Maungapōhatu

This series of photographs recall the artist's whakapapa (genealogical) ties to Tūhoe iwi (tribe) and Te Urewera region in the eastern Bay of Plenty. Titled taku Tūhoetana, the suite of images capture significant landmarks, events and moments specific to Tūhoe tribal history. The artist interlaces historical images with contemporary photographs to reflect a connection to the past while locating the conversation in the present. We see this connection echoed with photographs in which parts of the body act like a form of self-portraiture that locate the artist in a Tūhoe narrative.

For Ratana, this suite of C-type photographic prints with their custom-made oak frames, echo those found in the Māori meeting houses of the early 1900s at a time of great cultural change. In this regard the artist collapses past and present to offer subtlety nuanced conversation about heritage and connection. taku Tūhoetana, 2008 explores notions of collective memory and presence and the importance of whakapapa (genealogy) as the conduit to the past, present and future.

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