Te Papa National Services conservation workshops

Protecting and conserving taonga will be the subject of a conservation workshop for iwi, marae, hapū, and whānau being hosted by Te Ahu Museum and Te Papa next month.

The wānanga from 30 June to 1 July will be a collaboration of Māori conservators from the museum sector and local marae. The workshop will be held over two days at Tuhirangi Marae in Waimā.

Motukaraka Marae, Mitimiti Marae, Puketawa Marae, Tāheke Marae had conservation workshops earlier in the year.

The initiative will empower Māori as kaitiaki of their taonga and promote succession planning for groups of Māori conservators who work directly with iwi, hapū and marae. Funding is provided by the Mātauranga Māori Te Awe Kōtuku programme.

Professional independent conservators, Rangi Te Kanawa from Ngāti Maniapoto and Rose Evans from Te Ati Awa, will provide guidance on caring for taonga such as korowai (ornamental cloaks), whakairo (carvings), and tukutuku (ornamental lattice work inside meeting houses).

The sessions will also include valuable insights from Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision staff, New Zealand’s audiovisual archive.

Te Ahu Museum staff are committed to helping marae and communities connect with and preserve their taonga for generations to come. To do this they are engaging with national agencies like Te Papa to identify funding opportunities for taonga projects.

Projects include digitising ancestral photograph collections, offering guidance on suitable storage options for marae taonga, and facilitating workshops to foster a reconnection between the community and their cherished taonga.

You can stay up to date with the Te Ahu Museum via its Facebook Page. 

Image: Taken from the Motukaraka marae workshop in September 2022.