Bristol’s hub of Indigenous peoples’ art – Rainmaker Gallery on Whiteladies Road – is welcoming world-renowned Māori traditional tattooist and artist Te Rangitu Netana for his first ever solo exhibition this month: Moko Puna
Te Rangitu Netana has been on an important mission for the last 35 years, developing the art of traditional Māori Tā Moko tattooing – which he originally practised among his tribe in Aotearoa (New Zealand) near Waipapa. Te Rangitu is of North Island Ngapuhi, Ngati Wai and Te Arawa tribal descent, and upon moving to the UK in 2015 with his family found himself as one of the few traditional Tā Moko practitioners in Europe, experienced in both machine and chisel methods of applying his creations to clients’ skin.
He’s recently been working from a new space called Ritual Spirit Studio in Montpelier, and though Te Rangitu has been an incredible force around the world promoting the truth of Tā Moko and advocating for his people, he tells us “Tā Moko is one of those things that I love to practise, and it’s also how I express my indigeneity. But I am not just a Tā Moko practitioner: I’m an artist, I paint and I do a lot of things. Tattooing is not the only thing I want to be remembered for.”
And rightly so. His canvases stretch far beyond the human form. A previous collaboration with luxury French fashion house Hermès led to a specially-designed scarf that represented how Māori see the environment (pictured, bottom right). “It has all our environments in the design – the oceans, our forests, our skies, the air, mountains and rivers. Hermès also produced a little booklet that came with the scarf with all the information of what the story was about. My hopes were to conjure this imagery inside the wearer’s soul, hopefully to understand how important our environment is to not only our survival but also to our connection to who we were, what we are now, and how we walk forward in this world.
“The influences, the storytelling and how we derive our patterns from nature are all connected [through Tā Moko, and drawing/painting], but I find that I can do things on paper that you can’t do on the body.”
A solo exhibition
His friendship with Joanne Prince, founder of Rainmaker Gallery (formed over their shared connections among Native American friends in New Mexico) has provided the perfect opportunity for Te Rangitu to use the foundation of his Tā Moko practice as a springboard into other realms of artistry. He will be exhibiting a completely new body of work called Moko Puna at Rainmaker from 7 March until 26 April, while also delivering a demonstration of Tā Moko tattooing – using his own hand-made traditional chisel tools – during Bristol Gallery Weekend (20-23 March).
“These Tā Moko tools are ancient to us, and a connection to our ancestors’ practices,” Te Rangitu explains.
“To hear that sound again, the tapping of the tools and the marking of the skin, is an awakening; it’s a birthing into this living realm, it’s the same sound that our ancestors heard, way back then, way back in the beginning.
“Normally, during this process there’s a lot of laughter and we have a lot of singing. I don’t know if we’ll be doing any singing during the demonstration, it’ll just be me and maybe some music! But it’s a very open thing to come and experience, just to be respectful really. I will be sitting in a space where no one stands behind me, and if people want to join us on the mat, it’s best to take their shoes off and just watch.”
Te Rangitu wants the experience to be very open, just like back at home with his tribe, so people feel welcome.
And what can we expect from Te Rangitu’s pieces on display? He’s keen to express his love for Māori art, its shapes, symbols and colour, through his work – but he’s not afraid to create his new traditions, too. “I want to try to show people what traditional pattern looks like, but mixed with contemporary forms and colours. Being an Indigenous artist, everything is political, everything has something to do with our culture, our traditions and our people. I don’t know what to expect from people’s reactions, but I hope they see something different, and I hope it might even challenge them.
“I want my art to sow seeds: if it makes one person think differently, then I’m happy with it – whether it’s a negative or positive reaction. I hope people take away something positive, see something beautiful, and try to understand how we [Māori] see the world.”
People of the land
The Māori community’s current situation in New Zealand has been on Te Rangitu’s mind during the time he’s been painting and preparing for his exhibition. “We have a huge year ahead of us as a culture… As a Native person it always seems like we get somewhere and then they [the government] take it away. Nothing is set in stone, so it’s really hard to be tangata whenua – people of the land – to know that they can snatch the ground from underneath us (literally); that they can give and they can take away.”
Te Rangitu acknowledges that his people are resilient – a strength forged by this situation and power struggle in New Zealand.
“I want my paintings to show our power, our strength and our beauty. Without our lands, our people will disappear. In some ways, we’re the world’s early warning system – people don’t like to listen to us that much, but it’ll be to their own detriment if they don’t, as we’ve got something to say. People really need to listen instead of talking.
“I think it’s a good time for Indigenous people to step out of their comfort zone and come into the world,” Te Rangitu says. “I hope to show people a contemporary side to our culture, which is not often seen over here. Māori culture is viewed by some as purely traditional, but what if we were to consider that what is traditional now could have once been considered contemporary? Everything that we did was once the beginning of something, so we’re always evolving. We are still dealing with colonisation – and not only understanding our past but understanding how to approach the future. There is a lack of authentic Māori art and imagery in Europe, so hopefully I can play a small part in changing that.”
rainmakerart.co.uk; 140 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, BS8 2RS; terangitu.com. Moko Puna is on display from 7 March to 26 April.
