s ReportNi sa bula vinaka

The trustees welcome Tui Hobson and Chris van Doren as Board Members. Tui waselected to the Board at the annual general meeting on 1 October 2005 and Chris

was subsequently co-opted to join the Board. We are also pleased to welcome backItania Nikolao to add to the management of Tautai. Itty has taken up the position ofExecutive Director and this role compliments that of Lonnie Hutchinson who continuesas Trust Manager/Artistic Director.

With the additional resources available for 2006 a big year is being planned. Inresponse to requests from artists, Lonnie and Itty will be looking at arranging moreexhibitions next year. In the first quarter some upcoming activities to look out for

include an exhibition on Waiheke Island and Tautai will also be curating an exhibitionat the Aotea Centre/The Edge. Tautai is also looking ahead to the Pasifika Festival inMarch and planning our involvement.

We are continuing the work of updating the artist’s pages and information on the Tautaiwebsite. Additional features have been developed and we are also hoping to add to thewebsite audio copies of the weekly interviews of Tautai artists on Radio 531PI.

We wish our members and supporters all the best as we head into the Christmasbreak. We will continue to support our members and their growing involvement inexhibitions and events all over the world which recently included the main centres inNew Zealand, and New York, Paris, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong,Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and Rarotonga

As always, thank you from me and Co Chair, Jim Vivieaere, and the rest of the Boardfor your continuing support of Tautai Trust. Ni sa moce mada – Gina Cole (Co Chair)

D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 5 w w w . t a u t a i . o r g • t a u t a i @ t a u t a i . o r g

Earlier this year Lonnie Hutchinson was chosen to take part in a rather unusual project– she has written an overview for us.

Four fellowships were awarded early in 2005 for collaborative projects between artistsand students from HITLabNZ (Human Interface Technology Laboratory) at the University

of Canterbury. The artists selected were Ian Clothier, Janine Randerson, Angela Main &Caroline McCaw (who worked on a collaborative project) and myself. Over the year theprojects have been developed through a workshop programme and were then exhibited inSeptember at the Christchurch Convention Centre as part of Converge 05.

One type of technology that the HITLabNZ has specialised in developing, is that ofAugmented Reality (AR). AR makes virtual 3D objects appear in the real world,attached to real objects. The virtual world is a new space within which the artists havedealt with issues as diverse as biomorphism, the va, nature and zoomorphism, giving avisual voice to concerns that would otherwise be difficult to materialise in the realworld but are nevertheless part of our contemporary consciousness.

Working with this type of technology has been a huge learning and creative opportunity.It was illuminating to discover that at times the students (MA and Doctoral students inComputer Science) and the artists got excited about the same things and at other timeswe seemed to speak different languages. An integral part of collaboration iscommunication, and this proved to be exciting and frustrating in finding a platform formutual discourse. Despite at times having to rely on pure faith, the results wereexcellent and a tribute to the professionalism and dedication of all involved.

To view ‘The Crown Affair’ one can only see the work with the aid of a 3D visor that ishoused in the binocular station (bird watching station) along with camera, motionsensors and headphone speakers. Horizontal and vertical rotations of the binoculartrigger markers that make virtual objects appear and move in the real space.

The Crown AffairLonnie Hutchinson (artist), Billy Chang, Eric Woods (HITLab)Sound: Lonnie Hutchinson, Billy Chang. Text: Nova PaulMelanie Daniel’s world is terrorised by birds. To the protagonist in Alfred Hitchcock’sfilm any feathered thing becomes a menace. The birds in The Crown Affair wreak havoc

in the characters’ lives, but they appear to do so only because these lives are alreadyin chaos. They manifest as symptoms of psychic and sexual disturbance, symbolic ofthe fact that the order of things has been messed with.

Lonnie Hutchinson’s “The Crown Affair” animates motifs familiar from her installationand multimedia work, and gives flight to them in a virtual environment. Christchurchtown hall is rendered in a sketch, as though an architectural building for what is yet tobe built (and so perhaps could be unbuilt). Above the pencilled in building a crown isplaced, peaked like a crepe paper party hat. Circling and swooping around this turret,birds fill the night sky. Watching as if from a viewing platform, our virtual realityheadset becomes binoculars for bird watching…

Interlude with AR

Creative New Zealand Arts Pasifika Awards

Creative New Zealand Arts Pasifika Awards for 2005 announced inChristchurch recently saw John Ioane presented with the Pacific

Innovation and Excellence Award. Other winners included Maui‘Ofamo’oni , who won the Salamander Gallery Award for EmergingPacific Visual Artist and Miria George the Emerging Pacific Artists’Award. Congratulations to all the award winners.

