Tenei au, tenei au (This is me, this is me)

Ko tā *Tenei au, tenei au (This is me, this is me)*, 2006 he tohutoru i ngā auaha takitaki, auaha takaporepore o te kōwhaiwhai, koia te toi peita tūrehurehu e ahurei ai ki te Māori. Ko tā tēnei toi he tūhura i te wāhi tōrunga, tōraro hoki kia puta ai tētahi āhua horihori, arā te pari me te timu i runga i te mata peita ahu-rua. I a ia e tamariki ana, kāore a Kura Te Waru Rewiri i kite i te kōwhaiwhai i tōna marae a Mangaiti i Te Tai Tokerau; heoi anō, kei te mārama ia ki te mana o ngā taonga e whakanikohia ki te kōwhaiwhai taea atu ki te hoe, te hue, te waka, te heke o te wharenui. He puakitanga te *Tenei au, tenei au* – he whakakoia a te tangata i a ia anō, ā, e rite ana ki ngā hoahoa kōwhaiwhai ahurei a te ringa toi nei, he karipi tēnei ki te tangata takitahi e noho nei i roto i te rōpū.

*Tenei au, tenei au (This is me, this is me)*, 2006 references the painted rhythmic and tumbling forms of kōwhaiwhai (rafter painting), which is recognised as the unique abstract painting practice of Māori. The work’s exploration of positive and negative space gives the illusion of receding and forward-moving forms on a two-dimensional picture plane. Kura Te Waru Rewiri did not grow up with painted kōwhaiwhai in her home marae (communal space) of Mangaiti in the Far North; however, she understands the mana (prestige) associated with all things adorned with kōwhaiwhai, including hoe (paddles), hue (calabashes), waka (canoes) and the painted rafters inside a meeting house. *Tenei au, tenei au (This is me, this is me)* is a statement – a positive affirmation of self and much like the artist’s unique kōwhaiwhai designs here, it presents a glimpse into the individual that sits within the collective.(Toi Tū Toi Ora: Contemporary Māori Art, 2020)

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