Story: Whakairo – Māori carving

Modern marae: Te Hono ki Hawaiki (1st of 2)

Modern marae: Te Hono ki Hawaiki

The extraordinarily innovative meeting house Te Hono ki Hawaiki opened at Rongomaraeroa, the marae of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, in 1997. Master carver Cliff Whiting headed the construction team. He chose to use customwood (MDF) rather than increasingly rare and precious native timbers, which in turn enabled dramatic 3D sculptural effects. To finish these unprecedented carvings, Whiting used colours not available to carvers in earlier times.

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Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Permission of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Brett Graham, 'Whakairo – Māori carving - Carving in urban environments', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/43114/modern-marae-te-hono-ki-hawaiki (accessed 27 April 2024)

Story by Brett Graham, published 22 Oct 2014