Watch the Tautai Website and the weekly Pacific ArtsDiary for News of Upcoming Events and Exhibitions*

22

Chair’s ReportNi sa bula vinaka

The trustees welcome Tui Hobson and Chris van Doren as Board Members. Tui waselected to the Board at the annual general meeting on 1 October 2005 and Chris

was subsequently co-opted to join the Board. We are also pleased to welcome backItania Nikolao to add to the management of Tautai. Itty has taken up the position ofExecutive Director and this role compliments that of Lonnie Hutchinson who continuesas Trust Manager/Artistic Director.

With the additional resources available for 2006 a big year is being planned. Inresponse to requests from artists, Lonnie and Itty will be looking at arranging moreexhibitions next year. In the first quarter some upcoming activities to look out for

include an exhibition on Waiheke Island and Tautai will also be curating an exhibitionat the Aotea Centre/The Edge. Tautai is also looking ahead to the Pasifika Festival inMarch and planning our involvement.

We are continuing the work of updating the artist’s pages and information on the Tautaiwebsite. Additional features have been developed and we are also hoping to add to thewebsite audio copies of the weekly interviews of Tautai artists on Radio 531PI.

We wish our members and supporters all the best as we head into the Christmasbreak. We will continue to support our members and their growing involvement inexhibitions and events all over the world which recently included the main centres inNew Zealand, and New York, Paris, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong,Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and Rarotonga

As always, thank you from me and Co Chair, Jim Vivieaere, and the rest of the Boardfor your continuing support of Tautai Trust. Ni sa moce mada – Gina Cole (Co Chair)

D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 5 w w w . t a u t a i . o r g • t a u t a i @ t a u t a i . o r g

Earlier this year Lonnie Hutchinson was chosen to take part in a rather unusual project– she has written an overview for us.

Four fellowships were awarded early in 2005 for collaborative projects between artistsand students from HITLabNZ (Human Interface Technology Laboratory) at the University

of Canterbury. The artists selected were Ian Clothier, Janine Randerson, Angela Main &Caroline McCaw (who worked on a collaborative project) and myself. Over the year theprojects have been developed through a workshop programme and were then exhibited inSeptember at the Christchurch Convention Centre as part of Converge 05.

One type of technology that the HITLabNZ has specialised in developing, is that ofAugmented Reality (AR). AR makes virtual 3D objects appear in the real world,attached to real objects. The virtual world is a new space within which the artists havedealt with issues as diverse as biomorphism, the va, nature and zoomorphism, giving avisual voice to concerns that would otherwise be difficult to materialise in the realworld but are nevertheless part of our contemporary consciousness.

Working with this type of technology has been a huge learning and creative opportunity.It was illuminating to discover that at times the students (MA and Doctoral students inComputer Science) and the artists got excited about the same things and at other timeswe seemed to speak different languages. An integral part of collaboration iscommunication, and this proved to be exciting and frustrating in finding a platform formutual discourse. Despite at times having to rely on pure faith, the results wereexcellent and a tribute to the professionalism and dedication of all involved.

To view ‘The Crown Affair’ one can only see the work with the aid of a 3D visor that ishoused in the binocular station (bird watching station) along with camera, motionsensors and headphone speakers. Horizontal and vertical rotations of the binoculartrigger markers that make virtual objects appear and move in the real space.

The Crown AffairLonnie Hutchinson (artist), Billy Chang, Eric Woods (HITLab)Sound: Lonnie Hutchinson, Billy Chang. Text: Nova PaulMelanie Daniel’s world is terrorised by birds. To the protagonist in Alfred Hitchcock’sfilm any feathered thing becomes a menace. The birds in The Crown Affair wreak havoc

in the characters’ lives, but they appear to do so only because these lives are alreadyin chaos. They manifest as symptoms of psychic and sexual disturbance, symbolic ofthe fact that the order of things has been messed with.

Lonnie Hutchinson’s “The Crown Affair” animates motifs familiar from her installationand multimedia work, and gives flight to them in a virtual environment. Christchurchtown hall is rendered in a sketch, as though an architectural building for what is yet tobe built (and so perhaps could be unbuilt). Above the pencilled in building a crown isplaced, peaked like a crepe paper party hat. Circling and swooping around this turret,birds fill the night sky. Watching as if from a viewing platform, our virtual realityheadset becomes binoculars for bird watching…

Interlude with AR

Creative New Zealand Arts Pasifika Awards

Creative New Zealand Arts Pasifika Awards for 2005 announced inChristchurch recently saw John Ioane presented with the Pacific

Innovation and Excellence Award. Other winners included Maui‘Ofamo’oni , who won the Salamander Gallery Award for EmergingPacific Visual Artist and Miria George the Emerging Pacific Artists’Award. Congratulations to all the award winners.

Watch the Tautai Website and the weekly Pacific ArtsDiary for News of Upcoming Events and Exhibitions* 33w w w . t a u t a i . o r g • t a u t a i @ t a u t a i . o r g D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 5

Postcard from San FranciscoIn August, I spent a few weeks in San Francisco, California. I was mainly there to attend

a printmaking techniques workshop run by KALA Print Institute, in Berkley, but also tocheck the art happenings and other happenings of San Francisco. San Francisco hasbeen a town I have always held in high regard, even though I had never been before, Itstruck me as a liberal, revolutionary, anarchist, romantic, idealistic place for Architects,Artists, Poets, dreamers and music lovers. It didn’t disappoint, I totally want to live there.

I stayed in the downtown area, which is next to City Hall and all the other civil servicesbuildings. The buildings were Neo Classical style. My hotel was called Renoir, (itlooked like a miniature version of the flat iron building from Manhattan), this hosted formainly for French speaking guests and it had a lot of impressionist fakes on the wall.

The downtown area was a gigantic cross over of the poor, bohemian, black, Hispanic,Chinese, and lots of homeless. It joined on to the Tenderloin area; which is the poorestneighborhood of the city. It was scary at first but it has big heart, you had to just playalong and look like you belong, then you can soak it up with out getting all anxious.

The best thing about San Francisco is the streets, it’s where the arts comes from,people are just into expressing themselves on a daily basis in any given art form. The

tap dancers and African American bands/rappers are a vision to watch. At most trafficintersections there will a giant mural to entertain you.

There are always buskers and plays in the parks, but the best entertainment camefrom the hippies hanging out in the parks, being themselves. God bless them.

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is an amazing modern structure with greatinterior; it has a solid collection of American POP art, of which I like a lot. They had aminimalist show on featuring Richard Tuttle, who is so minimal his work disappears.

The workshop I did in Berkley was worth the airfare alone, I learnt so much from theseartists, they were really free with their process and ideas, and had a realcontemporary approach to the old methods of the printed image. The tutors weretotally blown away that I had flown all that way for their workshop. Also they werefighting over the postcards of kea and kakapo I had left as a present.

Very funny, to witness two Americans argue over five 50-cent postcards, but they lovethe trivial, sometimes you feel it’s the basis of their whole existence.

Big thanks to Creative New Zealand for helping me get there and back. Sheyne Tuffery

Report from WellingtonTalofa, Kia Ora and Gidday from Wellington, Ole Maiava here . . .

Hey peoples just thought I’d pre-empt a “What’s up in Welly?” column destined for thisnewsletter in the not too distant future. As you all can appreciate, this cultural capitalof ours has some outstanding offerings in the Arts field especially for us “Pasifikans”.

We just recently had an amazing conference called “Culture Moves” at Te Papa whichbrought together dance practitioners from all over the globe for a three day workshopand talkfest. Good to see around town Ani, Fiona, Louise, Lemi, Sefa, Lisa, Buckwheat,Cristina, April and so, so many, many more, they brought such a festive air with them.

It was good to catch up with the dance group from Guam lead by Vince Reyes, who putout a cry for help earlier in the year through, Anton Carter as well as Yuki Kihara forassistance with best advice for accommodation, travel etc. We took up the challengeand began an information sharing exercise via internet, so good to network this way andbe of help to our Chamorro brothers and sisters. When we met at the “Te Ra o te Reo”showcase in Porirua, Vince and his group were very happy with the way it was allpanning out. It was good to see Guam’s traditional dance being showcased in Porirua,along with Dei Hamo and a wealth of up and coming Pasifika local talent like, Bopsicle,Beatroots, Ko Au, Justice and students from Whitireia Polytechnics music programme.

Michel Tuffery has been around for a few “cuppas” lately, been good to catch up, he’sall business and worms at the moment, just finished another set of “ Cookies” ( hisCaptain Cook/Tupaia inspired paintings) which sold well . . as usual!

Last month I had the pleasure of being an “International Artist” at the “ Art of Politics

and Politics of Art” Conference held at Queensland Museum, stepping in for Michel Twho could not make it due to extreme work commitments. Participating as a panelmember and promoting the arts from a “native” perspective was both invigorating andexciting. I also had the pleasure of undertaking a mini-residency at GriffithUniversities’ - bachelor of visual arts - contemporary aboriginal indigenous arts unitwhich resulted in some new work on my part. It was a real eye opener and I lookforward to nurturing that collaborative avenue with other artists like Subba Ghoshfrom India, Kelvin Yazzie from Tuscon, USA, Fiona Foley, Jennifer Herd, Richard Bellfrom Australia and Dr Michael Mel from Papua New Guinea.

Down here in ‘Welly” we also have our fair share of Hip Hopsters, who happen to bedoing some innovative things in our town, good to see Te Kupu, Kerb 1 and SaraTamati doing much good work, check out – http://www.thenext.org.nz

Also our muso’s like “Fat Freddies Drop” good to see that they’re in the InternationalFestival of the Arts line up for next year, which reminds me, yeah, some great acts willbe down here in “Welly Town” for that and the Fringe Festival as well. Watch this space!

Hopefully this will give you a taster of what could be !! You even have the chance tooffer information, advice or gossip to this pusher of keyboard keys, so if you havesomething that you want put into this section from Wellington then send me an email– nuclear-free@paradise.net.nz – I won’t promise anything but hey, who knows?

Much love / energy / thought Ole Maiava from Wellington

Chloe has been creating art since the day she learnt to hold a pen.A self proclaimed artist at the age of four, she has been

producing a prolific amount of work ever since. Creative subjectshave been favourites for her and she has gained stimulation for herart work through her father’s interest in underground art and comicsas well as through her interaction with the many family friends whoare artists. Chloe has received many accolades in her fifteen shortyears, and has already won numerous awards – just doing what sheloves to do. In 2002 she was selected as a finalist in the JamesWallace Art Awards and has also won the Armageddon competitionstwo years running. Chloe (aka - Chlomo) has work on two websites- Fan Art central and Deviant Art and has the opening comic strip in the latest 'New Ground', showcasing thebest of upcoming NZ Comic creators by Jeremy Bishop of DMC comics. www.DMCNZ.co.nzSylvia & Chloe Marsters

Chloe Marsters

Watch the Tautai Website and the weekly Pacific ArtsDiary for News of Upcoming Events and Exhibitions*

Tautai receivessignificant annualfunding from:

ARTS COUNCIL OF NEW ZEALAND TOI AOTEAROA

44

Design and layout of the TautaiContemporary Pacific Arts Trust NewsletterDesktop Graphics LtdContact: Tagi Cole

43 Selbourne Street, Grey Lynn, Auckland • Ph : 09 -376 3889 • Fax: 09-376 3969Mob: 027-482 6302 • desktopgraphics@xtra.co.nz

Itania Nikolao

Fresh Horizons 2005

Tautai Trust has taken the opportunity to make a significant development of its management structure.Expanding on this infrastructure has been in the reinstatement of Itania (Itty) Nikolao as the Executive

Director. This new position and the role of Lonnie Hutchinson who is the Trust Manager/Artistic Directorprovides strong support for Tautai to enhance the implementation of strategic objectives which Tautaiaims to provide for its members. Itty writes: Avea ia lenei taimi ou te fa'afaetai atu ai i sui mamalu o le Tautai Trust i le latou lagolago mai pea ia matou galuegafa'atino. O le agaga a tatou galulue fa'atasi o le alualu manuia fo'i lea o le taunu'uga o a tatou fa'amoemoe mo le lumana'i.E leai lava se fa'amoemoe e le taunu'u pe a le tatou galulue fa'atasi. O le fa'amoemoe telega ina ia amanaia, ma ia fa'atauaina,galuega fai a le Tautai Trust e le mamalu o tagata Pasefika o lo'o afifio i Aotearoa.

O le fesili la, o fea le magaala e ta'ita'iina ai galuega fai a le Trust fa'apea le mamalu o le au tusiata pasefika i Aotearoa? Ole sailiga o le tali talafeagai o lenei fesili o le a faia lea ma fetu pupula i la'u galue. O le fa'amoemoe ia avea la'u galuega ile puleaga o le Trust ina ia maua ai se matat'ia aoga aua le alualu pea i luma ogaluega fa'atino a tusiata o le Pasefika. O le lu'itau lenei o le a tu'u atoa i ai lo'umalosi ma lo'u atamai.

Ma le fa'aaloalo tele – Itty Nikolao

Lau susuga John Hellesoe faafetai tele i lau fesoasoani taua ile faaliliuina o lautusi. Manuia tele lau galuega ma lou fesoasoani faafetai lava.

As well as her roles in arts management, Itty has continued to developher art practice. Her most recent exhibition was at SalamanderGallery, Christchurch in September of this year. Around the same timeshe also had work in a show at the Papakura Community Gallery. Ittyis working towards a solo exhibition next year.

Auction News

Congratulationsto Sheyne Tuffery

Congratulations to Sheyne Tuffery who has been confirmed asthe Macmillan Brown/Creative New Zealand Pacific Artist in

Residence for 2006. Sheyne is a multi-media visual artist whoseprimary mediums are painting, animation and printmakingalthough he is perhaps best known for the dynamic style of hisprints and woodcuts. His latest solo show ‘Gondawana Waka’ended recently at the Lane Gallery in Auckland.

The Macmillan Brown Residency was begun in 1996, with FatuFeu’u being the first recipient. Since then Michel Tuffery, JohnPule, Andy Leleisi’uao, Lonnie Hutchinson, Filipe Tohi, LurleneChristiansen, Emma Kesha, Siaosi Mulipola, Erolia Ifopo, DaveFane and Tusiata Avia have been awarded the residency whichhas a three month tenure and a $12,000 grant.

After many months of organisation finally the time arrived this September to head off to Porirua forthe Tautai Fresh Horizons workshop at Pataka.

Lonnie Hutchinson and I travelled from Auckland, the other tutors Michel Tuffery and Dagmar Dyck werebased in Wellington and the Hutt so were on hand. Thirty students had enrolled on the course from eightschools around the region, including Tawa College, Wellington East, Weltec, Bishop Viard, Whitireia,Newlands College, Aotea College and St Catherines.

After a brief discussion about the weekend- the students selected which tutor and projects they wouldwork on and set to work.

Lonnie’s group headed off to the $2 Shop where they were each given $5 to purchase materials- thisgroup spent some time creating mini installations which were then photographed and drawn. It was greatto see a group of young creative people working through ideas about conceptual art and developinginstallation based work that really meant something to them. Their activities culminated in a collaborativeinstallation in the gallery and a wall of spontaneous painted sketches which worked incredibly well on anumber of levels and fully conveyed their youth, energy and enthusiasm for the project.

Dagmar and Michel worked collaboratively and had their group producing a series of drawings workingout individual motifs and designs. These were then translated to wood blocks and carved out over theremainder of the weekend. The students were so involved with their blocks it was hard to get them tostop for food breaks and most chose to work right through.

Anne Philbin from Whitireia very kindly allowed Michel to print the blocks using the schools printing press.This meant each student had an edition of 3 prints from their block. The display of these prints alongside thewood blocks and the drawings in the final exhibition gave visitors a great understanding of the processes.

As much as the workshop was about the final exhibition of work made during the weekend, it was alsothe round table discussions over lunch and while working;. Lonnie, Dagmar and Michel were very generouswith sharing their knowledge and experiences and I know many of the young people were inspired by themand encouraged to review their future and put plans in place for survival as practising artists.

The success of the weekend was due in no small part to the efforts of Pataka Education coordinatorMargaret Tolland who provided wonderful support and encouragement. Congratulations must also go to awonderful group of young people who spent the first weekend of their holidays making art and loving it.

Deborah White, Project Coordinator Fresh Horizons

The Pasifika Styles art auction went off with a bang raising over$14,000 after auctioning over forty artworks donated by twenty

fabulous artists. The auction attracted a full house to Objectspacewhere a Cook Island band played as the guests arrived and were servedrefreshments donated by Kim Crawford Wines, Delmaine Fine Foodsand Lincoln Bakeries. The funds raised will be distributed by AmiriaHenare and Rosanna Raymond, curators of the Pasifika StylesExhibition which will open at the University of Cambridge Museum ofArchaeology and Anthropology in May 2006, to contribute to theexpenses of the participants who might otherwise be unable to attend.

We would like to thank all the artists, volunteers and sponsorsagain for their generous support.

Brenda Railey and Shigeyuki Kihara

This group evolved out of a workshop initiative, organised by Creative NewZealand's Pacific Arts Committee.

Three years later with nearly twenty members, the group meets every two weeksto share their work and support the development of writing skills in variousgenres, from journalism, lyric writing, fiction, poetry and theatre.

The following collaboration is from an exercise led by poet Tusiata Avia duringher residency at Macmillan Brown earlier this year.

The ancestors just smile at me pretending to be a tourist, looking around like I cant see without sunglasses, concrete slides on the bottom of my shoes, light shines- opaque in the grey water, a broken mirror for your snow white Beauty myth, cutting your face to pieces,combing your Barbie wire hair with forgetfulness

The Christchurch FirstDraft Writers Group

D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 5 w w w . t a u t a i . o r g • t a u t a i @ t a u t a i . o r gWatch the Tautai Website and the weekly Pacific ArtsDiary for News of Upcoming Events and Exhibitions*